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Russia's Advertising and Marketing Market: 2025 Results and 2026 Outlook

A breakdown of ACAR, ADIR, and RAMU data: nearly one trillion rubles in media advertising, 1.57 trillion in digital, e-Retail Media outpacing everything. What slowed down, what is growing rapidly, and what to expect through the end of 2026.

20 June 2026·10 min read·Bcorre Team

In 2025, Russia's advertising market came very close to the 1 trillion ruble mark — but fell just short. According to ACAR data, the volume of media advertising reached 981.6 billion rubles, a growth of 8.5% year-on-year. That sounds respectable until you compare it to 2024, when the same metrics grew by 24%. A slowdown of nearly three times in a single year is the industry's headline statistic — one that should not be ignored. Let us break down the numbers: what happened, who won, and what lies ahead in 2026.

Three Methodologies — Three Different Markets

Before reading the data, it is important to understand that Russia's advertising market is measured by three major industry associations, and their figures differ substantially. This is not a contradiction — it simply reflects different scopes of measurement.

ACAR (Association of Communication Agencies of Russia) tracks the "traditional" advertising market: media placement budgets — TV, internet services, outdoor advertising, radio, and press. Their figure for 2025 is 981.6 billion rubles.

ADIR (Association for the Development of Interactive Advertising) covers exclusively the internet: online promotion, contextual advertising, targeted advertising, e-Retail Media, classifieds, SEO, and the full digital stack. According to their data, the online advertising market reached 1.569 trillion rubles in 2025 — more than the entire market measured by ACAR. The reason: ADIR's digital perimeter is broader than the "internet services" category in ACAR's methodology.

RAMU (Russian Association of Marketing Services) tracks marketing activities outside of classical media: trade marketing, BTL, event marketing, promotional campaigns, and field staff. In 2025 this came to 230 billion rubles, with growth of 80% year-on-year — but with an important caveat: RAMU significantly expanded its measurement perimeter, incorporating segments it had not previously counted, including part of Retail Media and Digital BTL. RAMU itself estimates the actual organic growth of the industry at around 8–10%, consistent with the broader market trend.

If all three perimeters are combined — including content production, agency services, marketplaces, and retail media — the total Russian marketing communications market in 2025 exceeded 2.4 trillion rubles, approximately 15% more than the previous year.

Media Advertising: Nearly a Trillion, But Growth Slows

981.6 billion rubles is the ACAR figure, and it is worth examining by segment, because the picture is uneven.

The largest segment — internet services (contextual and targeted advertising on Yandex, VK, and comparable platforms): 510.1 billion rubles, up +9% from 2024. This represents 52% of the entire media advertising market — the first time the internet has consistently held more than half.

In second place — video advertising (TV and online video counted together): 312 billion rubles, up +10%. Video is holding steady due to CTV (advertising on Smart TV and streaming platforms), which is offsetting the decline in linear TV viewership.

The regional market outside Moscow exceeded 125 billion rubles, but grew by only 1% — the lowest growth of any segment. Regional businesses in 2025 clearly cut advertising budgets or shifted to federal channels with geo-targeting.

Audio and print moved into slight negative territory. Outdoor advertising posted moderate growth driven by digital screens, while traditional billboard structures continue to lose share.

Digital: 1.57 Trillion and Exponential Growth in e-Retail Media

According to ADIR, the online advertising market grew by 28% — nearly three times faster than the overall media market as measured by ACAR. The gap is explained by the scope: ADIR includes segments that ACAR does not count at all.

The standout phenomenon of the year is e-Retail Media. This is advertising within marketplaces and e-commerce platforms: Wildberries, Ozon, Yandex Market, SberMarket, and dozens of smaller players. In 2025 the segment reached 580 billion rubles with growth of +58% — more than the entire TV market, more than Yandex's contextual advertising business, and the fastest-growing segment in the industry.

The logic is straightforward: sellers on marketplaces are compelled to pay for visibility within the platform, because organic reach across millions of SKUs is close to zero. Marketplaces are building increasingly sophisticated advertising tools — banners, branded zones, and sponsored search placements. Money flows there directly from trade budgets, bypassing traditional agencies entirely.

Performance advertising (contextual and targeted advertising paid on a results basis): 471.1 billion rubles, up +8%. Contextual advertising within the segment accounts for 171 billion rubles. This is the most "mature" digital instrument, and its growth has decelerated the most sharply: budgets are migrating to Retail Media and more native formats.

Classifieds (Avito, CIAN, Auto.ru): 226 billion rubles, up +19%. The category is resilient — businesses continue to advertise where audiences already exist with clear purchase intent.

Messengers: 24 billion rubles, up +20%. Telegram advertising is gaining momentum, but remains a relatively small segment in absolute terms.

Why Growth Slowed Down

ACAR's answer is unambiguous: "a sharp deceleration in overall economic dynamics." But behind that phrasing lie specific mechanisms.

The key interest rate. Throughout 2025, the Central Bank of Russia kept the key rate at an elevated level. This squeezed consumer lending and reduced purchasing activity. Businesses in consumer-facing niches — retail, automotive, real estate, electronics — cut advertising budgets in response to falling demand.

The 2024 overheating effect. The 24% growth in the advertising market in 2024 was partly explained by a low base effect and inflation-driven rate increases. In 2025, part of that growth simply reverted to trend.

Regional asymmetry. The Moscow market grew while the regions essentially stagnated. This gap makes it difficult to assess the true health of the market: the average figure masks the difference between Moscow at +12% and, say, Saratov at −3%.

The departure of major Western brands has run its course. In 2022–2023, the exit of international advertisers freed up budgets that Russian players absorbed. By 2025, this redistribution effect had been fully exhausted.

The Marketing Services Market: RAMU and Real Growth

RAMU recorded 230 billion rubles in 2025 with a nominal growth of +80%. The figure is alarming until you read the methodological footnote: the association substantially expanded its measurement perimeter, incorporating segments it had not previously tracked — in particular, part of Retail Media and Digital BTL. RAMU itself estimates the organic growth of the industry at 8–10%, which is consistent with the broader market trajectory.

The structure of the marketing services market in 2025:

  • Trade marketing and promotional campaigns — the largest segment
  • Event marketing has recovered after its collapse in 2022–2023
  • Field staff (promoters, merchandisers) — becoming more expensive: rates are rising due to a labour shortage

For 2026, RAMU forecasts growth in the marketing services market to 270.9 billion rubles (+18%), and by 2027 to above 315 billion rubles. Industry inflation is estimated at 17.9%, meaning a significant share of the "growth" is a price effect rather than real volume expansion.

2026 Forecasts: A Range of 6% to 25%

There is no consensus — forecasts diverge sharply depending on what exactly is being measured.

For the media market (ACAR methodology): analysts expect growth of 6–15%, which would bring the market to 1.0–1.15 trillion rubles. The range is wide because the key variables — the trajectory of the interest rate and the broader economic environment — remained unpredictable at the start of 2026.

For the digital market (ADIR methodology): online advertising is expected to reach 1.8–2.0 trillion rubles if e-Retail Media growth holds its pace. If marketplaces continue to accelerate at the same rate — and there is no reason to expect otherwise — digital will maintain double-digit growth even if traditional media stagnates.

The broad market (including retail media and marketing services): Rodnaya Rech Group and several agencies forecast growth to 1.6 trillion rubles in the narrow media perimeter when Retail Media is included, representing +15–25% relative to 2025 levels. This is the optimistic scenario.

Media inflation in 2026 is forecast at 17–28% — this is essential context: at that level of inflation, a "20% increase in budget" does not mean a 20% increase in reach. Real contact volume may not increase at all.

Q1 2026: Warning Signs

Q1 2026 data tempers the optimism of annual forecasts. Average business revenues in the advertising, PR, and marketing services segment in January–March fell by 12.4% compared to the same period in 2025. The media placement segment declined most sharply — −23.8%.

This is quarterly data and must be interpreted with care: Q1 is always the weakest quarter seasonally, and budgets often "lag" after January approvals. Nevertheless, the figures signal that the start of 2026 cannot be described as an acceleration.

At the same time, new players are gaining ground. e-Retail Media platforms, Telegram Ads, and a range of niche instruments are recording growth in contrast to the general stagnation. The market is not declining — it is redistributing.

Key Trends to Watch

e-Retail Media continues to capture trade budgets. Marketplaces are becoming not only a sales channel but also an advertising inventory. Brands selling through Ozon and Wildberries now spend within the platform at levels comparable to their contextual advertising spend. The +58% growth in 2025 is not a one-off spike — it is a structural shift.

AI in advertising is changing the economics of production. Generative tools are reducing the cost of creating banners, copy, and video creatives. This puts pressure on BTL agencies and production studios, but expands the possibilities for small businesses — which previously could not afford multi-format advertising campaigns.

Messenger marketing is leaving the niche segment. Telegram Ads, WhatsApp Business messaging, and Telegram bots are accumulating audiences and budgets. With Telegram's audience in Russia at approximately 80 million active users, the potential of this segment is far from fully realised.

SEO is undergoing a redefinition. Yandex algorithm updates and the rise of AI-generated answers in search results are shifting the focus: traffic increasingly flows to branded and navigational queries rather than informational "long-tail" terms. This changes the structure of semantic cores and requires a rethink of promotional strategies.

The regional market is waiting for federal tools. Growth of just 1% against a federal figure of +8.5% means that regional businesses are either optimising their spending or migrating to geo-targeting within federal platforms. For local players, this is a clear signal: success goes to those who can work with geo-segmentation in Yandex Direct and Yandex Business with greater precision — not simply to those who "spend more."

What This Means for Businesses

Three conclusions with immediate practical applications.

Inflation is eating budgets. With media inflation at 17–28%, maintaining a flat budget is effectively a cut. If you are not indexing your advertising spend at least to the rate of industry inflation, your reach is shrinking.

Organic channels are inflating more slowly. SEO and content marketing increase in cost more slowly than auction-based advertising. Rising contextual advertising rates make organic search relatively more attractive year after year. This is a long-term argument for investing in SEO even under constrained budgets.

Focus on conversion, not reach. In a period of slowing market growth, success belongs not to those who reach the widest audience, but to those who convert most precisely. Landing page improvement, A/B testing, and funnel optimisation deliver a higher ROI than purchasing additional reach.

Sources and Data for Verification

All figures in this article have been verified against primary industry sources. Data currency: Q1–Q2 2026.

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