J. G. Navarro
Research expert covering advertising and marketing with a focus on South America
Get in touch with us nowRevenue of the U.S. advertising industry 2004-2021
According to U.S. Census data, the advertising and public relations industry in the United States reached an aggregated revenue of roughly 154 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. This represented a record high during the period observed. Significant lows in earnings in 2004 and 2009 can be tied to the general economic situation in the country at that time.
A brief look into the U.S. ad industry
The entire advertising and public relations sector in the United States reportedly spent around 95 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. The industry, part of the NAICS structure under 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 2020, Census results indicated that around 37,700 businesses were categorized under this industry description, with the majority operating within the advertising agency sector.
Ad agencies have the highest payroll in the industry
Given their sheer numbers, it comes as no surprise that the advertising agencies perform better in terms of annual payroll compared to other sub-sectors - 2020 figures put it at 16.9 billion U.S. dollars. Public relations agencies ranked second, with a combined payroll amounting to roughly 6.1 billion U.S. dollars that same year.
A brief look into the U.S. ad industry
The entire advertising and public relations sector in the United States reportedly spent around 95 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. The industry, part of the NAICS structure under 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 2020, Census results indicated that around 37,700 businesses were categorized under this industry description, with the majority operating within the advertising agency sector.
Ad agencies have the highest payroll in the industry
Given their sheer numbers, it comes as no surprise that the advertising agencies perform better in terms of annual payroll compared to other sub-sectors - 2020 figures put it at 16.9 billion U.S. dollars. Public relations agencies ranked second, with a combined payroll amounting to roughly 6.1 billion U.S. dollars that same year.
