Search advertising shattered expectations in 2024, hauling in a staggering $102.9 billion in revenue. This jaw-dropping figure represents a 15.9% year-over-year growth from 2023, tripling the previous year’s growth rate of just 5.2%. Yeah, you read that right—search ads are still king, commanding nearly 40% of all digital ad dollars spent in the US. Not too shabby for a format that’s been around since dinosaurs roamed Silicon Valley.

Search ads aren’t just surviving—they’re thriving like never before in the digital jungle.

The global picture looks even more ridiculous. Worldwide, search platforms raked in over $316 billion in 2024, exceeding projections and growing 12% from 2023. Five years ago, global search ad spend was just $167.5 billion. Do the math—that’s practically doubled. Search still dominates the digital landscape, accounting for 41.4% of all global digital ad spending. Google, obviously, is laughing all the way to the bank with 90.1% market share outside China.

Total US digital advertising hit $258.6 billion in 2024, growing about 15% year-over-year—the strongest growth since 2021. The Olympics and that little circus called the Presidential Election certainly helped open advertisers’ wallets.

Social media advertising exploded too, surging 36.7% to $88.8 billion. Apparently, people still can’t stop scrolling. AI deserves some credit here. Those fancy new automation tools kept search relevant while making ad dollars work harder.

Retail media networks—those ads that follow you around Amazon and Walmart—jumped 23% to $53.7 billion. First-party data is hot property now. Privacy concerns? Whatever.

Looking ahead, global digital ad spend is projected to reach a mind-boggling $965.6 billion by 2028. Paid search is expected to grow another 6.7% in 2025. Retail media is on such a tear that it’s forecast to surpass total TV advertising globally by 2025. Traditional media execs are sweating.

Digital’s dominance isn’t just here to stay—it’s accelerating. No surprises there.