U.S. search ad revenues hit record $88.8 billion in 2023

Paid search advertising revenues reached a new high in 2023 – though annual growth continues to slow, according to a new report.

In total, search accounted for $88.8 billion of a record $225 billion in U.S. digital advertising revenues, according to the IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report: Full Year 2023, conducted by PwC. That figure represents a $4.4 billion increase over 2022.

Why we care. Paid search becomes more expensive and challenging every year, with less transparency. But advertisers continue to embrace paid search for one simple reason: it drives results for brands and businesses.

Paid search is still king. Search continues to own the largest market share of advertising – 39.5%, but that is down from 40.2% in 2022, 41.4% in 2021 and 42.2% in 2020.

But YoY growth for search advertising is slower than the digital industry as a whole and the majority of other ad formats, according to the report.

The report. You can read the report here (registration required).