Moldova’s advertising market is small, growing and moving online. Companies in Moldova reported at least 654 million MDL in advertising sales for 2025: 280 million online, 220 million on TV, 95 million outdoor, 47 million on radio and 12 million in print, according to the Competition Council. That total leaves out most of the money paid to Google and Meta, which invoice from abroad. The Independent Journalism Center (CJI) estimates that more than €91 million was spent in 2024 on ads aimed at people in Moldova, including by foreign companies.
How big is the advertising market in Moldova?
The most recent official figures cover 2025. The Competition Council published them in May 2026, and they show what companies in Moldova invoiced for advertising:
| Channel | Sales in 2025 | Change from 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Online | at least 280.1 million MDL | not published |
| TV | 220.1 million MDL | +33% |
| Outdoor | at least 94.8 million MDL | data incomplete |
| Radio | 46.9 million MDL | +19% |
| at least 12.1 million MDL | not published | |
| Total | at least 654 million MDL |
Online has been the fastest-growing segment for three years. The Council also notes that the 2025 parliamentary elections raised demand for a while, especially online, on TV and outdoor. TV had dipped in 2024, to 165.5 million MDL from 182.8 million in 2023, before the 2025 jump.
Why the official figures miss most online spending
The Competition Council itself says the real online market is probably much larger: international platforms that sell ads in Moldova without a local company do not report their revenue here. Independent estimates fill part of the gap:
- About 65% of Moldova’s online advertising money goes to Meta Ads and Google Ads, and about 30% to programmatic banner networks such as Admixer, Eskimi and Teads (CJI, 2025).
- Facebook ads in Moldova take about €20 million a year, mostly from dental clinics, gambling and gaming companies, online stores and building-material sellers (CJI, 2025).
- More than €40 million a year is spent on Google to reach users in Moldova, and foreign online retailers such as Temu are among the largest buyers (Statista, cited by CJI).
By the same estimates, the domestic market was worth €26.3 million in 2024: TV 50%, online 39%, outdoor 7%, radio 3% and print 1%. Add the money that goes straight to Google and Meta, and online is by far the largest channel.
Who can you reach online in Moldova?
At the end of 2025, 2.40 million people in Moldova used the internet, 80.2% of the population (DataReportal, Digital 2026). Advertising audiences as the platforms report them:
| Platform | Ad audience, late 2025 | Change in a year |
|---|---|---|
| TikTok | 1.88 million adults (18+) | +21% |
| 1.50 million | +11% | |
| 1.20 million | +16% | |
| Messenger | 1.15 million | +11% |
| 520,000 members | +18% |
Google handles 90.6% of searches in Moldova and Yandex 6.6% (StatCounter, September 2026), so search advertising in Moldova means Google Ads. News sites still matter: the 20 Moldovan sites measured by Gemius and BATI drew about 845 million page views in 2025 (Competition Council).
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TV: still the largest local channel
By reported sales, TV is still the largest local channel: 220.1 million MDL in 2025, up 33% on 2024. Moldova had 45 TV license holders at the end of 2025, and 7 of them live on advertising alone (Competition Council). Two things to know before buying TV: audience measurement is unsettled, because broadcasters picked a new TV measurer in 2024 but had not found the money to sign its contract by mid-2025 (CJI), and market players report budgets moving from TV to international platforms and independent content creators.
Outdoor, radio and print
Outdoor advertising brought in at least 94.8 million MDL in 2025. Local authorities reported 33,164 m² of permitted advertising space across the country, a third of it in Chișinău (11,265 m²), and the shift is toward digital screens (Competition Council). In Chișinău, bus shelters are the most common format: 313 shelters with 626 city-light panels (CJI). Radio grew 19% to 46.9 million MDL across 48 licensed stations. Print is now marginal, at about 12 million MDL, used mostly for official notices and local campaigns.
What this means if you advertise in Moldova in 2026
- Start with search. With Google handling 9 in 10 searches, Google Ads shows your ad at the moment people look for what you sell. See how we run Google Ads campaigns.
- Plan for two languages. People in Moldova search and read in Romanian and in Russian, so give each language its own ads, keywords and landing page instead of one mixed campaign.
- Use short video to create demand. TikTok’s ad audience in Moldova (1.88 million adults) is now larger than Facebook’s (1.50 million), and short vertical video works on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram alike.
- Measure leads, not impressions. Set up conversion tracking before the first campaign, so you know which channel brings calls and form requests.
- Use TV and outdoor for reach, not for tracking. They build awareness across age groups, but while TV measurement is unsettled, judge them by the searches and site visits they bring.
Sources
- Competition Council, activity report for 2025 (in Romanian), published May 29, 2026: advertising sales by channel, TV and radio licenses, outdoor advertising space.
- Independent Journalism Center, Piața mass-media din Republica Moldova: realități și tendințe în 2025 (in Romanian), July 2025: the 2024 market by channel, the shares of Meta, Google and programmatic networks, spending on Facebook and Google.
- DataReportal, Digital 2026: Moldova: internet users and advertising audiences.
- StatCounter, search engine market share in Moldova, September 2026.
