When most people install AdSense onto their blog, they use whatever sizes fit into their theme by default. But your theme designer doesn’t know which AdSense size is the most profitable! It’s a good idea to always test the ad size to see which will give you the most clicks, resulting in the most revenue for you! Another important point is that not all advertisers run ads in all sizes. If you’re limiting yourself to a specific ad size that doesn’t have a lot of advertisers, you’re missing out on AdSense earnings! Look at all these sizes!
- 300 x 250 – Medium Rectangle
- 336 x 280 – Large Rectangle
- 728 x 90 – Leaderboard
- 160 x 600 – Wide Skyscraper
- 320 x 50 – Mobile Banner
- 970 x 90 – Large Leaderboard
- 468 x 60 – Banner
- 234 x 60 – Half Banner
- 120 x 600 – Skyscraper
- 120 x 240 – Vertical Banner
- 300 x 600 – Large Skyscraper
- 250 x 250 – Square
- 200 x 200 – Small Square
- 180 x 150 – Small Rectangle
- 125 x 125 – Button
- 728 x 15 – Horizontal Large (Link Unit)
- 468 x 15 – Horizontal Medium (Link Unit)
- 200 x 90 – Vertical X-Large (Link Unit)
- 180 x 90 – Vertical Large (Link Unit)
- 160 x 90 – Vertical Medium (Link Unit)
- 120 x 90 – Vertical Small (Link Unit)
With so many sizes, it’s tough knowing which is ideal!
The Recommended Sizes
Luckily Google specifies the first 5 in that list as “recommended.” The reason they’re most recommended is because a lot of advertisers design ads for those sizes instead of others. This means you’ll get the most competition on your site – resulting in the highest cost per click!
- 300 x 250 – Medium Rectangle
- 336 x 280 – Large Rectangle
- 728 x 90 – Leaderboard
- 160 x 600 – Wide Skyscraper
- 320 x 50 – Mobile Banner
Here’s an example of each of those sizes within a wordpress blog:
300 x 250 – Medium Rectangle
336 x 280 – Large Rectangle
728 x 90 – Leaderboard
160 x 600 – Wide Skyscraper
320 x 50 – Mobile Banner
Why do these sizes work the best?
The reason they’re most recommended is because a lot of advertisers design ads for those sizes instead of others. This means you’ll get the most competition on your site – resulting in the highest cost per click!
Think about it. If you pick an obscure size that fits perfectly with your custom theme, there may only be 100 advertisers that have created ads for that size. But if you pick one of the more common sizes, there could be 100,000 advertisers that are actively paying for ads of that size. More advertisers means they have to outbid each other (kind of like eBay), which means more money for you!
Case Study
Need proof? Take a look at this chart. It shows the results of split testing two different ad sizes against each other. A small 468 x 60 Banner and a larger 728 x 90 Leaderboard:
Not only does the larger ad get more clicks (almost 2x as much), check out the RPM (revenue per thousand views) as well – over 4x the improvement! This exemplifies what we just discussed, a recommended size having more competition (and thus more earnings) than a typical ad.
Try Split Testing
The only way you’re going to know which of these works the best is if you AB split test them. If you know how to program, then you don’t need my assistance here. Otherwise, consider using a plugin like AmpedSense to split test your ads to find the optimal configuration that gives you the best CTR.
Here’s how to set up this set of tests in AmpedSense. When creating a new ad recipe to test, note the ‘Ad Size’ option:
Clicking on it will reveal every ad size there available:
I suggest trying a split test with at least 3 different ad sizes from the “recommended” list that naturally fit within your blog. Let the test run for a week (or less, if you get more traffic), and you’ll be able to see which one is the best for you!
Every site is different!
Remember the point I made about advertisers using different ad sizes? Also keep in mind that every topic has a different set of advertisers, so no one ad size is going to work the best on every site out there! Every website has a different theme, color scheme, and layout. That’s why I always suggest testing your AdSense sizes on your own site. Not only will you be maximizing your AdSense earnings, but you can rest easy knowing you’re not missing out on lost income!
Nice post. But has anybody experienced a serious fall in Adsense Revenue? Recently I am having a hard time with AdSense revenue and site traffic.
Hi Mark –
I do notice revenue can fluctuate from month to month (which is why it’s important to run split tests concurrently instead of one after another). It typically depends on the supply of advertisers in your site’s category, and should return to normal levels eventually.
I’m intrigued by the display of the ad for the 728×90. It hasn;t displayed problem, and has chopped of the right, including the ‘X’ as shown in the other ads. Google has said that this is a violation of their T&Cs, but I can’t see where there is a setting in WP that says centre it and to chop off the righthand side. Any thoughts? A lot of ads are okay.
Hey Paul – Great catch. You’ve just proven why it’s a great idea to always preview your ads before putting them live. I’ll re-run this with a greater width so there isn’t a chance of any bias.
Thanks for great post. This post help me lot. I am changing now the ad size according to this post. Let’s hope better.
How about responsive ads, are they any better? Anyway thanks for this comprehensive post. I got a better understand of the different ad units. 600 x 300 is definitely a must-try for me at this point of my blogging career. Wanting to try out responsive and 728 x 90 too.
Hey there – Personally, I have not had good performance with response ads. Could be due to it using less common sizes, thus less inventory. Not sure, but it’s definitely worth a test 🙂 Let us know what you end up finding out!
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