India’s Advertising Market Expected to Hit 0.5% of GDP by 2029

India's advertising industry, valued at $16–$18 billion in 2024 and representing about 0.4% of India's GDP, is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10–15%, reaching a value of about 0.5% of GDP in 2029. This ranks India as one of the fastest-growing digital ad markets globally, as per a report published on Tuesday.

Digital advertising presently contributes 50–60% of India's overall ad spend and is expected to expand at a 15% CAGR until 2029, to $17–$19 billion, Bain & Company underscored in its report.

The growth is attributed to rising private consumption, high digital participation, low-cost and expansive adoption of OTT platforms, and ongoing expansion of high-speed internet, according to the report.

Small and medium businesses (SMEs) and direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands are leading the way in becoming important drivers for India's digital ad growth. Their proportion of digital ad expenditure has grown from 35% in 2020 to 37% in 2024 and is expected to hit 40–42% by 2029. Mobile-first marketing strategies, greater integration with e-commerce, and significant attention to performance marketing on the basis of ROAS (Return On Ad Spend) are driving growth in this segment, the report added.

The coming together of mobile-driven consumption, the unprecedented growth in video formats, and incorporation of AI in every phase of the advertising process is redefining the way brands engage with consumers," commented Prabhav Kashyap, Partner at Bain & Company.

As viewers increasingly split their time among several devices and platforms, the report underlines that brands that diversify outside of top platforms, tailor content for every platform, and use AI paired with first-party data for more personalized campaigns will dominate the marketplace. The next five years will see the combination of creativity, data, and technology as the determining factor of which brands get to capture the most value, Kashyap further added.

Worldwide, the ad business is undergoing a record transformation with digital ads projected to hit 80–85% of all advertising expenditure by 2029.

"The global industry that is worth $1 trillion in 2024 will grow to 1% of global GDP by 2029, ahead of economic growth in both mature and emerging markets," the report highlighted.

Geographically, North America remains the stronghold for almost half of total ad expenditure, rising consistently at 9–11% annually until 2029. Contrarily, the Asia-Pacific area, topped by fast-growing markets such as India, will have to enjoy accelerated growth.

As consumers around the world and in India prefer to watch and access media using smartphones, mobile phones now account for almost 70% of total digital advertising expenditure—5–10 percentage points above the global level—and are likely to maintain this position, noted the report.

The research also pointed out that consumers are spending more and more time on multiple devices and platforms, and the average Indian consumer spent 4.8 hours a day on mobile in 2023 compared to 3.7 hours in 2019.