E-commerce ad spends jump 40.8% in 2025; FMCG hits Rs 36,084 cr, share slips to 30%

India’s advertising market in 2025 reflected a mix of steady leadership and sharp shifts across sectors when compared with 2024.

According to the latest dentsu-e4m Digital Advertising Report 2026, FMCG, the largest spender, increased its ad outlay to Rs 36,084 crore in 2025 from Rs 31,467 crore in 2024, an absolute rise of Rs 4,617 crore, or about 14.7% year-on-year. However, its share of total industry spends eased from 31% to 30%, indicating faster growth in other categories.

E-commerce recorded the sharpest surge, with spends climbing from Rs 15,509 crore to Rs 22,132 crore, while its market share expanded from 15% to 18%. Automotive, meanwhile, held its share steady at 7% across both years, even as other emerging sectors accelerated.

FMCG continued to anchor the advertising ecosystem, driven by high-frequency categories such as staples and personal care that depend on sustained visibility across media. The double-digit rise in absolute spends highlights continued brand-building investments, even as the sector ceded marginal share to faster-growing digital-heavy industries.

E-commerce emerged as the clear growth engine of 2025. The sector not only expanded its share by three percentage points but also posted the highest growth rate in the market, with ad spends rising 40.8% year-on-year. The sharp uptick reflects aggressive customer-acquisition strategies, deeper penetration of quick-commerce and logistics networks, and a strong tilt toward performance-led digital campaigns.

Automotive spending trends were more stable. The category contributed 7% of total ad spends in both 2024 and 2025. In 2024, the sector had already recorded a 20.4% increase in ad outlays, supported by the recovery in two-wheelers and rising EV adoption. In 2025, renewed demand across both electric and internal combustion portfolios sustained marketing activity, helping maintain its share.

Telecom also recorded strong momentum. After growing 19.8% in 2024, the sector accelerated further in 2025 with a 24.2% rise in ad spends, driven by 5G-enabled service diversification and content-led bundling. BFSI, real estate and automotive posted steady increases as improving consumer sentiment, better credit availability and urban demand recovery supported higher promotional activity. BFSI brands continued to focus on digital payments, credit products and insurance penetration, while real estate and auto benefited from premiumisation and improved financing conditions.

In contrast, 2024 had seen growth led by travel and transport, which posted the highest increase at 33.4% over 2023, supported by tourism-focused initiatives such as the ‘Chalo India’ campaign and Maha Kumbh Mela promotions. E-commerce had grown 21.1% that year, automotive 20.4%, telecom 19.8%, consumer durables 19.4%, and government and social organisations 18%, marking a year of broad-based recovery before sharper digital acceleration in 2025.

Media allocation patterns further underlined the shift. In 2025, telecom, e-commerce, pharmaceuticals and FMCG directed the largest share of budgets toward digital platforms, favouring precise targeting, measurable outcomes and always-on engagement. Performance marketing, regional digital content and commerce-linked journeys became central to these sectors.

Television continued to play a strong role for mass reach. In 2025, real estate allocated 42% of its spends to TV, consumer durables 31%, and FMCG 29%. Print remained dominant among government & social organisations (65%), education (53%), retail (49%) and media & entertainment (46%), where trust and localised communication were priorities.

A similar mix was visible in 2024: FMCG allocated 53% of budgets to digital and 40% to television; BFSI spent 43% on digital, 28% on television and 21% on print; real estate split 49% to television and 41% to digital; consumer durables spent 39% on digital and 37% on television; and automotive dedicated 37% to digital, with TV and print nearly evenly distributed.

Overall, the comparison highlights a market where FMCG remains the foundation in absolute terms, but faster percentage growth in e-commerce, telecom and other digitally enabled sectors is steadily reshaping the advertising hierarchy and pushing investments toward performance-driven digital media.