As an affiliate marketer, finding the right ad network to promote your offers can be tricky. You want high-quality traffic that converts, not just random clicks. That's why many affiliates turn to CPM (cost per thousand impressions) ad networks. CPM networks allow you to get your offers in front of targeted audiences without having to pay per click.
But with so many CPM ad networks out there, how do you know which ones to use? In this article, we'll uncover the top CPM ad networks for affiliate marketers in 2024 based on traffic quality, high CPM rates, and offer matchmaking.
We'll also answer some key questions like What should you look for in a top CPM network?, How can you ensure your offer aligns with the audience, What CPM rates can you expect, How do payments work?
By the end, you'll have the knowledge to pick the best CPM ad network to scale your affiliate promotions and maximize revenue.
Let's get started!
What are CPM Ad Networks?
CPM Ad Networks are platforms that use the Cost Per Mille (CPM) model to monetize digital content. CPM, which stands for “cost per mille” or “cost per thousand“, is a metric used in the advertising industry to denote the price of 1,000 advertisement impressions on a webpage.
In the CPM model, advertisers pay a fixed charge to website owners for every thousand views of an ad. This model is based on impressions, a statistic that measures the amount of engagements with a specific ad. If an ad is placed on the same page of a website twice, the advertiser will have to pay for two impressions, even though there is only a one-page view.
Quite a deal right?
Top CPM Ad Networks for Publishers with High CPM
| Ad Networks | Minimum Payout |
|---|---|
| Adsterra | $5 |
| HilltopAds | $10 |
| ClickAdilla | $50 |
| JuicyAds | $25 |
| Google AdSense | $50 |
| Media.net | NA |
| PropellerAds | $100 |
| Monetag | $1000 (Wire Transfer) |
| SmartyAds | $500 |
| UberCPM | $25 |
1. Adsterra
Adsterra is a globally recognized ad network, known for its innovative technology and human intelligence. Founded in 2013, it has grown into a reputable platform, serving over 30 billion ad impressions per month worldwide.
Adsterra Key Features
- Provides multiple cost models such as CPA, CPM, CPI, CPL, RTB, and CPC.
- Three-level malware protection standard.
- Serves over 30 billion ad impressions per month worldwide, with 70% of traffic being mobile.
- Variety of ad formats including Popunder, Social Bar, Push Ads, Native Ads, Banner Ads, and Video pre-roll (VAST).
- Provides genuine traffic from 18,000+ direct publishers worldwide.
- Payment methods include Visa/Mastercard, Paxum, Capitalist, PayPal, Webmoney, and Wire Transfer.
Pros and Cons
2. HilltopAds
HilltopAds stands out as a preferred choice among the best CPM Ad Networks for publishers and affiliate marketers. It offers a suite of features that make monetization easy, providing top-converting offers and high CPM rates.
With no minimum traffic requirements, it accepts websites from all geos and various niches, ensuring a high fill rate without blocked impressions. HilltopAds' commitment to quality traffic and constant updates to its ad formats inventory make it an excellent platform for maximizing revenue.
HilltopAds Key Features
- Supports various ad formats, including POPUNDER code, VAST/VPAID Videos, In-Page push notifications, and direct link ads.
- Accepts websites across various niches, including Downloads, Entertainment/Fun, eCommerce, etc.
- Offers convenient weekly payments once the minimum balance of $10 is reached.
- Does not have any traffic requirements with respect to the quantity of traffic.
- Promises a 100% fill rate with no blocked impressions.
Pros and Cons
3. ClickAdilla
ClickAdilla Ad Network is a preferred choice for publishers and advertisers seeking high-quality traffic and diverse ad formats. With its user-friendly self-serve platform, ClickAdilla offers a range of ad formats, including Popunder, Banner, Web-push, In-stream video, In-page, Native, and more.
The network covers 240+ GEOs and provides advanced targeting options, real-time bidding, and campaign management tools. ClickAdilla's commitment to quality traffic, anti-fraud, and anti-spam systems make it an excellent choice for maximizing revenue and campaign performance.
ClickAdilla Key Features
- Supports 13 ad formats and 11 payment methods.
- Provides real-time bidding, campaign management, and reporting tools.
- Has a daily reach of over 4.5 billion users in 240+ countries.
- Offers a convenient personal account available in 5 languages (EN, ES, DE, RU, JP).
- Offers advanced targeting options and bid management capabilities.
Pros and Cons
4. JuicyAds
JuicyAds stands out as a top choice among adult ad networks for publishers and advertisers seeking high-converting traffic. With its massive global reach, diverse targeting options, and suite of optimization tools, JuicyAds empowers users to maximize campaign performance and revenue.
Its commitment to quality traffic, anti-fraud systems, and publisher support make JuicyAds an excellent platform for monetizing adult websites and promoting adult offers worldwide.
JuicyAds Key Features
- Specializes in adult entertainment websites, with traffic sources from Tubes, Cams, Videos, and Social Networks.
- Offers ad types such as Banners, Pop-Unders, and Native ads.
- Provides cost models of CPC and CPM.
- Requires a minimum deposit of $50 for Direct Buy and $100 for RON Campaigns.
- Supports payment methods like Credit cards (Visa, Mastercard), PayPal, Paxum, and Wire (min $1,000).
- Provides a personal account manager for ad budgets over $500.
Pros and Cons
5. Google AdSense
Google AdSense is a powerful ad network developed by Google, offering a platform for advertisers to display brief advertisements, service offerings, product listings, and videos to web users. It provides a broad reach, placing ads on Google search results pages, other Google sites like Maps and Shopping, and thousands of partnering websites across the internet.
AdSense is a great way for website owners to monetize their traffic, offering a competitive revenue share for ads displayed on their site.
Google AdSense Key Features
- Free and simple way for website owners to monetize their content.
- Automatically optimizes your ad inventory to maximize your revenue.
- Flexible revenue sharing between platform owners and their users, with payments facilitated directly by Google.
- You have the ability to block ads you don't like and customize where ads appear.
Pros and Cons
6. Media.net
Media.net is a leading global advertising company that provides a comprehensive portfolio of advertising technology. It manages high-quality ad supply on over 500,000 websites and is licensed by some of the largest publishers, ad networks, and ad tech companies worldwide. Media.net offers access to one of the largest pools of advertisers in the world, maximizing monetization for content creators.
It provides easy access to high-quality display ads by connecting with all major buyer networks. Its proprietary ad format, contextual ads, filters user intent via relevant search keywords, resulting in finely targeted ads and higher revenues.
Media.net Key Features
- Offers contextually targeted ads, ensuring that the ads displayed are relevant to the content on the publisher's site.
- Manages high-quality ad supply on over 500,000 websites.
- Media.net's offerings incorporate proprietary machine-learning algorithms.
- Media.net allows publishers to choose from a range of ad units.
- Comprehensive analytics dashboard that provides real-time data on ad impressions, clicks, revenue, and more.
Pros and Cons
7. PropellerAds
PropellerAds stands out as a top choice for publishers and affiliates seeking high revenue through CPM ad campaigns. With its massive global reach, diverse vertical targeting, and a suite of performance optimization tools, PropellerAds empowers users to maximize campaign ROI.
Its wide range of ad formats and fraud protection ensure monetization without jeopardizing site experience or reputation. PropellerAds' commitment to transparency and publisher support cements its position as a preferred CPM ad network.
PropellerAds Key Features
- Access to a global audience of over 1 billion users.
- Advanced anti-fraud algorithms to ensure audience quality and protect brand reputation.
- Registration of 12+ billion ad impressions daily, covering 195+ GEOs.
- Full ad coverage across all devices, OS, and GEOs with MultiTag.
- Support for multiple payment methods including PayPal, ePayments, WebMoney, Payoneer, Skrill, and Wire Transfer.
- Weekly payouts from $5 with the fully automated payment system.
Pros and Cons
8. Monetag
Monetag stands out as a top choice for publishers seeking to maximize revenue from their website traffic. With its suite of high-performing ad formats, advanced targeting capabilities, and AI-powered optimization tools, Monetag empowers users to achieve the highest eCPM rates.
Its focus on mainstream verticals and compatibility with other networks make Monetag an excellent option for monetizing web, mobile, and in-app traffic safely and effectively.
Monetag Key Features
- Provides full ad coverage across all devices, geographical locations, and operating systems, ensuring no impressions are wasted.
- Offers a variety of AI-enhanced ad formats, including MultiTag, OnClick Pop-Under Ads, Push Notifications, etc.
- Publishers partnering with Monetag receive 80% of the revenue generated.
- Provides top-performing monetization formats specifically designed for mobile web SDK & APK.
- Multiple payment methods, including Payoneer, PayPal, Skrill, Wire Transfer, and Webmoney, with a low minimum payout amount starting from $5 for most payment methods.
- Rapid onboarding and real-time reporting to the publishers.
Pros and Cons
9. SmartyAds
SmartyAds is an award-winning omnichannel ad tech platform offering robust solutions for publishers and advertisers. Its full-stack infrastructure streamlines real-time campaign management and inventory purchasing across devices. For publishers, SmartyAds provides monetization opportunities through its SSP, maximizing revenues through high fill rates and CPMs.
Meanwhile, its DSP combines programmatic and direct buying for cross-channel ad delivery. With advanced targeting and optimization driven by AI, SmartyAds empowers effective omnichannel strategies.
SmartyAds Key Features
- Offers profitable ad monetization solutions, maximizing publishers' yield.
- Provides both a Supply-Side Platform (SSP) and a Demand-Side Platform (DSP) for advertisers and publishers.
- The platform supports a range of ad formats such as banner ads, video ads, native ads, rich media, and more.
- Platform allows the display of ads from other networks, providing a broader choice of ad inventory and increasing revenue opportunities.
Pros and Cons
10. UberCPM
UberCPM is an online ad network based in Canada that simplifies the advertising process. It offers a cost-per-mille (CPM) model, sharing 80% of the revenue with publishers. The network provides instant approval for publishers and has a minimum payout of $10. It supports various payment methods including PayPal, Wire Transfer, and Payoneer.
UberCPM is known for its competitive CPM rates and timely payments. However, it has faced criticism for low impression counts and unsafe ads. It's recommended for publishers to carefully review their terms and performance before joining.
UberCPM Key Features
- Minimum payout for UberCPM is $10, which is relatively low compared to other ad networks.
- UberCPM offers multiple payment methods including PayPal and Wire Transfer.
- UberCPM shares 80% of its revenues with its publishers, which is a higher share compared to many other ad networks.
- UberCPM offers instant approval for publishers, allowing them to start monetizing their websites immediately.
Pros and Cons
What’s the Difference between CPM and CPA Ad Networks?
CPA (Cost Per Action) and CPM (Cost Per Mille) are two different pricing models used in online advertising.
CPA is a model where advertisers pay each time a user completes a specific action, such as a purchase, download, or form submission. This model is often preferred by advertisers as they only pay for successful conversions, but it carries more risk for publishers who only get paid if users convert.
On the other hand, CPM is a model where advertisers pay for every thousand impressions or views of their ad. This model is often used for campaigns aimed at building brand awareness and is less risky for publishers as they get paid per thousand impressions, regardless of user behavior.
Here's a comparison table:
| CPA | CPM | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Cost Per Action: Advertisers pay when a user completes a specific action. | Cost Per Mille: Advertisers pay for every thousand impressions or views of their ad. |
| Risk for Publishers | High: Publishers only get paid if users convert. | Low: Publishers get paid per thousand impressions, regardless of user behavior. |
| Preferred by | Advertisers, as they only pay for successful conversions. | Publishers, as they get paid per thousand impressions. |
| Best Used For | Campaigns that aim to optimize return on ad spend, customer acquisition cost, or lifetime value. | Campaigns that aim to increase brand awareness, reach, or frequency. |
| Payment | Advertisers pay only when the user takes action, such as a subscription, sale, etc. | Advertisers pay a fixed amount for every 1,000 times their ad is displayed. |
Please note that the choice between CPA and CPM depends on the specific goals of the advertising campaign.
Conclusion
The online advertising landscape has evolved significantly over the past decade, with CPM (cost per thousand impressions) ad networks becoming an increasingly popular monetization model for publishers.
CPM ad networks provide publishers with an effective way to monetize website traffic by getting paid for ad impressions. With precise targeting and optimization, publishers can maximize revenue. However, with many options, identifying the best networks for your needs is key.
Consider factors like average CPM rates, payment terms, ad formats, and minimum payouts. Experiment with a few top networks to determine what works best. Though the shifting ad tech landscape brings complexity, trusted partners focused on publisher success can guide you.
What networks have delivered results for you?
