Out-of-home (OOH) advertising continues to gain momentum as marketers seek real-world reach that complements digital channels. With total OOH revenue surpassing $9 billion last year, growth is being fueled by consistent year-over-year gains and the rapid expansion of digital formats.
That momentum shows no signs of slowing. Digital out-of-home (DOOH) now represents a significant and rapidly growing share of the market, projected to account for 45.2% of total OOH ad spend by 2028, up from just 22.0% in 2016. As brands lean into more dynamic, data-enabled executions, investment in DOOH is expected to continue rising. And by 2026, programmatic DOOH (pDOOH) spend is projected to reach into the billions, reflecting a broader shift toward automated buying and audience-based activation that’s making OOH more measurable, addressable, and integral.
As we look ahead to 2026, the question is no longer whether OOH belongs in omnichannel strategies, but how it continues to evolve. From automation and audience-first planning to tentpole moments and retail media, the trends shaping the year ahead point to a channel that’s becoming smarter, more intentional, and more accountable than ever before.
Dynamic creative will move from experimentation to strategy
Dynamic creative optimization (DCO) gained real momentum last year as more media buyers leaned into its ability to make DOOH campaigns more relevant and responsive. Stronger support from media owners and technology platforms helped remove friction, making it easier to activate dynamic creative at scale and extend impact in the physical world.
In 2026, campaigns will increasingly rely on data signals like location, time of day, weather, and product availability to adapt messaging in real time. This shift will move brands beyond one-size-fits-all creative toward ads that better reflect audience context and intent at the moment of exposure. While executing DCO in DOOH will still require coordination across buyers, media owners, and platforms, along with early alignment on creative approvals, the groundwork laid by DSPs, SSPs, and publishers will make dynamic execution far more practical and scalable than in years past.
Looking ahead, DCO is moving from experimentation to strategy. As buyers become more comfortable with the technology and workflows continue to improve, execution will be faster, easier, and more cost-efficient. At the same time, AI will play a more active role in the creative process, accelerating ideation and enabling variations at scale, expanding what’s possible with DCO and supporting more always-on, data-driven DOOH strategies.
Automation will unlock more ways to buy OOH
Programmatic already dominates display advertising, with guaranteed transactions accounting for a growing share of spend, and OOH is beginning to follow the same trajectory. Over the past year, guaranteed OOH buying has gained momentum as inventory digitization, more mature programmatic guaranteed tools, and automated in-advance booking have come together. That shift is expected to accelerate in 2026, making it easier to secure premium OOH inventory programmatically while preserving the certainty of direct deals.
As buying tools evolve, planners are increasingly managing guaranteed and non-guaranteed OOH from a single platform, choosing the right mix of RTB, PMP, PG, and in-advance models to match campaign goals. This flexibility allows OOH to be planned alongside CTV, mobile, and online video using familiar workflows, shared KPIs, and consistent reporting. At the same time, automation is raising expectations across the ecosystem, with advertisers seeking the same seamless, data-driven experience they get from other programmatic channels, supported by standardized workflows, faster execution, and greater transparency that help lower barriers for new and mid-sized buyers.
In 2026, automated, in-advance transactions stand out as one of the most meaningful shifts in OOH buying. While real-time bidding introduced flexibility, there’s still a need to secure high-demand inventory well ahead of time. In-advance automation closes that gap, combining the certainty of direct deals with the efficiency of programmatic infrastructure. As this year unfolds, it’s expected to move from an emerging option to a standard part of OOH planning, reshaping how premium inventory is secured and how the channel fits into omnichannel strategies.
Retail media will push OOH closer to the point of purchase
Retail media continues its rapid rise, and this year, OOH will play a larger role in how brands influence shoppers along the path to purchase. As retailers seek new revenue streams and rethink the in-store experience, retail environments are evolving from static aisles into dynamic, data-driven media channels where messaging can adapt in real time.
Digital screens at entrances, in aisles, and near high-intent areas like pharmacies or checkout zones allow brands to reach shoppers when purchase decisions are being made. In 2026, these in-store networks are expected to expand further, adding more touchpoints and supporting creative that adapts based on store context, time of day, or product availability.
Yet many media buyers still underestimate the value of retailer first-party data in powering smarter OOH targeting and measurement. Retailers hold rich insights tied directly to purchase behaviour, and when ad exposure can be connected to real sales outcomes, OOH gains a clear advantage as retail media budgets continue to grow. As in-store OOH becomes more tightly integrated with broader retail media networks and off-site channels, screens near and inside stores are increasingly proving their ability to drive measurable outcomes, not just impressions.
Audience-first planning and measurement reshape the medium
Out-of-home is entering a new phase in 2026, defined less by physical locations and more by the audiences and moments brands want to reach. Rather than planning around where screens sit, marketers are focusing on real-world moments that align with audience mindset and intent. As a result, success is being measured beyond reach and impressions, with greater emphasis on signals like dwell time, interaction, visitation, and experiential impact that better reflect how OOH performs within the omnichannel journey.
First-party data is central to this shift. Brands are bringing insights from their own customers, loyalty programs, and digital touchpoints into DOOH planning, using signals like shopping patterns, app usage, and purchase intent to guide when, where, and how messages appear. When paired with contextual signals such as time of day, location type, and environmental triggers, DOOH creative can feel timely and relevant without being intrusive, enabling more dynamic, moment-driven messaging.
At the same time, evolving DSP capabilities are making it easier to activate first-party data consistently across digital, CTV, mobile, and DOOH within unified workflows. This alignment helps maintain consistent audience definitions across channels and brings OOH earlier into the planning cycle using familiar performance frameworks.
Tentpole moments will take center stage
2026 is shaping up to be a defining year for tentpole moments, with global events like the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup driving not just scale, but a shift in how brands approach cultural moments. Rather than treating these events as single-day activations, marketers are increasingly planning around extended arcs, building anticipation, capitalizing on peak moments, and sustaining momentum after the event ends.
This shift is pushing OOH earlier in the planning process. High-impact inventory near transit hubs, fan zones, retail corridors, and entertainment districts will be secured well in advance as brands look to lock in presence where attention naturally concentrates and avoid last-minute scarcity.
At the same time, OOH is expected to play a stronger role in extending omnichannel tentpole campaigns. Brands will use OOH to reinforce messaging already live across CTV, mobile, retail media, and social, bringing digital narratives into the physical world at moments of peak attention. This continuity helps bridge online exposure with real-world action, supporting outcomes like foot traffic, in-store activity, and app engagement.
Looking ahead: Why this is a defining year for OOH
As 2026 gets underway, out-of-home is being shaped less by where ads appear and more by how thoughtfully they’re planned, activated, and measured. Automation is bringing OOH into the conversation earlier, creative is becoming more purposeful, and audience-led planning is changing how brands show up in the real world, signalling a more mature and powerful channel.
As OOH becomes easier to buy and integrate alongside other channels, it’s moving from a supporting role to a more strategic one, opening the door for brands, agencies, and media owners to rethink what OOH can do in 2026.
