Frequently asked questions

Here are answers to the questions we hear most.

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Can publishers pay to rank higher?
Nope! Publishers are ranked by traffic, and the rules are the same for everyone.
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Is the price shown the price I pay?
It's the price the publisher shares, with a link to the publisher's own page. You agree the final price with them directly.
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What if a publisher doesn't share prices?
We'll let you know and link you to their advertising page or media kit, so you can ask them directly.
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How do I add a publisher?
Submit the site. Once we've checked that it sells ads, it goes live in the directory.
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How much does advertising cost?
It depends on the audience. A banner on a small blog can cost a few dollars, and an ad spot in a national newspaper can cost thousands. Each listing shows its audience next to its prices to help you decide.
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What does a credit open?
One credit opens one page for good. You see how to buy, the ad spots with their prices, and the DSPs and sales houses behind them. Opening the page again is always free.
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Do unused credits roll over?
Plan credits reset each month. Credits from a pack never expire, and we only use them after your plan credits run out.
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Is a plan tied to a listing?
No. Your plan belongs to your Ad Spot Finder account. You can claim listings with that account, and your plan stays with you.
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Does paying move a listing up?
Nope! Listings are ranked by traffic, and no plan changes that.
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Can I cancel?
Absolutely, anytime. Your plan stays active until the end of the period you've paid for, and then it won't renew.
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What does Free include?
You can browse every listing, exchange and ad spot, open 50 pages a month, manage the listings you've claimed and get our weekly newsletter.
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Is it free?
Yes. It needs no account.
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What does it read?
It reads only the tab you click it on, and only when you click it.
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Which browsers?
Chrome and Chromium browsers such as Edge, Brave and Arc.
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Can I advertise in newsletters and podcasts?
Yes. Newsletters, podcasts, apps, TV, radio and billboards are listed next to websites, all in one directory.
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How do I know who reads a publisher?
Each page shows the publisher's topics, market and traffic rank. Many also link to a media kit with audience figures.
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What if my niche is tiny?
Niche publishers are often the best fit. Search your topic, sort by market, then filter by minimum spend.
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A publisher I like isn't listed. What now?
Tell us about it on the Submit page and we'll add it.
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Can I advertise with publishers outside my country?
Of course. Pick any market to see its publishers, their language and how each one sells, including whether foreign advertisers can buy.
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How do I contact a publisher?
Each page shows how the publisher sells, whether that's self-serve, a DSP, a private deal, its sales team or email. Choose the one that suits you.
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How many markets do you cover?
We list publishers from over 200 countries and research the biggest markets most deeply.
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Can I share a listing with a client?
Yes. Every listing has a public page for a client deck, and any page you've opened stays yours.
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Do publishers know when we look them up?
No. Your research stays private to your account.
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Can I see a publisher's sales house?
Each listing names the company that sells its ad spots, so you brief the right team.
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Can I see which DSPs can buy a publisher's ad spots?
Yes. Each page shows the exchanges that sell its ad spots, direct or resold, and each exchange page lists the DSPs you can use with it.
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Do you cover TV, radio and outdoor?
Yes. Broadcasters, radio groups and out-of-home companies are listed next to websites under their own channel, with rates per week or per ad spot where they publish them.
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What's a good first channel?
Newsletters in your niche are often the easiest place to start. They have clear audiences, small minimums and a flat fee per issue.
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How small can I start?
As small as you like. The budget filter hides every publisher whose minimum spend is above your amount.
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Do I need an agency?
Not for small tests. Self-service publishers let you book, pay and launch yourself.
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How do I know a test worked?
Give each publisher its own promo code or UTM link, so every signup traces back to it.
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Can I stop a campaign early?
Self-serve publishers usually let you stop anytime. For booked ad spots, check the publisher's own terms before you pay.
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Is the listed price what I'll pay?
It's the price on the publisher's rate card. You agree volume discounts, agency commission and tax with the publisher.
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Why do some listings show no rate?
Many publishers only quote on request. We link to their advertising page or media kit so you can ask them directly.
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What does CPM mean?
It's the price for a thousand views of your ad.
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Are prices shown in my currency?
We keep the publisher's own currency, so what you see matches their rate card.
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How old is a price?
Every price shows the date we checked it. An older rate is still a good starting point for your first quote.
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Which option is easiest to start with?
Usually self-serve. It often has the lowest minimum spend, so you can start small. Sales teams ask for more up front but can offer packages and volume discounts.
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Do I need a DSP?
No. Many publishers sell self-serve or through their sales team. A DSP pays off when you buy across many sites at once.
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Is programmatic the same as an auction?
No. Programmatic guaranteed and preferred deals are bought through a DSP at an agreed price. Only private and open auctions are bid for.
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How long does each option take?
Self-serve can go live the same day. Sales teams usually need a brief, a proposal and a signed order first.
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What's a supply path?
It's the route your bid takes to reach a publisher, through every exchange and reseller along the way.
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What does direct mean?
The exchange sells the publisher's ad spots from the publisher's own account, with no reseller in between.
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What is supply path optimisation?
It means buying through the shortest route to a publisher, so less of your budget goes to middlemen.
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How often are the paths updated?
Whenever an exchange adds or drops a seller. Each exchange page shows when we last checked it.
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Is a reseller safe to buy from?
A confirmed reseller is allowed to sell the ad spots, but each extra step usually takes a fee. Choose the direct path when there is one.
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Do you cover CTV and in-app?
Yes. Each exchange page lists the formats it sells, including CTV, in-app and audio.
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Where do the stories come from?
From trade press and company announcements, and every story links to its source.
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Why are some stories left out?
A launch with no partner, no new way to buy and no rule change doesn't affect a buyer, so we leave it out.
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Can I see news about one company?
Yes. Every publisher and exchange page shows its own stories, and the news page filters by company.
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How often is it updated?
We add stories as we check them, and the newest are always at the top.
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Is this legal advice?
No. It's a summary with a link to the regulator's or the platform's own page, so always check the source before you launch.
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Which one wins, the law or the platform?
Both apply. A platform can be stricter than the law but never looser.
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How current are the rules?
Every rule links to its source, and news about a change links to the rule it affects.
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Can I suggest a rule?
Yes. Send us the source and we'll add it.
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Do you buy data from brokers?
Nope! Every fact comes from a publisher's own page or a public record, and we link to every one.
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How often do you check listings?
Each fact shows the date it was last checked, so you can see how fresh it is.
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Can a publisher edit its listing?
Yes. Publishers can claim their listing and send corrections.
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What if two sources disagree?
We show the publisher's own page first, and keep the date of each source so you can judge.
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Do you have team plans?
Yes. On Standard or Premium you can create a team and invite colleagues by email: up to 3 people on Standard and 10 on Premium. Everyone shares the plan's credits.
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Can we pay by invoice?
Stripe handles payments and invoices. Email us if you need something different.
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Is there a contract?
No. Cancel anytime, and your plan runs to the end of the period you've paid for.
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Do unused credits roll over?
Monthly credits refill each month. Credit packs never expire.
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Can we switch plans later?
Yes. Upgrade or downgrade anytime from your account.
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Do you take a commission?
Nope! You pay the publisher directly, and your booking stays between you and them.
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Is it really faster than emailing?
Yup! The things you'd ask in a first email, like the rates, the minimum spend and how to book, are already on each listing.
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Who is Ad Spot Finder for?
Brands, agencies and startups use it to find ad spots, and publishers use it to get found.
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How do I start?
Browse publishers for free, then create an account when you want to open listings and use filters.
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What is retail media?
Ads a retailer or marketplace sells on its own site, app and emails, and sometimes to its shopper audiences on other sites.
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Do I need to sell through the retailer?
Often you do for sponsored products, because the ad points to your product page in that store. Display and off-site ads are sometimes open to other brands.
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Which retailers are listed?
Every publisher with a retail media ad spot in the directory, plus publishers that say on their own pages that they sell retail media.
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Are prices shown?
Where the retailer publishes them, as CPM, CPC or a flat fee. Most quote on request, and the ad spot page shows which option to ask through.
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Can I buy retail media through a DSP?
Some retailers sell their shopper audiences through DSPs. The listing names the DSPs that can buy them.
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What is the difference between CTV and TV?
CTV ads run inside streaming apps on internet-connected TVs. TV ads run in broadcast breaks. We list both, as separate channels.
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Can I buy CTV without a DSP?
Yes, where the publisher sells direct. The listing shows its options, and some take bookings by email or through their sales team.
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How do I know which exchanges sell a publisher's ad spots?
Open the publisher's page. It lists the exchanges selling its ad spots, marked direct or resold, and the DSPs that can buy them. The list isn't complete, so an exchange missing from it may still sell them.
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Are CTV prices shown?
They are wherever the publisher publishes one, usually as a CPM. Most CTV rates are quoted on request.
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What creative do I need?
You usually need a video file at TV quality, in the durations the publisher accepts. Each ad spot page shows the specs where the publisher states them.
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How are podcast ads priced?
Most podcasts charge a CPM per thousand downloads or a flat price per episode. Each ad spot shows which one it uses.
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What is a host read?
An ad the host reads in their own words, often from your talking points. Listeners tend to trust it like a friend's tip.
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How do I measure a podcast ad?
Give each show its own promo code or tracking link, so every sale traces back to it.
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Can I advertise on podcasts in other countries?
Yes. Filter by market and language to find shows in the country you want to reach.
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Do networks sell several shows at once?
Many do. A network's listing shows the shows it sells and how each takes bookings.
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What is a DSP?
A demand-side platform is software that lets you bid for ad spots across many publishers at once.
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How do I know which publishers a DSP can buy from?
Every publisher's page names the exchanges that sell its ad spots and the DSPs that can buy through them. If a DSP isn't listed, it may not reach that publisher yet.
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Do I need more than one DSP?
Often one is enough. Check that it can buy the publishers on your plan before you add a second.
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Can a small team use a DSP?
Yes. Several DSPs are self-serve with low minimum spends, and their pages show what they ask.
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Are SSPs listed too?
We list DSPs because that's where a buyer opens an account. SSPs still appear on each publisher's page as sellers of its ad spots.
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Which assistants work with it?
ChatGPT, Claude, Claude Code, Cursor and any other assistant that supports remote MCP servers.
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Do I need an API key?
No. You sign in with your Ad Spot Finder account once, and your assistant uses it from then on.
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Does it cost anything?
Searching and comparing are free. Opening a publisher's full rate card uses one credit, and it stays open for you after that.
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Can my assistant see my saved lists?
Only what you allow when you sign in. You can remove access at any time from your account page.
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Is the data the same as on the site?
Yes. Your assistant reads the same directory, with the same sources and dates on every fact.
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Do I have to publish my rates?
No. An ad spot without a price shows 'Contact for rate' and points buyers to you.
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Where do the facts about me come from?
From your own pages and your media kit. Each fact links to its source.
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I only sell programmatically. Should I list?
Yes. Your listing shows buyers which exchanges sell your ad spots and which DSPs can buy them, so they can find you from their own account.
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I run several sites. How are they shown?
Each site has its own listing. Editions of one brand are grouped under its main site.
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Can buyers see my ad rules?
Yes. Your accepted and refused categories show on your listing, so briefs that don't fit stay away.