The Retail Media Network Reference

Why retail media is the channel everyone is buying and no one is grading honestly

Retail media has become the third pillar of digital advertising alongside search and social, with US spend forecast to hit $69.3B in 2026. The appeal is obvious: ads sit close to the transaction, are powered by rich first-party purchase data, and are funded by consumer packaged goods (CPG) trade budgets that increasingly look like performance media.

Structurally, every major retail media network (RMN) follows the same pattern: a logged-in shopper base, on-site sponsored search and display, off-site programmatic and connected TV (CTV), and often in-store digital. The promise is closed-loop measurement (the ability to tie an ad exposure directly to a purchase using the retailer's own transaction data) and deterministic attribution from impression to sale.

The problem is that RMN attribution is the new walled-garden problem. A walled garden is a closed ecosystem where the platform controls both the ad inventory and the measurement, so it is always grading its own homework. Each network uses its own data, on its own inventory, graded by its own measurement system. Just like Meta or Google grading their own lift studies. Even with clean rooms like Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC), a clean room being a secure environment where a brand can query the retailer's data without seeing raw personal records, the retailer still controls the schema, joins, and incrementality logic.

The practical implication: treat RMN-reported ROAS and lift as directional, not definitive. To understand true business impact, you need tests the networks do not design or control: geo-holdouts, matched-market experiments, and marketing mix modeling (MMM) tied to total revenue, not just one retailer's sales.

Below is a concise landscape of the leading RMNs. The voice throughout is direct: what each network is, what it sells, how it measures, and who it fits.

Amazon Ads

Scale. The largest RMN globally, with over $68B in global ad revenue in 2025 (roughly $45 to $48B in the US). No other network comes close to this base.

Products. Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, Sponsored Display, Amazon demand-side platform (DSP) for on- and off-Amazon inventory, Sponsored TV, Brand Stores, and Posts. The DSP is the primary vehicle for off-site reach.

Measurement. Deep first-party shopper data, ASIN-level intent signals, DSP lookalikes, and AMC custom audiences give Amazon the most granular targeting of any RMN. Measurement runs through the AMC clean room (log-level SQL queries), Amazon Attribution, Brand Lift, and Brand Metrics. AMC is the most mature measurement environment in retail media; it is also still Amazon-graded.

Fit. Full-funnel capability, but the core use case remains lower-funnel sponsored search for brands that sell on Amazon. If you are not on the marketplace, the DSP off-site targeting still applies but the closed-loop measurement advantage narrows considerably.

Walmart Connect

Scale. The second-largest US RMN, with $4.4B in global ad revenue for FY25, up 27% year over year. The December 2024 Vizio acquisition adds SmartCast CTV inventory and automatic content recognition (ACR) data. ACR is technology embedded in smart TVs that identifies what is being watched, enabling advertisers to target or suppress audiences based on linear TV exposure.

Products. Sponsored Search, Sponsored Brands, Sponsored Video, Walmart DSP (Trade Desk-powered), off-site display, in-store audio and digital screens, and Vizio CTV. The Trade Desk integration makes off-site buys relatively accessible for programmatic buyers.

Measurement and fit. Walmart Luminate and Data Ventures clean rooms provide closed-loop attribution for both in-store and online purchases. Vizio ACR extends measurement to CTV. The in-store measurement capability is the standout differentiator for CPG brands where the majority of volume still flows through physical stores. Full-funnel positioning, but in-store is where it earns its keep.

Target Roundel

Scale. Roundel generated over $700M in direct ad revenue through Q3 2025, up 35% year over year. The oft-cited $2B figure is a broader "total value" metric that includes brand partner contributions and is not a clean ad revenue number.

Products. On-site sponsored search and display, the Bullseye Network for off-site reach, CTV via Disney and NBCU partnerships, social placements, and in-store. The Disney and NBCU CTV access is a meaningful differentiator from pure RMN players.

Measurement and fit. Closed-loop attribution to Target.com and stores, with partner clean rooms available. Self-serve measurement depth is less developed than AMC. Full-funnel for brands with strong Target distribution; skews more lower-funnel for brands where Target represents a smaller share of total business.

Kroger Precision Marketing (84.51°)

Scale. The leading grocery RMN, with roughly 60 million loyalty households across Kroger banners. The data science arm, 84.51°, has been building purchase-based audience models since before retail media was a named category.

Products. On-site sponsored search and display, off-site display and video, CTV, and in-store digital. The off-site and CTV capabilities are powered by the loyalty data stack.

Measurement and fit. SKU-level sales lift with matched controls is the measurement standard here, and it is among the most methodologically rigorous approaches in retail media. A lift study with matched controls identifies a group of comparable shoppers who were not exposed to the campaign and compares their purchases to those who were, giving a cleaner read on what the ad actually caused. Best fit is lower- to mid-funnel CPG, including product launches and category switching, where the loyalty data gives you genuine purchase-intent targeting rather than lookalikes.

Albertsons Media Collective

Scale. Covers Albertsons banners including Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, and others. Fast-growing but running a younger technology stack than Kroger or the top-tier RMNs.

Products. On-site sponsored search and display, off-site, CTV, and in-store. The channel mix mirrors the broader grocery RMN playbook.

Measurement and fit. Closed-loop sales attribution, partner clean rooms, and directional lift reporting. Measurement is functional but not as deep as Kroger's matched-control methodology. Best suited for lower-funnel CPG with increasing mid-funnel applicability as the stack matures.

Instacart Ads

Scale. Multi-retailer platform covering 1,800+ retail banners, with over $1B in annualized ad revenue. Instacart is structurally different from single-retailer RMNs: the shopper data spans many chains rather than reflecting one retailer's purchase graph.

Products. Sponsored Products, Featured Product, Display, Shoppable formats, and Carrot Ads off-platform. Carrot Ads also powers Uber Eats Sponsored Items in the US, extending reach beyond the Instacart app.

Measurement and fit. Closed-loop to Instacart orders, lift studies, and clean-room partners. Best for lower-funnel and trial-driving campaigns. The caveat: Instacart shoppers are a high-intent but convenience-driven segment, and substitution rates in delivery can differ meaningfully from in-store behavior. Useful for CPG trial; needs independent incrementality validation to separate genuine lift from in-store cannibalization.

Home Depot Orange Apron Media

Scale. The dominant home-improvement RMN. The network was rebranded as Orange Apron Media in April 2024. Home Depot's shopper base skews toward high-ticket, project-driven purchases with longer consideration cycles than CPG or general merchandise.

Products. Sponsored Products, on-site display, off-site, CTV, in-store, and Pro-focused activations targeting the professional contractor segment.

Measurement and fit. Closed-loop sales attribution, lift studies, and partner clean rooms. Lower- to mid-funnel for home-improvement brands; the Pro segment targeting is a differentiator not available through any other RMN.

Lowe's Media Network

Scale. Direct competitor to Home Depot in the home-improvement RMN space. Rebranded as Lowe's Media Network in mid-2024. Smaller overall footprint than Home Depot but serves a comparable audience profile.

Products. On-site sponsored search and display, off-site, CTV, and in-store. Channel coverage mirrors the broader category-leader playbook.

Measurement and fit. Closed-loop sales attribution, lift studies, and partner clean rooms. Lower- to mid-funnel, well suited for home-improvement brands that want to run competitive tests against Home Depot or target Lowe's-specific shopper segments.

Best Buy Ads

Scale. Consumer electronics-focused specialty RMN with roughly 100 million My Best Buy members. The audience is purchase-intent-dense for CE: shoppers on BestBuy.com are actively researching and comparing hardware, appliances, and technology.

Products. Sponsored Products, on-site display, off-site via The Trade Desk, DV360, and Yahoo, CTV, and in-store. The multi-DSP off-site access is a practical differentiator for CE brands with existing programmatic setups.

Measurement and fit. Closed-loop sales attribution, lift studies, and clean rooms. Strongly lower-funnel for consumer electronics. The combination of high-research purchase behavior and a loyalty member base makes it effective for launches and for capturing shoppers late in a consideration cycle.