Revenue of the U.S. advertising industry 2004-2020
According to U.S. Census data, the advertising and public relations industry is on a steady growth path. At approximately 148.8 billion U.S. dollars, the industry reached a record high in 2020. The significant drops in earnings in 2004 and 2009 can be tied to the general economic situation in the country at that time.
The advertising industry in the United States
The entire advertising and public relations sector in the U.S. reportedly spent around 89 billion U.S dollars in 2019. The industry, which is part of the NAICS structure under the code 5418, consists of smaller segments such as advertising agencies, PR agencies, media buying agencies, media representatives, outdoor advertising, direct mail advertising and advertising material distribution, with additional unclassified establishments falling under other related services. In 2018, Census results indicated that there were close to 38 thousand businesses categorized under this industry description, with the majority operating within advertising agency sector. Given their sheer numbers it comes as no surprise that the advertising agencies perform better in terms of payroll compared to other sub-sectors - 2018 figures put it at over 17 billion U.S. dollars. Public relations agencies ranked second, with a combined payroll amounting to 5.8 billion U.S dollars that year.
The advertising industry in the United States
The entire advertising and public relations sector in the U.S. reportedly spent around 89 billion U.S dollars in 2019. The industry, which is part of the NAICS structure under the code 5418, consists of smaller segments such as advertising agencies, PR agencies, media buying agencies, media representatives, outdoor advertising, direct mail advertising and advertising material distribution, with additional unclassified establishments falling under other related services. In 2018, Census results indicated that there were close to 38 thousand businesses categorized under this industry description, with the majority operating within advertising agency sector. Given their sheer numbers it comes as no surprise that the advertising agencies perform better in terms of payroll compared to other sub-sectors - 2018 figures put it at over 17 billion U.S. dollars. Public relations agencies ranked second, with a combined payroll amounting to 5.8 billion U.S dollars that year.
