India’s Digital Ad Market Set to Explode by 2025

India is on the verge of a major advertising transformation, with new belatra games reports from GroupM and Dentsu confirming that digital marketing is driving unprecedented growth. According to GroupM’s This Year, Next Year forecast, the total Indian advertising industry is expected to rise to ₹1.6 trillion in 2025, with digital taking the lion’s share. Dentsu projects that the digital ad market alone will reach ₹59,200 crore by the end of 2025, growing at an impressive 19.1% CAGR.

This means digital will continue to outpace all other formats, accounting for nearly half of all advertising expenditure in the country. In 2024, digital ads already made up 49% of India’s ad spend, a figure that reflects how consumer attention has decisively shifted online. Within digital, social media platforms lead the pack, followed closely by online video and commerce-driven formats that blend advertising with shopping.

What’s driving this surge? A large part of it comes from MarTech adoption—the use of AI, automation, and advanced analytics to target and personalize campaigns. Indian brands are increasingly using first-party data to overcome privacy restrictions, designing strategies that emphasize measurable ROI. Meanwhile, Connected TV (CTV) is gaining traction as more households turn to streaming platforms such as Disney+ Hotstar, JioCinema, and SonyLIV, offering marketers new ways to blend television’s reach with digital precision.

However, challenges remain. Marketers must navigate data privacy regulations, rising concerns about ad fraud, and the difficulty of integrating complex MarTech tools into existing systems. Despite these obstacles, the trend is clear: digital advertising in India is no longer an add-on, but the core of brand communication strategies.

For businesses, this shift underscores the urgency of adapting. Companies that can quickly embrace AI-led personalization, e-commerce integration, and performance-focused digital channels will not just survive but thrive in India’s rapidly evolving advertising landscape.