Glossary
Adtech terms simply explained by our in-house experts

What Is Ad Win Rate?

Win rate in advertising is the percentage of ad impressions that have been won in a real-time bidding (RTB) auction or in ad exchanges.

In other words, it highlights a demand source’s success rate of bidding on available ad inventory and winning the auction.
Key Takeaways
  • Win rate indicates how successful a demand source is at securing ad impressions during an RTB auction
  • Factors such as bid prices, ad quality, targeting parameters, bidding strategy, and demand for ad inventory affect win rate
  • Advertisers and publishers should monitor this metric over time to optimize their long-term business strategies

How Do You Calculate Win Rate?


Ad win rate is calculated by taking the number of ad impressions won by the number of impressions bid on. You then multiply this number by 100 to see the win rate as a percentage.

how to calculate win rate in advertising

For example, if a demand-side platform (DSP) bids on 50 ad impressions and wins 20, its win rate is 40 percent. 

Various factors affect this rate, such as bid prices, ad quality, targeting parameters, competitor bidding strategies, and the overall demand for a publisher’s ad inventory. It might also depend on the performance of the DSP platform.

Demand sources can increase their win rate by either increasing their bid price to win more impressions or bidding in fewer auctions to increase their success rate – this might include being more selective with the ad inventory they choose to bid on.

Why Is Win Rate in Advertising Important?

This rate is an important metric for mobile publishers and advertisers to monitor closely over time, for various reasons.

They can use win rates to optimize various parts of their business. 

  • Publishers look at this metric to optimize their ad monetization strategies by better understanding the performance of their ad inventory and how attractive it is to advertisers. A higher rate can lead to greater revenue. 

  • Advertisers monitor this metric to optimize their bidding strategies and bidding algorithm. Higher win rates mean that an advertiser’s bidding strategy is effective. They should, however, keep an eye on bid prices to ensure they remain profitable as they secure more ad impressions

It’s important to remember that this rate doesn’t only reflect an ad source’s performance – it can be influenced by their bid rate. This is why you shouldn’t compare win rates between different ad networks

High win rates might also reflect that there’s little bidding competition for the ad placement. 

Conclusion

Win rate in advertising is an important metric for mobile advertisers and publishers to monitor over time, so that they can fine-tune their business strategies. 

Publishers can gauge the attractiveness of their ad inventory through high win rates, while advertisers can better understand the success rate of their bidding strategy. 

What Is Win Rate in Advertising?

Win rate is the percentage of ad impressions that have been won in a real-time bidding (RTB) auction or in ad exchanges.

How Do You Calculate Win Rate?

You take the number of ad impressions won and divide it by the number of impressions bid on. You then multiply this number by 100 to see the win rate as a percentage.

What Is the Difference Between Win and Bid Rate?

While win rate shows the success rate of an ad source in winning auctions, bid rate indicates the percentage of ad requests that receive at least one bid. A high win rate does not necessarily translate to a high bid rate and vice versa.



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