Meta to Overtake Google

Meta is on track to pass Google in digital advertising revenue in 2026, according to a new Emarketer forecast. (emarketer.com) Emarketer said Meta will generate $243.46 billion in net worldwide ad revenue in 2026, compared with Google’s projected $239.54 billion. The research firm published the forecast on April 13, 2026, and said Meta is also set to move ahead of Google in the United States. (emarketer.com) A year earlier, Google still led, with $214.06 billion in global digital ad revenue versus Meta’s $196.17 billion. Emarketer said Meta’s share of worldwide digital ad spending will reach 26.8% in 2026, while Google’s share will be 26.4%. (emarketer.com) The shift follows faster growth at Meta than at Google. Emarketer said Meta’s worldwide ad revenue growth will accelerate from 22.1% in 2025 to 24.1% in 2026, while Google’s growth rate will hold at 11.9% this year. (emarketer.com) Emarketer tied Meta’s gains to ad tools that automate campaign buying and creative production across Facebook, Instagram, and Reels. Senior forecasting analyst Zach Goldner said products including Advantage+ and artificial-intelligence-generated ad creatives are helping advertisers get stronger returns on Meta’s apps. (emarketer.com) Meta’s own results show how much its ad machine expanded last year. The company reported $200.97 billion in revenue for 2025, up 22% from 2024, while ad impressions across its Family of Apps rose 12% and average price per ad increased 9%. (atmeta.com) Google is still growing, but its business is broader than advertising alone. Alphabet reported $402.84 billion in total revenue for 2025, said Google Services revenue rose 14% to $95.9 billion in the fourth quarter, and said YouTube brought in more than $60 billion in 2025 from ads and subscriptions combined. (abc.xyz) Alphabet chief executive Sundar Pichai said on February 4, 2026, that the company had more than 325 million paid subscriptions across consumer services and that the Gemini app had more than 750 million monthly active users. Those subscription and cloud businesses give Google other ways to grow even if Meta takes the top spot in digital ads. (blog.google) Emarketer said its forecast was completed before recent court rulings involving Meta and YouTube and does not assume those cases will materially change 2026 revenue. The firm said the cases are likely to take years to move through appeals and additional trials, leaving the ad race centered, for now, on growth and market share. (emarketer.com)