Unity Ads: Basics, Features, and App Monetization

What is Unity Ads?

Unity Ads is an advertising platform developed by Unity Technologies specifically for monetizing mobile applications, with a focus on the gaming segment. The platform was launched in 2014 after the acquisition of Applifier and has since become one of the leading ad networks for mobile games.

Unlike universal platforms (AdMob), Unity Ads was originally designed for gaming scenarios: support for playable creatives, optimization for Rewarded Video, integration with Unity Runtime. The key audience is Unity game developers, but the SDK is also available for native Android (Kotlin/Java) and iOS (Swift/Objective-C) projects.

According to Sensor Tower (2025), Unity Ads is among the top 5 ad networks by payout volume to mobile game developers. The average eCPM for gaming apps on Unity Ads is $12–25 USD, which is 15–20% higher than the market average for this segment.

Unity Ads in the Unity Ecosystem

Unity Ads is part of Unity Gaming Services — an ecosystem of tools for game development and monetization. A unified integration through Unity Package Manager allows you to connect advertising, analytics, cloud saving, and multiplayer in a single framework. For Unity developers, this means minimal setup time — from opening a project to the first ad impression can take less than an hour.

How Does Unity Ads Work?

Unity Ads’ mechanism uses a real-time auction model similar to other ad platforms, but with several features optimized for the gaming context. The platform supports both standard auctions and programmatic purchases through in-app bidding.

When an ad is requested, Unity Ads sends information about the app, user, and display context to its network. Advertisers place bids in real time, and the winning ad is delivered to the device. A unique feature of Unity Ads is the priority of video and playable creatives, which account for over 70% of the platform’s inventory. This makes Unity Ads an ideal choice for the Rewarded Video format.

Unity Ads Audience Pinpointer

An advanced targeting tool that uses machine learning to show ads to the most relevant users. Audience Pinpointer analyzes behavioral patterns: types of installed games, average session length, propensity to watch ads and make IAP purchases. Developers can set targeting parameters: for example, show Rewarded Video only to users who have made at least one purchase, or conversely — only to free-to-play users.

using UnityEngine;
using UnityEngine.Advertisements;

public class UnityAdsManager : MonoBehaviour, IUnityAdsInitializationListener
{
    private string gameId = "1234567";
    private bool testMode = true;

    public void InitializeAds()
    {
        Advertisement.Initialize(gameId, testMode, this);
    }

    public void OnInitializationComplete()
    {
        Debug.Log("Unity Ads initialized");
    }

    public void OnInitializationFailed(UnityAdsInitializationError error)
    {
        Debug.LogError("Init failed: " + error);
    }
}

Unity Ads Ad Formats

Unity Ads supports three main ad formats, each optimized for gaming scenarios. Special attention is given to video formats — they form the backbone of the platform’s inventory.

Rewarded Video (Unity Ads)

The key format of Unity Ads, accounting for over 60% of the platform’s revenue. Unity Rewarded Video supports custom server-side validations (SSV), multiple currencies in a single view, and advanced frequency capping. Average eCPM for gaming traffic is $15–25 USD, with a Completion Rate of 75–85%. Unity Ads is considered the benchmark for Rewarded Video in the gaming segment.

Interstitial Ad (Unity Ads)

Full-screen ads with support for video and static content. Unity Ads Interstitial is optimized for game breaks — between levels, during content loading, when exiting menus. Interstitial eCPM is $8–18 USD, CTR is 2–5%. Unity Ads supports automatic Interstitial display during natural pauses without the need to write additional code for timing.

Banner Ads (Unity Ads)

Standard adaptive banners supporting all common sizes: 320×50, 320×100, 728×90, and adaptive. Unity Banner has a lower eCPM ($1–3 USD) but provides steady additional revenue without impacting user experience. Banners are placed at the top or bottom of the screen.

Unity Ads Mediation

Unity Ads is not just an ad network — it also provides its own mediation platform, Unity LevelPlay (formerly ironSource after acquisition). LevelPlay allows combining Unity Ads with other ad networks into a single system with advanced analytics.

After acquiring ironSource in 2022, Unity combined the technologies of both companies. Unity LevelPlay supports in-app bidding for all major ad networks: AdMob, Meta Audience Network, AppLovin, AdColony, Chartboost, and others. The platform automatically optimizes the waterfall based on historical data, distributing traffic between networks for maximum eCPM.

Waterfall vs In-app Bidding in LevelPlay

LevelPlay supports both mediation approaches. Waterfall is the classic sequential polling of networks, where the order is determined by historical eCPM. In-app bidding means all networks compete simultaneously for each impression, guaranteeing the highest price. Unity recommends using in-app bidding for main formats and waterfall as a fallback for networks without bidding support.

class UnityLevelPlaySetup {
    fun configureLevelPlay() {
        val config = IronSourceConfig.getInstance()
        config.setClientSideCallbacks(true)
        config.setUserId("user123")

        IronSource.setMetaData("is_test_suite", "enable")
        IronSource.init(
            context,
            "your_app_key",
            IronSource.AD_UNIT_REWARDED_VIDEO
        )
    }
}

Unity Ads SDK Integration

Unity Ads integration differs depending on the development platform. For Unity Engine projects, the process is straightforward — through Package Manager. For native projects, manual SDK integration via Gradle or CocoaPods is required.

Integration via Unity Package Manager

For Unity Engine projects, open Window → Package Manager, find Ads Monetization and install the latest version. After installation, specify the Game ID in Services → Ads settings — a separate Game ID for Android and iOS. Unity Ads automatically initializes on app launch if the Advertising service is enabled in Unity Cloud Services.

Integration in Native Projects

For Android, add the dependency in build.gradle: implementation ‘com.unity3d.ads:unity-ads:4.12.+’ and initialize the SDK in code: UnityAds.initialize(activity, gameId, listener). For iOS, add pod ‘UnityAds’ to your Podfile or link UnityAds.framework manually. Initialization: UnityAds.initialize(gameId, testMode: false, initializationDelegate: self).

Showing Rewarded Video

To show Rewarded Video, call UnityAds.show() with a placement ID (e.g., “Rewarded_Video”). Unity Ads supports multiple placements — different entry points with different frequency and reward settings. It is recommended to create separate placements for each reward type: “Rewarded_Coins”, “Rewarded_Lives”, “Rewarded_SkipLevel”.

import UnityAds

class UnityAdsViewController: UIViewController {
    let placementId = "Rewarded_Video"

    func showRewardedAd() {
        if UnityAds.isReady(placementId) {
            UnityAds.show(self, placementId: placementId) { result in
                switch result {
                case .finished:
                    self?.grantReward()
                default:
                    print("Ad result: \(result)")
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

Benefits of Unity Ads for Games

Unity Ads has several advantages over universal ad platforms specifically for gaming applications. These features make it the preferred choice for game developers, especially those working with Unity Engine.

Playable Ads (Game Creatives)

A unique Unity Ads format — playable creatives that allow users to try a demo version of the advertised game directly within the ad. Playable Ads have the highest Conversion Rate among all ad formats — up to 25–30%. Unity Ads is the leader in playable inventory volume, as the platform can render creatives directly through Unity Runtime, ensuring smooth and fast loading.

Optimization for Gaming Scenarios

Unity Ads understands the gaming context: the platform knows when a game pauses, when a user completes a level, and when they are most receptive to watching an ad. Game Event Optimization is a technology that analyzes in-game events and suggests showing ads at the optimal moment, increasing Rewarded Video Completion Rate by 10–15%.

• Playable Creatives — the only platform with full playable Ads support through Unity Runtime.
• Game Event Optimization — machine learning determines the optimal moment to show ads.
• Cross-promotion — a tool for promoting a developer’s own games within other applications.
• AR/VR Support — special formats for augmented and virtual reality applications.

Unity Ads Analytics

Unity Ads provides a built-in analytics platform integrated with Unity Analytics. Developers can track key monetization metrics directly in Unity Dashboard without connecting third-party services.

Unity Dashboard — Monetization Metrics

The Unity Dashboard web panel shows all key metrics: revenue, eCPM, impressions, fill rate, ARPDAU. Revenue Breakdown provides revenue details by format (Rewarded Video, Interstitial, Banner), country, platform (Android/iOS), and placement. Date filtering is available for trend analysis. Data updates in real time with up to 4 hours delay.

LTV and Retention Reports

Unity Ads integrates with Unity Analytics for cohort analysis. LTV Report shows the lifetime value of users segmented by traffic sources. Retention Report shows user retention on Day 1, Day 7, Day 30, segmented by advertising cohorts. This data helps evaluate how advertising affects long-term user value.

A/B Testing in Unity Ads

A built-in A/B testing tool allows comparing different monetization settings: ad frequency, reward types, placements. Unity A/B Testing automatically distributes traffic between groups and shows statistically significant differences in revenue and Retention. Integration with Firebase Remote Config allows changing settings without publishing an app update.