For the past several years, commerce media has been defined by proliferation: New networks, new formats, new acronyms. As the category heads into 2026, industry leaders agree that growth alone is no longer the story. What matters now is connection: Across channels, across data, and across the full customer journey.

Retail media strategies are diverging; Macy’s and Iceland show how retailers are choosing between faster scale through partners and deeper control through bespoke in-store systems.

Sam’s Club and BJ’s aim to show that samples and screens drive sales.

“The way retail media has historically been built has been about setting up an advertising business on a retailer’s owned and operated digital channels,” said our analyst Sarah Marzano on an episode of The CPG Guys.

"Retail and growing a business today relies a lot more on developing alternative revenue streams and brand building that goes far beyond the typical selling products at a good price," said our analyst Blake Droesch during a recent “Behind the Numbers” podcast recorded live at the National Retail Federation's (NRF) 2026 Big Show.

Out-of-home (OOH) ad spending keeps climbing, powered by digital screens, in-store placements, and programmatic buying. Growth is steady, but budgets still lean on traditional formats as automation reshapes how brands plan and buy.

Social media tops the priority list for 84% of US digital media professionals, outpacing influencer marketing (61%) by 23 percentage points, according to an October survey from Integral Ad Science and YouGov.

To simplify shopping for customers in 2026, retailers will provide curated product selections online and in-store, experts told EMARKETER. This will also strengthen loyalty and improve the shopping experience, attracting new customers and encouraging them to return regularly in the year ahead.

Next year will bring shifts that redefine how networks operate, how brands show up, and how performance is measured. Here are three predictions for commerce media in 2026.

Agencies are increasingly acting as commerce media guides, helping brands move past outdated structures, sort through measurement standards, and bring AI into their planning. While commerce media networks (CMNs) have expanded to capture more than just retail media dollars, the silos between brand, retail, and sales teams make integration a challenge.

While commerce media networks expand, retailers can take advantage of the efficiencies and measurement capabilities that they can provide.Retail media networks alone are expected to claim one-fifth of US digital ad spending by 2029, according to EMARKETER’s September forecast.

On today’s EMARKETER Miniseries—A Blueprint to Better Measurement—we explore Amazon's plans for moving out of Beta and offering Omnichannel Metrics (OCM) more widely to advertisers, the top two challenges they face heading into the new year, and what is next for Amazon Ads in 2026, as it pertains to durables. EMARKETER Principal Analyst Sky Canaves speaks with Kolby Capelouto, Head of Sales for Durables at Amazon Ads. Listen everywhere you find podcasts, and watch on YouTube and Spotify.

Social networks will claim close to 32% of US digital ad spending in 2026, as powerful AI systems and improved video monetization help push social past a plateau in time spent among US consumers.

Retail media’s early free-for-all is giving way to a more deliberate approach. At last week’s EMARKETER Summit, leaders from Kellanova and Every Man Jack described how marketers are sharpening their focus, rethinking measurement, and preparing for an AI-driven discovery landscape.

The commerce media landscape is bracing for a defining year. Pressure is building across retailers and platforms to rethink how shoppers discover, evaluate, and buy products.

US ad spend growth will grow a total of 11% in 2025, excluding political spending, per an updated Madison & Wall forecast cited by Mediapost. The figure is well above Madison & Wall’s previous estimate of 3.6% growth and follows 13% YoY growth in Q3. Even as total media ad spending continues to grow, growth doesn’t entirely negate the overall climate of uncertainty that will undoubtedly affect the ad industry in the year ahead. Slowing growth expected from Madison & Wall in 2026 and ongoing economic headwinds indicate that advertisers are still operating in an era of caution.

In 2026, commerce media will shift toward the core mechanics of shopping, as retailers reorganize, stores become high-impact media showcases, agentic AI opens new monetization, and financial platforms move closer to shoppable environments.

Exclusive survey findings benchmark retail media network structures, capabilities, and priorities as the landscape continues to take shape.​

As more brands build retail media networks (RMNs) to connect advertisers with shoppers, the once experimental channel has grown pivotal to marketers. US retail media search ad spending alone is projected to rake in $38.42 billion this year, according to our March 2025 forecast.