Buy side · what advertisers pay

Spotify ads CPM

By Oliver Wakefield-Smith · updated July 2026

Benchmarks reviewed July 2026 · next review October 2026

The short answer

Spotify Advertising documents its formats (audio, video, podcast placements) and its self-serve Ads Manager entry route; it publishes no average CPM. The channel prices auction-style through Ads Manager, and the citable public facts are the buying mechanics, so that is what this page carries.

Official positionno published rateSpotify publishes Ads Manager entry points and formats, not average CPMsSpotify Advertisingretrieved July 2026

Streaming audio vs podcast host-reads

Both are sound in ears; the products differ at every pricing-relevant layer. Streaming-audio spots are server-inserted into music sessions, bought programmatically, measured as served impressions, and read by an announcer. Podcast host-reads are endorsements inside owned shows, billed per IAB-filtered download at published marketplace averages of $18 to $25 (AdvertiseCast, July 2026). Endorsement trust is the premium the host-read rate card is charging for; a streaming insert buys frequency and scale instead.

Host-read contrast$18Podcast 30-second host-read ad, average CPM per 1,000 downloadsAdvertiseCast podcast advertising ratesretrieved July 2026

Different denominatorIAB v2Podcast impressions are filtered downloads under the IAB Podcast Measurement Technical GuidelinesIAB Tech Lab podcast measurement guidelinesretrieved July 2026

Which Spotify formats price per thousand

Audio everywhere. The core insert between songs; impression-priced in the auction.
Video takeovers. Impression-priced against active-session viewability.
Podcast placements.Spotify's podcast inventory blurs the two worlds: programmatically inserted, but inside shows. Rates vary by buying route and are quoted in-flow.

Sibling channels: podcast advertising CPM for the host-read economics, CTV for the other premium-attention lane. Full table: /rates.