How to advertise in a magazine or newspaper
Print sells a readership you take on trust. Online, you can see it.
Facts checked 11 Oct 2026 · by the AdSworn team
To advertise in a magazine or newspaper, ask for its media kit (audience, sizes and rates), choose a placement (a display ad, a classified or a sponsored article), agree the dates and price, send your artwork or copy, and make sure it's labelled as an ad. In print, the audience is a circulation figure you take on trust. Online magazines and blogs can show the real traffic and the Google searches behind each article, so you can sponsor exactly the pages your buyers read.
How buying a magazine ad works
- Ask for the media kitReadership, audience, ad sizes, rates and deadlines. See what a website media kit includes.
- Pick the placementA display ad (full page, half page, banner), a classified, or a sponsored article.
- Agree dates and pricePrint runs on issue deadlines, often weeks ahead. Online can usually start within days.
- Send the creativeArtwork to the publication's specs, or copy for a sponsored article.
- Make sure it's labelledThe FTC expects ads that look like articles to be clearly marked as ads.
Print vs online
| Print magazine or newspaper | Online magazine or blog | |
|---|---|---|
| The audience number | Circulation or readership, from the publisher or an audit body | Page views and searches, from the site's Google Analytics or Search Console |
| Precision | The whole issue | One article, on one topic |
| Lead time | Weeks, set by issue deadlines | Often days |
| Clicks | None: a web address or QR code | A link straight to your site |
| How long it lasts | Until the next issue | As long as the article keeps getting found |
Print still suits local businesses and brands whose buyers read one title cover to cover. For anything sold online, an online magazine article usually wins: you pick the exact topic, check the traffic, and count the clicks.
Sponsored articles (advertorials)
A sponsored article, or advertorial, is an ad written in the publication's style. The FTC's guide to native advertising says the format must not mislead readers about it being an ad, so it needs a clear label like "Sponsored" or "Ad". Online, a lighter version is a sponsored post: the site recommends you inside an article it already publishes. See what is native advertising.
| Page | Search that brings readers | Banner / 4 weeks | Featured / year |
|---|---|---|---|
| The History Of The MrBeast Logohatchwise.com | “mrbeast logo” · 30 clicks | $25 | $195 |
| The History Of The Amazon Logohatchwise.com | “amazon logo” · 14 clicks | $25 | $150 |
| The Top 7 Logo Makers – Reviewed and Rated – Logo Design Magazinelogodesign.org | “best logo maker” · 14 clicks | $25 | $270 |
| My Honest Review of Design Shifu Unlimited Graphic Designs [Updated for 2026] – Logo Design Magazinelogodesign.org | “design shifu reviews” · 3 clicks | $25 | $150 |
Advertising in online magazines on AdSworn
AdSworn lists online magazines and blogs article by article. Each listing shows the article's page views and the Google searches that bring its readers, read straight from Google. You choose a sponsored post inside the article (12 weeks or a year, from $75) or a banner (from $25 for 4 weeks), pay the listed price, and get a report of every view and click.
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- Banner ad$25 / 4 weeks
- Sponsored post$2,000 / year
Straight answers
How do I advertise in a magazine?
Ask for the media kit, pick a placement and dates, agree the price, send artwork or copy to the publication's specs, and make sure the ad is labelled.
Is print or online magazine advertising better?
Online usually suits businesses that sell online: you pick one article's topic, check its real traffic, and count clicks. Print suits local or brand audiences that read a title closely.
What is an advertorial?
An ad written in the style of the publication's articles. It must be clearly labelled as an ad so readers aren't misled.
How do I know a magazine's audience is real?
In print, ask for audited circulation. Online, ask for the article's page views from Google Analytics or clicks from Search Console, ideally read directly rather than from a screenshot.