9 Best Ad Networks for Publishers in 2026
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Article reviewed and fact-checked by Ioannis Giouroukakis, Head of Publishers@Monetag
Not every ad network is built for the same website. A blog with a few thousand monthly visitors gets more from Google AdSense or Monetag, where there’s no traffic threshold to clear. A site pulling in over 100,000 visitors a month opens the door to managed platforms like Setupad, built specifically for that scale.
Somewhere in between, publishers usually run two networks side by side – one for guaranteed fill, one for higher-paying formats like push notifications or interstitials. Below, we compare 10 of the best ad networks for publishers by the same four criteria: minimum payout, payout frequency, ad formats and traffic requirement — so you can see which fits your site before you sign up for any of them.
| Network | Minimum payout | Payout frequency | Ad formats | Traffic requirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google AdSense | $100 | Monthly (21st–26th) | Display, In-feed native, In-article native, Matched Content | No fixed minimum (program policies apply) |
| Monetag | $5 | Weekly | Popunder, Push Notifications, In-Page Push, Vignette Banner, SmartLink | No threshold |
| Adsterra | $5 (Paxum/WebMoney) | NET-15 (twice a month) | Popunder, Native Banner, Banner, Social Bar, SmartLink, Video pre-roll | None |
| Adcash | $5 (PayPal/crypto) | Weekly / biweekly / monthly (publisher’s choice) | In-Page Push, Pop-Under, Interstitial, Native, Display, Video | None |
| HilltopAds | $20 (except Bitcoin $50, wire $1,000) | Weekly (Tuesdays, NET-7) | Popunder, In-Page Push, Banner, Video (VAST/VPAID) | None |
| Clickadu | From $50 | Weekly / biweekly / monthly (NET-7) | Popunder, Banner, In-Page Push, Video Pre-Roll, SKIM | None |
| RichAds | $10 (e-wallets) | Biweekly (NET-15) | Push (incl. in-page, iOS calendar), Pops, Direct Click, Native, Display, Telegram ads | None |
| Evadav | $25 | Weekly (Tuesdays) | Native, In-Page, Push Notifications, Popunder | None |
| Setupad | €100 (~$105) | Monthly (first payment after 60 days) | Header bidding across 15+ SSPs (display/video) | ~100,000 monthly visitors |
Disclosure: this guide is published by Monetag, an ad network for publishers. Monetag is included in the list below. We compare every network by the same four criteria — minimum payout, payout frequency, ad formats and traffic requirements — and state what each competitor does well. All figures about other networks come from their public pages, linked in each section
How We Compared These Ad Networks
We evaluated all these networks against the same four criteria, since these are what actually affect a publisher’s day-to-day experience running a site. Minimum payout matters because it determines how long you wait before seeing your first payment — a $100 threshold takes far longer to clear than a $5 one if your site is just starting out. Payout frequency affects how quickly funds reach you: weekly payouts arrive faster than a monthly or NET-30 cycle, which matters more the smaller your operation. Ad formats determine which parts of your site can carry ads without hurting the reading experience, and how many formats you can combine to raise fill rate. Traffic requirement is the gatekeeper: some networks, like Setupad, only work with established, higher-volume sites, while most on this list accept any traffic level from day one.
Disclosure: Who Wrote This Guide
This guide is published by Monetag, an ad network for publishers. Monetag is included in the list below. We compare every network by the same four criteria – minimum payout, payout frequency, ad formats, and traffic requirements – and state what each competitor does well. All figures about other networks come from their public pages, linked in each section.
Top ad networks to buy traffic from
The list below isn’t a ranking – networks are grouped by the type of publisher they suit best, from brand-new blogs to sites with six-figure monthly traffic. We don’t award scores or ‘editor’s picks’; compare the criteria in the table above and pick based on your own numbers. We are all aware that Facebook and Google Ads represent the two most popular platforms for paid advertising, and therefore for gaining more traffic on your website. You can find a lot of information on these sources on the Internet.
Google AdSense
Google AdSense is the default starting point for most new publishers, largely because there’s no minimum traffic requirement — a site can apply as soon as it has original content and meets Google’s program policies.
- On the numbers: minimum payout is $100, paid monthly between the 21st and 26th, via bank transfer, wire transfer, or PayPal Hyperwallet depending on your country. Ad formats include Display ads, In-feed native ads, In-article native ads, and Matched Content (available once a site meets Google’s separate eligibility criteria for traffic and page count).
- Strength: AdSense has the largest advertiser pool of any network on this list, which keeps fill rates high across almost any content category and geography, including sites with modest traffic.
- Limitation: the $100 payout threshold is the highest on this list among networks with no traffic minimum, so a small site earning a few dollars a month can wait several months for its first payout — worth pairing with a lower-threshold network like Monetag or PropellerAds if cash flow matters early on.
However, there are other places called ad networks you can reach out to in order to get paid traffic. There’s actually a huge number of them. To help you in your work, we have selected the very best and the most reliable among them all.
However, Onclick traffic has proven to be a good option for promoting content on media platforms, like YouTube.
Monetag
Monetag is built for publishers who don’t want to wait to get paid or grow into eligibility first – smaller sites are accepted alongside larger ones from day one.
On the numbers: minimum payout is $5, with weekly payouts and a choice of Payoneer, PayPal, Skrill, WebMoney, or wire transfer. Ad formats cover Popunder, Push Notifications, In-Page Push, Vignette Banner, SmartLink — enough variety to combine formats rather than relying on one.
One detail worth knowing if you’re already running Google AdSense: Push Notifications work alongside AdSense, so adding Monetag doesn’t mean replacing what you have.
On the anti-fraud side, Monetag runs 24/7 fraud monitoring and includes MultiTag (automatically selecting the best-performing format per visitor) and Anti-AdBlock, which the company reports can lift yield by up to 53%.
Monetag also supports app monetization for publishers running APK or mobile app traffic. For a sense of real-world results, one APK publisher earned $29K+ over three months (12 Jan–20 Apr 2026) running popunder ads, at an average CPM of $16.46 across roughly 1.8M impressions, all from Google Search traffic — full breakdown in the case study linked below.
Adsterra
Adsterra suits publishers running content categories that stricter networks reject outright — entertainment, gaming, downloads, and other non-mainstream traffic all qualify, with no strict traffic minimum to join.
On the numbers: minimum payout is $5 for WebMoney or Paxum ($25 PayPal, $1,000 wire transfer), paid on a NET-15 schedule (roughly biweekly, weekly for some publishers). Ad formats include Popunder, Banner, Native Banner, Social Bar (covering In-Page Push and Interstitial), and SmartLink. Adsterra also runs Anti-AdBlock protection and a multi-layer fraud detection system, plus a referral program that pays 5% of a referred publisher’s earnings for life.
Strength: the combination of a $5 entry threshold and a wide range of accepted content types makes Adsterra accessible to publishers that networks like AdSense would turn away.
Limitation: the faster weekly payout option is only available to some publishers rather than being the default — new accounts should expect the standard NET-15 cycle, and CPM on Tier 3 traffic runs noticeably lower than on Tier 1.
Adcash
Adcash suits publishers who want control over payout timing — it’s one of the few networks here that lets you choose your own schedule rather than being locked into one.
On the numbers: minimum payout is $5 for PayPal or crypto ($100 for bank transfer), with weekly, biweekly, or monthly payout options (NET+1 to NET+30, depending on the terms you select). Ad formats include In-Page Push, Pop-Under, Interstitial, Native Ads, Display Ads, and Video.
Strength: Adcash has no minimum traffic requirement and runs both a self-serve dashboard and a managed option, giving smaller publishers the same format access as larger ones without switching platforms later.
Limitation: faster payout terms come at a cost — publishers who pick NET+15 over the NET+30 default have a percentage of that payment retained, so the flexibility isn’t entirely free.
HilltopAds
HilltopAds fits publishers who want a fast weekly payout without a high minimum balance to clear first.
On the numbers: minimum payout is $20 for most payment methods ($50 Bitcoin, $1,000 wire transfer), paid weekly every Tuesday on a NET-7 schedule, via PayPal, Bitcoin, Wire Transfer, WebMoney, Capitalist, USDT, Wise, or Paxum. Ad formats include Popunder, In-Page Push, Banner, and Video (VAST/VPAID).
Strength: HilltopAds has no minimum traffic requirement and charges no transaction fees on withdrawals, so a small site keeps the full payout rather than losing a percentage to processing. It also works across more than 250 countries, useful for traffic that doesn’t skew heavily Tier 1.
Limitation: the format lineup is narrower than some competitors on this list — there’s no native ad or SmartLink option, so publishers wanting that format need to pair HilltopAds with a second network.
Clickadu
Clickadu suits publishers who prioritize payout flexibility over the lowest possible threshold — it’s one of the few networks here that lets you pick weekly, biweekly, or monthly on your own terms.
On the numbers: minimum payout starts from $50 (varies by payment method, with wire transfer at $1,000), on a NET-7 schedule if paid weekly, via PayPal, Paxum, WebMoney, or wire transfer. Ad formats include Popunder, Banner, In-Page Push, Video Pre-Roll, and SKIM. It works with both mainstream and non-mainstream traffic across 240+ countries.
Strength: Clickadu’s SKIM format gives publishers control over exactly how much of their traffic volume gets sold, which is unusual among the pop- and push-focused networks on this list.
Limitation: the $50 minimum payout is higher than most of the low-barrier networks here, so it takes longer for a small or new site to see its first payment compared with $5–$20 threshold networks like Monetag or HilltopAds.
RichAds
RichAds fits publishers already running push, popunder, or Telegram Mini App traffic who want a low payout threshold without a long moderation process.
On the numbers: minimum payout is $10 for e-wallets ($500 for wire transfer), paid every two weeks on a NET-15 schedule, via PayPal, Capitalist, Payoneer, or wire transfer. Ad formats include Push (including in-page and iOS calendar), Pops, Direct Click, Native, Display, and Telegram Mini App ads.
Strength: RichAds has no moderation step and no minimum required traffic volume, so a publisher can sign up and start sending traffic the same day; Telegram Mini App owners also get a dedicated ad format most networks on this list don’t offer.
Limitation: RichAds’ publisher-facing documentation leans toward performance-marketing verticals rather than general content sites, so a lifestyle or news blog may find less network-specific guidance than with AdSense.
Evadav
Evadav suits publishers monetizing push subscriptions specifically — its revenue share model keeps paying out from a subscriber base long after the original visit.
On the numbers: minimum payout is $25, paid automatically every week (Tuesdays, with daily payouts negotiable for top partners), via PayPal, Paxum, Skrill, ePayments, WebMoney, Payoneer, or wire transfer. Ad formats include Native, In-Page, Push Notifications, and Popunder. It accepts traffic from any country, browser, OS, and device, including non-English sites.
Strength: Evadav’s Revenue Share model pays 70% of ongoing subscription revenue for as long as a push subscriber stays subscribed — one of the more durable earning models on this list, rather than a one-time-per-visit payout.
Limitation: Evadav leans heavily on push and native formats specifically — publishers looking for display banners, video, or SmartLink will need a second network to cover those formats.
Setupad
Setupad is the one network on this list built for a different segment entirely — publishers with established, higher-volume traffic rather than sites just starting out.
On the numbers: minimum payout is €100 (~$105), paid monthly, with the first payment issued 60 days after your first full month, via bank transfer, PayPal, Payoneer, Wise, Revolut, or Paysera. Instead of a fixed ad format list, Setupad runs header bidding across 15+ demand partners including Google, competing multiple buyers for the same ad slot in real time.
Traffic requirement: Setupad generally requires around 100,000 monthly visitors to sign up, with a preference for Tier 1 audiences (US, UK, Canada, Australia).
Strength: because Setupad auctions each impression across many buyers simultaneously rather than routing to one network, publishers who qualify typically see a meaningful CPM lift over running AdSense alone.
Limitation: the 100,000-visitor bar and 60-day first payment make Setupad unsuitable for smaller or newer sites — those publishers are better served by any of the nine no-minimum networks earlier on this list.
How to Choose an Ad Network for Your Site
If you’re just starting out, see our full guide on how to monetize a website before picking a network.
The right network depends less on reputation and more on three things: how much traffic you send, where that traffic comes from, and what kind of site you run.
Traffic volume is the first filter. Under 100,000 monthly visitors, most managed platforms like Setupad won’t accept you yet — Google AdSense, Monetag, Adsterra, Adcash, HilltopAds, Clickadu, RichAds, and Evadav all work with smaller sites, several with no traffic floor at all. Once you cross six figures, managed header bidding becomes worth the switch.
Audience geography changes which formats pay. Tier 1 traffic (US, UK, Canada, Australia) tends to earn more through display and native formats, while push notifications, popunder and in-page push monetize Tier 2/3 traffic — and mixed-content sites — more consistently.
Site type matters too. A blog with long articles fits in-article or in-feed native ads without hurting the reading experience. A download or app-referral site tends to earn more from popunder and push formats, which don’t depend on content layout.
Many publishers don’t pick one network — they run two side by side: a display-focused network like AdSense for baseline fill, plus a push or popunder network like Monetag layered on top for formats AdSense doesn’t offer. Running two networks together is common practice, as long as ad tags don’t overlap on the same placement.
Ad Formats That Affect Your Revenue
- Different formats work best in different places on your site, and mixing more than one is common practice among publishers on this list.
- Popunder opens a new tab or window behind the current page, showing an ad without interrupting the visitor’s reading — used by Monetag, Adsterra, Adcash, HilltopAds, Clickadu, and Evadav, it’s typically the highest-CPM format for mixed-content and download sites.
- Push notifications reach subscribed visitors even after they’ve left your site, and work alongside AdSense rather than replacing it – Monetag, RichAds, and Evadav all offer this format.
- In-page push mimics a native notification inside the page itself, giving a similar subscriber-based revenue stream without requiring a browser permission prompt.
- Interstitial ads take over the full screen between page loads or transitions, and generally carry a higher CPM than banner formats because they’re harder to miss — though overusing them can hurt time-on-site.
- SmartLink automatically routes each visitor to the highest-paying offer available for their GEO and device, which suits publishers who’d rather not manage individual ad placements.
- Vignette banner is Monetag’s full-screen format that appears between content sections, combining the visibility of an interstitial with a less intrusive close option.
What to Check Before You Sign Up
Before adding any network’s tag to your site, run through six things:
- Minimum payout — how much you need to earn before you can withdraw at all.
- Withdrawal methods — whether the network supports a payment option you can actually use in your country.
- Payout frequency — weekly, biweekly, or monthly; this affects your cash flow more than the CPM does.
- Traffic threshold — some networks, like Setupad, only accept sites above a set volume; most of the others on this list don’t.
- Traffic quality policy — what counts as acceptable traffic, and what gets an account suspended.
- Support — whether you get a dedicated manager or a ticket queue, which matters most when a payment doesn’t arrive on time.
On that last point: stay away from any traffic source promising autosurf, autoclick, and other types of “automated traffic,” traffic generators, natural-looking traffic, traffic exchange, or paid-to-click traffic. Every legitimate ad network — including every one listed above– will suspend an account over traffic like this. For more on where we stand on fraudulent activity, check out our Terms and Conditions.
Ad Formats That Affect Your Revenue
Six formats show up across most of the networks on this list, and each earns differently depending on your traffic.
- Popunder opens a new browser tab or window behind the active one — it doesn’t touch your page layout, works on virtually any site, and typically pays a high CPM, though it should route through a pre-lander rather than straight to your homepage.
- Push notifications are opt-in browser alerts that keep paying after the visit ends, since a subscriber can be shown ads long after they’ve left your site — one of the few formats with real value per user over time.
- In-page push mimics the look of a push notification but renders directly on the page, so it works on mobile and doesn’t require the subscription step — a practical fallback where browser push isn’t available.
- Interstitial ads are full-screen ads that appear between page loads or content transitions, best used sparingly since overuse increases bounce rate.
- SmartLink redirects a click to the single highest-paying offer for that visitor’s geo and device automatically, which suits publishers who don’t want to manage individual ad creatives.
- Vignette banner is a full-screen ad that appears briefly at natural navigation points, like a page transition, and is built to interrupt less than a standard interstitial.
FAQ
What is an ad network for publishers?
An ad network for publishers is a platform that connects website owners with advertisers, letting sites display ads and earn revenue per impression, click, or conversion. It handles ad serving, targeting, and payments, so publishers don’t need to sell ad space directly to individual advertisers themselves.
Which ad network pays the most?
There’s no single highest-paying network — payouts depend on your traffic’s GEO, niche, and ad format, and CPMs shift constantly across all ten networks. Google AdSense generally leads for Tier-1 display and native traffic, while push and popunder networks like Monetag often earn more on Tier 2/3 or mixed-content traffic.
Can I use two ad networks on one site?
Yes, running two networks side by side is common practice, as long as their ad tags don’t overlap on the same placement. A typical pairing is a display network like AdSense for baseline fill, plus a push or popunder network like Monetag layered on top for formats AdSense doesn’t offer.
What is the minimum traffic to join an ad network?
Most networks on this list have no minimum traffic requirement — Google AdSense, Monetag, Adsterra, PropellerAds, Adcash, HilltopAds, Clickadu, RichAds, and Evadav all accept publishers from day one. Setupad is the exception, generally requiring around 100,000 monthly visitors before you can sign up.
How often do ad networks pay publishers?
It varies by network: Monetag, HilltopAds, Clickadu, and Evadav pay weekly, Adsterra and RichAds pay on a NET-15 (biweekly) schedule, and Google AdSense and Setupad pay monthly. Adcash lets you choose your own frequency — weekly, biweekly, or monthly.
Final thoughts
We picked and presented only the networks that work with native ads because these formats are suitable for website promotion. Thus, we encourage you to buy such traffic.
On another note, we hope we managed to answer some of your questions and concerns on whether or not to invest in paid traffic and how to do so.
Basically, when purchasing traffic you are turning from a publisher into an advertiser who is launching an ad campaign with the intent of promoting your own product or brand.
Keep that in mind when browsing and searching for additional information on these or some other networks. But once again, be aware that scams and traps are hidden all over the Internet. We don’t want you to become a victim of a bot and fraudulent traffic and see all of your hard work evaporate with your site being banned.
So stay smart, choose who to trust, and don’t rush with these decisions. We will be waiting patiently to once again start monetizing your visitors and gain you profits that will make all of the trouble worth it.
