Online banner advertising is a popular choice for websites to draw consumers to specific offers and services. It is a relatively cheap and easy way to direct consumer’s attention where you want it, and pays off extremely well in terms of revenue generated through these practices.

 

However, it is important to note that not every banner is equally effective. Having the same content in a different size or font in another part of the page can evoke a drastically different response from the viewer. In fact, many online ad builders offer banner sizes that are “guaranteed to work”, suggesting that certain banner sizes will not.

Why Do Banner Sizes And Placement Make Such A Difference?

 

The size of your banner decides the kind of response you get from the consumers?

 

The number one rule of effective online advertising is ensuring visibility. If your ad is too small or placed at an indistinct position, the chances are that most visitors to your website will not even notice it. If you want consumers to notice you and respond to your offers, you must do due diligence when choosing a banner size or deciding its placement.

The Most Effective Banner Sizes Formats In Advertising

While some banner sizes fail to garner the consumer’s attention and generate revenue, others do an excellent job at it. We have made a list of the top 10 most effective banner sizes formats in advertising through experiments and research. Let’s go through them one by one.

1. 728 x 90 banner size – The Leaderboard

To start off our list of the highest performing banner sizes, we have the Leaderboard. This is a 728 by 90 banner size, usually placed at the very top of a web page, and the first thing that a visitor notices as the page loads. By using this popular option, you also get a humongous ad inventory, allowing you to make full use of your creative abilities to design your advertisement.

 

The leaderboard design gives your webpage a traditional, smooth appearance that is extremely pleasing to the eye. However, it does not perform as well for mobile devices, so it is important to know what gadgets the majority of your audience is using to access your website.

2. 300 × 250 banner size – The Medium or Inline rectangle

In second position, we have the Medium Rectangle – a 300 x 250 banner space that is usually either put right next to the relevant content or in a sidebar. This size and placement does a terrific job of attracting the reader’s attention to the web page’s most important content. As opposed to the Leaderboard, this banner size is also compatible with a mobile phone format, which further adds to its popularity.

 

Another advantage of using this banner size is that users are not annoyed by a huge advertisement that takes up most of the space on the screen. This is perhaps the reason why it gets a higher CTR (click-through-rate) than most other banner sizes.

3. 300 x 600 banner size – The Half page or The Large skyscraper

Next up is the Half page – also often referred to as the Large Skyscraper – running vertically down your web page. It is a banner size measuring 300 x 600, and thus, it offers plenty of ad space for your design team to show their creativity. However, the large size also makes it incompatible to be used with certain web designs.

4. 320 x 100 banner size – The Large mobile banner

The large mobile banner is the Leaderboard equivalent for mobile devices. Measuring 320 x 100, it is the perfect banner size for a header or title for a mobile webpage. As is with the Leaderboard, the incredible popularity of this banner size brings you a large ad inventory to choose from.

 

Since more and more people are now using their cell phones rather than their laptops to surf the net and visit their favorite sites, the large mobile banner is gaining even more popularity.

5. 336 x 280 banner size – The Large rectangle

At the 5th spot, we have the large rectangle – a 336 x 280 ad space that is an essential banner size for many websites. It serves a dual purpose of advertising deals or offers while simultaneously breaking up blocks of texts to offer a more structured appearance.

 

Instead of being annoying to the reader, the large rectangle actually helps him skim the contents of the webpage. This gains the banner favor with the viewer, and thus, many more people are likely to click on the ads displayed via them. 

6. 320 x 50 banner size – The Mobile Leaderboard

Quite similar to the large mobile banner, the mobile leaderboard measuring 320 x 50 is yet another popular banner choice for websites with a primary audience of mobile surfers. While it is a little less impactful than its large mobile counterpart, it allows for a much better experience for the consumer.

 

Being half the height of the original large mobile banner, the mobile leaderboard does not get in the way of important content. Therefore, a visitor to the website is less likely to close the webpage out of frustration, and instead stays to read your message.

7. 160 x 600 banner size – The Wide Skyscraper

Up next is what the experts call a wide skyscraper. This vertical banner of size 160 x 600 usually goes in the narrow sidebars and is the perfect opportunity to place in-content ads. And with its big ad inventory, you get all the creative freedom you need to design the perfect advertisement.

 

By filling in the gaps in between blocks of texts, it makes full use of the space on a webpage. Furthermore, due to its intelligent placement, it does not tend to annoy visitors into exiting the website altogether, and retains the consumer long enough to generate revenue. 

8. 300 x 1050 banner size – The Portrait

Among the highest performing vertical banners, an important one is the Portrait, measuring 300 by 1050. You can think of it as another, slightly wider, version of the wide skyscraper. The Portrait banner size allows for more content and more creative freedom with more ad space.

 

The portrait also comes with a sizable ad inventory, given that it is a popular choice for banner advertisements that are placed within the content of the webpage.

9. 970 x 250 banner size – The Billboard

Often high performing, but also unsuccessful in garnering the expected CTR at times, The Billboard is a controversial choice for a banner size. Measuring 970 x 250 and occupying the prominent horizontal space at the top or bottom of a webpage, it makes, without doubt, a very noticeable advert. However, working with the limited ad inventory is quite challenging.

10. 250 x 250 banner size – The Square

Finally, to wrap up this list of the 10 best sizes for banner advertising, we have the minimalistic Square measuring 250 x 250. Simple and elegant, it fits very well in between the content of the webpage without disrupting its structure or annoying the reader.

 

However, when using this banner size, you are forced to concise your message to fit the small space available. In addition, the ad inventory that comes with this particular banner size is also not too impressive, so there is a good chance that you end up with low paying ads.

Tips To Consider When Choosing Banner Size For Ads

The size of your banner ad is important for a number of reasons. Here are a few tips that will help you choose the right banner size for ads.

Steer Clear From Too Large Or Too Small

First, the size will dictate how much space your ad takes up on a webpage. If your ad is too large, it may take up too much space and be intrusive to viewers. On the other hand, if your ad is too small, it may be overlooked entirely. 

Size And Load Time

The size of your ad will impact the file size and load time. banner ads that are too large can take too long to load, which can frustrate viewers and cause them to leave your page entirely. 

Inclusion Of Detail

Third, the size of your banner ad will determine how much detail you can include. If you want to include a lot of text or images, you’ll need a larger banner ad. 

Price

Finally, the size of your banner can impact the price you pay for your ad. Larger ads typically cost more than smaller ads.

 

Therefore, it’s important to consider all of these factors when choosing the size of your banner ad. The best way to determine the right size for your ad is to experiment with a few different sizes and see what works best for your particular ad.

Wrapping It Up

So, there you have it – the 10 best banner sizes to get you the high CTR you need on your website. We hope that this list helped you realize which banner size fits best with your content while also promising greater revenue generation. For more information on how banner size can affect the performance of your advertisement and maximize your earnings, we recommend hiring an expert in the field.