October 13, 2026 11 min read

6 Best Mobile Ad Networks for App Monetization in 2026

Compare 6 mobile ad networks for app monetization in 2026, from AdMob and AppLovin to Unity Ads, Moloco, InMobi, and Elo for AI chat apps.

advertising

What is a Mobile Ad Network?

A mobile ad network is a service that connects app developers who have ad space with advertisers who want to reach app users. The network collects demand from advertisers, places ads inside apps through an SDK, and pays the developer for the ads shown. Developers use mobile ad networks for app monetization when they want revenue from a free app without charging for downloads.

The best mobile ad networks differ mainly in the formats they support, the advertisers they bring, and how much work the integration takes. This guide compares six of them: Google AdMob, AppLovin, Unity Ads, Moloco, InMobi, and Elo, which is built for AI chat apps.

How Do Mobile Ad Networks Pay App Developers?

Most mobile ad networks pay developers based on ad delivery or ad engagement. Common pricing models are cost per thousand impressions (CPM), cost per click (CPC), and cost per install (CPI). Developers usually track results as eCPM, which is the revenue earned per thousand impressions.

Rates, payment schedules, and minimum payouts differ by network, so check each network’s terms before you sign up. This guide does not compare rates, because they depend on the app, the audience, and the ad format.

How We Chose These Mobile Ad Networks?

We looked at five things for each network:

The ad formats it supports
How it integrates, and whether it works with mediation platforms
Privacy and consent tooling
Which types of apps it fits
How established it is in the market

A note on transparency: Elo publishes this guide and is one of the six networks. Descriptions of the other networks rely on their own documentation and press releases, linked throughout and listed at the end. The list is not exhaustive, and it focuses on large, established networks.

The 6 Best Mobile Ad Networks for App Monetization in 2026

The networks below are listed for comparison, not as a strict ranking. Elo comes first because it is built for AI chat apps. The other five are established networks used across games and general apps.

1. Elo (Best for AI Chat Apps)

Elo is an ad network built for AI chat apps. It serves contextual, in-chat card ads that match what a user is talking about at that moment. Publishers add a lightweight SDK for Android, iOS, or the web, and Elo handles ad selection and delivery.

Elo’s documentation describes the flow. The app passes the current conversation to the SDK, Elo extracts advertising keywords from it with an LLM, and then it runs a real-time auction across programmatic exchanges and Elo’s own advertiser inventory. The winning ad comes back as a native card with a title, image, and description.

The SDK renders ads in one of two formats, a compact strip or a larger card, depending on the space the app gives the ad slot. Cards carry an “Ad” disclosure label in the header row. Elo also reads IAB consent signals (TCF and GPP) and applies GDPR, CCPA, and COPPA rules, according to its documentation.

Setup follows three steps in the quick start guide: create a publisher account and get a Publisher ID and Ad Unit ID, authorize Elo in your ads.txt and app-ads.txt files, and integrate the SDK. If you already run another ad network, Elo can sit alongside it.

Best for: apps where the main screen is a conversation rather than a game or a feed. Elo’s two formats are the strip and the card, so it does not cover rewarded video or interstitial placements.

Advertisers who want to reach people inside AI chat apps can start on the advertisers page, and anyone can try the chat demo to see how the formats look.

2. Google AdMob (Best for a Well-Documented First Network)

Google AdMob is Google’s mobile advertising platform for app developers. According to Google’s documentation, it supports banner, interstitial, rewarded, rewarded interstitial (in beta), native, and app open formats. It also includes mediation, which lets an app serve ads from AdMob and other ad sources.

Google describes the native format as customizable to match the look and feel of an app, with ads inline with app content. That makes native the format to look at for chat or feed layouts, since the other formats are built around screen edges, natural breaks, and transitions.

AdMob’s mediation guide describes two types, bidding and waterfall. Waterfall mediation calls ad sources one by one based on the average eCPM you set, while bidding sources place bids in real time and compete in a single auction. Moloco, InMobi, and Liftoff Monetize each publish integration guidance for Google’s mediation, which makes AdMob a common base for a multi-network setup.

Best for: developers who want a mainstream, well-documented option and plan to add other networks later.

3. AppLovin (Best for Games Seeking a Mediation Layer)

AppLovin is a mobile advertising company that offers publishers a mediation platform called MAX, alongside its own ad network. According to AppLovin’s monetization page, MAX mediation is free for publishers, and bidding networks pay AppLovin a fee on the ad revenue they generate.

AppLovin also says every network, including AppLovin, competes on equal footing in MAX’s unified auction, and that MAX supports apps across all major genres and categories. Its monetization materials are aimed at game developers, so non-gaming and conversational apps should check whether the formats fit their layout before committing.

Best for: game studios and apps that want a mediation layer with a bidding-based auction.

4. Unity Ads (Best for Games Built in Unity)

Unity Ads is the advertising network from Unity, the game engine company. Unity’s own materials describe it as a way to reach global audiences, with ad formats and competitive bids from advertisers and demand partners. It sits alongside Unity LevelPlay, Unity’s ad mediation platform.

According to Unity’s LevelPlay page, LevelPlay offers a unified auction across SDK networks and bidders and serves rewarded, interstitial, banner, and native ads. It also includes reporting, A/B testing, and an Ad Quality tool, and it can be integrated from the Unity Editor.

Best for: games and apps that already live in the Unity ecosystem.

5. Moloco (Best for Adding Performance-Driven Demand)

Moloco is a machine learning advertising company, founded in 2013. For publishers, the Moloco SDK gives apps access to Moloco’s direct advertiser demand. A July 2025 announcement says the SDK is fully self-serve and available through Google AdMob bidding and Ad Manager’s SDK bidding, and that it was already a certified bidding partner for AppLovin’s MAX and Unity’s LevelPlay.

The same announcement says publishers keep creative rendering control across ad formats. Moloco is also known for Moloco Ads, a performance platform for app marketers.

Best for: publishers already on AdMob, MAX, or LevelPlay who want another demand source.

6. InMobi (Best for Adding Demand Through Existing Mediation)

InMobi is a mobile advertising company that began in 2007 as Mkhoj, an SMS-based search and monetization business, and pivoted to mobile advertising as InMobi in 2009, according to its company history. Its advertising platform lists a DSP, an SSP, and an exchange among its products.

InMobi’s monetization guides list integrations with AppLovin MAX, Google AdMob, Google Ad Manager, and Unity LevelPlay, among others. Supported mobile formats include banner, interstitial, video, and native, depending on the integration. That makes InMobi easy to add as one more source in a setup you already run.

Best for: teams that already use a mediation platform and want more demand.

Comparison Table: Mobile Ad Networks Side by Side

The table below summarizes the six networks.

Network	Best For	What It Is	Integration	Notes
Elo	AI chat apps	Contextual in-chat ad network	SDK for Android, iOS, and web	Strip and card formats, “Ad” label on cards
Google AdMob	A well-documented first network	Google’s mobile ad platform with mediation	Google Mobile Ads SDK	Six formats listed in Google’s documentation
AppLovin	Games seeking a mediation layer	MAX mediation plus its own ad network	MAX SDK	MAX mediation is free to publishers, per AppLovin
Unity Ads	Games built in Unity	Unity’s ad network, runs alongside LevelPlay	Unity and LevelPlay SDKs	LevelPlay serves rewarded, interstitial, banner, and native ads
Moloco	Publishers adding demand	Machine learning advertising company with a publisher SDK	Moloco SDK, also via AdMob, MAX, and LevelPlay	Self-serve SDK
InMobi	Teams with existing mediation	Mobile advertising company with DSP, SSP, and exchange	InMobi SDK or via mediation	Listed across several mediation platforms

Which Ad Format Fits Your App?

The right ad format depends on how users move through the app. Google’s documentation describes banners as ads at the top or bottom of the screen, interstitials as full-page ads at natural breaks, rewarded ads as ads that reward users for watching short videos or interacting with playable ads and surveys, native ads as customizable ads that match the app, and app open ads as ads shown when users open or switch back to the app.

Games have natural breaks between levels, which suits interstitial and rewarded placements. Chat and feed apps rarely have those breaks. A conversation has no level end, so native placements that sit inside the thread tend to fit better than full-screen formats.

Our guide to ad formats that work inside AI chat apps covers the options for conversational products in more detail.

What Is the Difference Between a Mobile Ad Network, a Mediation Platform, and an Ad Exchange?

A mobile ad network supplies advertiser demand and pays the developer. A mediation platform sits inside the app and calls several networks to find the best ad for each slot. An ad exchange is a marketplace where buyers and sellers trade impressions through auctions.

Many companies do more than one of these jobs. AppLovin runs MAX mediation and its own ad network, and Unity runs both Unity Ads and LevelPlay. For the basics of how impressions are auctioned, see our explainer on real-time bidding, and for the platform side of the stack, see our guide to the best app monetization platforms.

How to Choose the Right Mobile Ad Network for Your App?

Choose a mobile ad network by matching it to your app type, ad formats, integration capacity, and privacy needs. Start with formats, because a network that cannot render the formats your app can host is not a fit. Then check integration effort, consent handling, and app-ads.txt support.

App type: game, utility, social, or conversational
Formats: which ones your app can host without hurting the experience
Integration: how much SDK work it needs and whether it works with your mediation platform
Privacy: consent tooling for GDPR and US state privacy laws
app-ads.txt: Meta’s Audience Network policy, Liftoff Monetize’s guides, and Elo’s quick start all ask publishers to add entries to the file
Terms: payment schedules, minimum payouts, and content policies in the network’s own documentation

Can You Use More Than One Mobile Ad Network?

Yes, and most apps eventually do. A mediation platform lets an app call several networks and pick the best result for each ad request. AdMob’s documentation describes two types of mediation, bidding and waterfall, and says you can also create a hybrid setup that uses both.

In a waterfall, ad sources are called one by one in an order based on the average eCPM you set, not on what each source is willing to pay. In bidding, sources place bids in real time and compete in a single auction. For how auctions pick a winner, see our explainer on real-time bidding.

If you run an AI chat app, you can add Elo next to another network. Our guide to the easiest ad networks to integrate for AI chat apps explains how the integration effort compares.

FAQ about Mobile Ad Networks

What is the best mobile ad network for app monetization?

There is no single best mobile ad network. AdMob suits a well-documented start, AppLovin and Unity Ads are common in games, Moloco and InMobi are often added as extra demand, and Elo is built for AI chat apps. Pick based on app type and formats, and expect to use more than one over time.

Do I need more than one mobile ad network?

Not at first, but most apps add more over time. A second network adds competition for each ad slot, and mediation makes several networks manageable. Start with one network, review the results, and add sources when you have a reason to.

What is app-ads.txt?

App-ads.txt is a file that lets advertisers know which ad sources are authorized to sell your app’s ad inventory. It comes from an IAB Tech Lab initiative called Authorized Sellers for Apps, and Google’s AdMob documentation says it helps prevent counterfeit inventory from being presented to advertisers. Elo’s quick start, for example, says the file must be hosted at the same domain you use for your app store listing.

Can I monetize an AI chat app with a mobile ad network?

Yes, but formats matter. Banner and interstitial formats were designed for screens and level breaks, so conversational apps usually need native, in-thread placements. Elo is built for that case, and our guide to the best ad networks for AI chat apps compares more options.

Sources

Company details come from each provider’s own documentation and announcements, checked in October 2026: