UK Ad Spend Grows: But Are Brands Investing Wisely?

Digital channels remain the primary engine of growth across the UK market.
Some of the strongest performing channels in Q1 included:

• Social Media: +17.7%
• Retail Media: +17.9%
• Search: +9.8%
• Digital Out of Home (DOOH): +17.6%
• Online Radio: +22.1%

These figures demonstrate advertisers’ continued focus on measurable, data-driven media channels that combine audience targeting with greater accountability.

Although digital continues to dominate, several traditional media channels delivered encouraging results.

Out of Home advertising grew by 15%, while radio increased 4.2%, supported by strong digital audio growth. Television remained broadly stable at 0.8%, but addressable TV significantly outperformed the wider market with growth of 15.5%.

This reinforces an important trend we regularly see during media audits: traditional media remains highly effective when bought strategically and integrated with digital channels.

The market was far from universally positive.

Publishing brands continued to experience declining advertising revenues across print and most news digital editions, although digital magazine brands bucked the trend slightly with a 2.9% increase. Meanwhile, the broader “Other Online Display” category declined by 10.7% during the quarter.

These changes underline how quickly media consumption continues to evolve and why advertisers need to review channel performance regularly rather than relying on historical investment patterns.

Increasing investment in fast-growing channels should not automatically be viewed as success.

As media budgets become increasingly weighted towards digital platforms, advertisers should be asking questions such as:

• Are we achieving competitive pricing?
• Is our media mix aligned with our business objectives?
• Are audiences being reached efficiently?
• Is campaign delivery matching the agreed strategy?
• Are technology fees, commissions and hidden costs being properly managed?

Simply spending more does not always generate better outcomes.

The latest market figures reinforce what we see across many client audits: media investment is becoming more sophisticated, but so are the challenges facing advertisers.

Whether budgets are increasing or remaining flat, organisations should regularly assess how effectively their media spend is being managed. Independent media auditing provides objective insight into pricing, planning, delivery and performance, helping brands maximise value from every investment.

With UK advertising forecast to exceed £50 billion in 2026, ensuring robust governance and accountability across media spend has never been more important.