Display advertising tools compared by inventory, fees, and exit terms

What to take away

DV360, The Trade Desk, Amazon DSP, Google Ads and StackAdapt compared

Display advertising tools split into buying platforms, creative systems, verification vendors and reporting layers. Most teams only need to choose the buying platform; the rest can stay separate. These five cover most shortlists.

DV360 is Google's enterprise demand-side platform. Inventory covers Google's exchanges, open auction, private marketplace deals and programmatic guaranteed, plus YouTube and connected TV. Fees are negotiated, commonly reported at 10% to 15% of media spend, with data and verification billed on top. It suits advertisers already inside the Google stack.

The Trade Desk buys open exchange, private marketplace and connected TV inventory, with no owned media to favour. Fees are a percentage of spend, commonly reported at 15% to 20% of gross media for smaller accounts, lower at high volume. It suits buyers who want independence from a media owner.

Amazon DSP reaches Amazon's own surfaces, including Amazon.com, Twitch, IMDb and Fire TV, plus third-party exchanges. Its differentiator is retail and purchase data.

Its rates are not published, so no public self-service or managed percentage exists; ask Amazon or a reseller for the current rate card. Fees are a percentage of spend, and managed service carries a higher effective rate than a self-service seat.

Minimum commitment and notice period come from the insertion order, not a published rate card, so ask for both in writing before the pilot. It suits sellers and brands whose customers buy on Amazon.

Google Ads display campaigns run on the Google Display Network, YouTube, Discover and Gmail. Pricing is auction-based CPC or CPM, with no platform fee beyond media. US display CPMs commonly land from a few dollars to the mid teens, depending on targeting. It suits smaller budgets and teams without a DSP contract.

StackAdapt is a self-serve DSP with native, display, video, audio and connected TV inventory. Pricing is typically a percentage of spend, commonly reported at 15% to 20%, or a flat platform fee. Self-serve seats avoid multi-year enterprise terms, and StackAdapt does not publish a standard minimum spend. Notice period is stated in the order form, typically 30 days. It suits mid-size teams that want managed service without an enterprise contract.

For example, $50,000 of media at a 15% fee plus $3,000 of verification comes to $60,500. Across five million impressions that is a $12.10 CPM.

Gross versus net media: how the fee base changes your CPM

Ask whether the percentage applies to gross media, net media or billable media. The difference decides your real cost per thousand impressions. A 15% fee on gross spend is not the same as 15% on the net rate after rebates.

Work it in your own numbers: take media spend M, platform fee rate f, and data or verification cost D. Total cost is M plus (M times f) plus D. Divide by impressions to get your true CPM, then compare that against the rate card.

Credits, makegoods and invalid traffic adjustments all change the base the fee is charged on. Get the treatment in writing before the pilot, and read common display advertising questions on inventory and ownership while the contract is still open.

Which platform suits which advertiser

Test the exit before you test the buy

Give each platform the same brief: one campaign, one audience, one creative set, one reporting export. Measure setup time, recurring labour and how long a seat removal takes.

DV360 and The Trade Desk contracts commonly run 12 months with 30 to 90 days of notice. Google Ads can be switched off at any time because the advertiser owns the account. Audiences built on Amazon retail data stay inside Amazon DSP.

The GOV.UK technology selection guidance asks buyers to weigh adaptability, data control and total ownership cost. Those questions transfer to ad platforms even though the guidance is written for public services.

The GOV.UK open standards guidance links open standards to interoperability and reduced supplier dependence. Test whether campaign data, audience definitions and reporting schemas leave the platform in a usable format. Both tests map onto a DSP contract: adaptability, data control and total ownership cost decide which platform you can leave without rebuilding.

Before signing, run a display advertising checklist covering the tested plan, named roles and export tasks, and date it. A product page from today promises nothing about price or function next year.

Record the platforms you rejected and why. The constraint that ruled one out may not hold at renewal.

Common questions

Does one DSP cover the whole display plan?

Only if its inventory, fee base, controls and exports cover the assignment and survive an independent check. Most teams end up with one buying platform plus separate verification.

Pre-bid or post-bid blocking: which one stops the impression?

Compare pre-bid and post-bid on coverage, accuracy, cost and remedy. Pre-bid stops the impression; post-bid only reports it, so match the choice to the risk you are controlling.

Which exports prove portability out of a DSP?

A replacement platform can rebuild the campaign from contracts, seat IDs, creative assets, audience definitions and raw exports that you own. If any of those sit with the vendor, you are not portable.

How long should a first Trade Desk or DV360 contract run?

A quarter is common for a first term, with the notice period stated in days rather than months. Anything longer should follow a completed pilot on your own account.