Executive Summary
- ChatGPT Ads has been in pilot in the US for three months. Initial data points to a channel with potential influence, but with performance metrics below Google Ads.
- Average CTR: 0.91% compared to the benchmark of 6.4% on Google Search. Initial CPM of $60 has already been reduced to between $25 and $45.
- The channel is not yet available in Spain. OpenAI confirmed expansion to more markets throughout 2026.
- The priority action now is not advertising: it is to audit whether your company already appears in AI answers for key queries in your sector.
- For Spanish SMEs, direct investment in ChatGPT Ads doesn’t make sense in 2026. Building a foundation for organic visibility in AI does.
Lots of hype, but still far from being the next Google Ads
OpenAI has been testing ads on ChatGPT in the US for three months. The results are worse than expected in terms of performance. Let’s analyze the initial data and what it means for businesses in Spain.
The numbers first
The average CTR recorded by Adthena, which has followed the pilot program since its inception, is 0.91% , approximately seven times lower than the benchmark 6.4% for Google Search. The CPM started at $60 , with a minimum entry between $200,000 and $250,000. Nine weeks later, the CPM had dropped to a range of $25 to $45, with a minimum entry of $50,000.
Based on this data, most SMEs shouldn’t consider this channel today. The price remains high for what it delivers in terms of performance metrics.
And yet, OpenAI surpassed $100 million annualized in six weeks, with more than 600 advertisers on board, including Target, Ford, and Adobe.
Why do they enter if the results are modest?
ChatGPT Ads vs. Google Ads: Key Differences
| Dimension | Google Ads | ChatGPT Ads (pilot) |
| Type of intention | Declared (keyword) | Consultative (active research) |
| CTR average | ~6,4% | ~0,91% |
| current CPM | Variable | 25-45 $ |
| Minimum investment | No minimum | ~50.000 $ |
| Availability Spain | Yes | No (expected in 2026) |
| Measurement | Mature | Limited |
| Advertiser profile | All sectors | B2B, tech, high-value services |
| Funnel phase | Demand capture | Influence on the decision |
The most relevant difference is not the CTR. It’s the point in the purchase process at which the ad appears.
Because the channel doesn’t work like Google.
On Google, you compete for keywords. The user declares their intent, and you capture that demand.
On ChatGPT, the user is actively researching: comparing options, evaluating solutions, and asking for recommendations before taking action. The ad appears within that process, not outside of it.
It’s a different stage of the funnel: higher up, more influential, but also harder to measure.
The big brands entering the market now aren’t looking for immediate ROI. They’re looking for a presence on a channel before it becomes competitive and expensive. It’s the same strategy they used with Google Ads, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
The most interesting thing is not the advertisement
Several industry analysts believe it’s likely that brands with greater organic visibility in AI will have a head start when advertising formats expand. This is a reasonable hypothesis, although there is still no solid public evidence to confirm it.
What we do observe in the GEO audits we currently conduct at EMD is something more concrete: many companies discover that they don’t appear in any AI responses to strategic queries in their sector, even though they’ve had an active digital presence and SEO positioning for years. That’s the real starting point, before even talking about advertising.
As I usually point out in the projects of digital strategy we develop at EMD : if ChatGPT doesn’t know your brand when someone asks about your category, the ad starts with a credibility deficit from the beginning.
This changes the logical order of action. Before considering investing in ChatGPT Ads, a company should know if it already appears when someone asks the AI about its sector or category.
This is the core of what we work on as Visibility in generative AI : building a presence that makes models include your brand in their responses before any advertising budget is involved.
For whom does it make sense today?
Dentsu, one of the agencies involved in the pilot program, noted that the channel works best for brands with highly specific offerings and users with precise intent: B2B services, technology, consulting, training, and high-value solutions. These are sectors where the decision is made after research, not impulsively.
For mass-market e-commerce or volume acquisition, the channel is not yet adapted.
What should companies in Spain do now?
The channel is not available here yet. OpenAI confirmed on March 26, 2026, that it will expand advertising to “many more markets” throughout 2026. Europe still needs to resolve the infrastructure issues under the GDPR, but the direction is clear.
There’s only one thing that makes sense to do before launching: audit whether your company appears in AI-generated results for relevant queries in your industry. This doesn’t require an advertising budget. It requires understanding how visibility works in these systems, which is different from traditional SEO, although it shares some of its logic.
Companies that launch with that foundation already in place will have a real advantage. Those that start when the channel is already active will be late and pay more.
If your company operates in international markets, the urgency is even greater: English-speaking markets have a head start, and English-speaking advertisers are already building a presence. In projects of The digital internationalization we are developing, visibility in AI, is starting to be part of the diagnosis for entering new markets.
My reading
Google continues to dominate performance. ChatGPT is still in its infancy in measurement and accessibility for mid-sized businesses. But the influence of AI on the purchasing decision process is already a reality, and that’s not going to change.
The question every company should be asking itself isn’t whether to invest in ChatGPT Ads. It’s how much of their customers’ decision-making process is already happening within AI without their knowledge.
Frequently Asked Questions about Advertising on ChatGPT
The pilot program launched with a CPM of $60 and a minimum investment of between $200,000 and $250,000. After nine weeks, the CPM had dropped to the $25-$45 range and the minimum to $50,000. These figures are indicative of the pilot program in the US and may vary when the channel launches in other markets.
Not as of June 2026. OpenAI announced on March 26, 2026, the expansion of the advertising format to more markets during 2026. Europe still needs to resolve regulatory infrastructure issues under the GDPR before launch.
For immediate performance metrics, no: the average CTR recorded in the pilot is 0.91%, compared to the benchmark of 6.4% on Google Search. They work differently: Google captures declared demand; ChatGPT influences the research and comparison process prior to the decision. They are not interchangeable channels.
According to pilot data, the channel works best for brands with specific offerings targeted at users with high purchase intent: B2B services, technology, consulting, training, and high-value solutions. For mass-market e-commerce or high-volume campaigns, the channel is not yet well-suited.
Organic visibility in AI is a brand’s ability to be mentioned in responses from ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, or other generative models when someone asks about its industry or category. Several industry analysts believe that brands with a stronger organic presence in AI will likely have an advantage when advertising formats expand, although there is still no solid public evidence to confirm this. What is certain is that building this presence takes time, and the advertising channel will arrive in Spain sometime in 2026.
Through a GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) audit: an analytical process that identifies whether your brand, services, or content are cited by leading generative AI models for relevant queries in your industry. At EMD, we conduct these audits as a starting point for your AI visibility strategy.
Yes. Organic visibility in generative AI models doesn’t depend on advertising investment. It depends on several factors: structured and citable content, topic authority built through SEO and quality backlinks, clearly defined entities on the web (brand name, services, industry, geography), and external mentions in sources that the models consider reliable. Companies that cultivate these elements are more likely to appear in AI responses to relevant queries in their industry, regardless of whether or not they advertise on those channels.
There are three concrete actions: audit your brand’s current visibility in generative AI responses, review whether your content is structured to be citable by language models, and define the priority queries in your industry where you need to appear before the advertising channel launches. None of these actions require an advertising budget; they do, however, require a specific content and SEO strategy.
Do you want to know if your company already appears in AI answers?
We conduct AI visibility audits for companies in Spain. They are free and last 30 minutes. We analyze whether your brand appears on ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity for key queries in your industry, and identify specific actions to improve that presence before the advertising channel goes live.
Contact us for more information or to book an appointment at https://calendly.com/eric-onidi/30min
About the author
Eric Onidi is a digital marketing strategy consultant and founder of EMD. He is an ACCIÓ-accredited advisor on digital internationalization, export, and business strategy. He works with B2B, B2C, and B2B2C companies on strategy, internationalization, and digital growth projects in Spain and international markets.
LinkedIn · estrategiamarketing.digital · eric@estrategiamarketing.digital
Sources
- OpenAI — Testing ads in ChatGPT (actualización 26 marzo 2026): https://openai.com/es-419/index/testing-ads-in-chatgpt/ (consultado junio 2026)
- Digiday — Everything is coming down: ChatGPT ads are getting cheaper (abril 2026): https://digiday.com/marketing/everything-is-coming-down-chatgpt-ads-are-getting-cheaper/ (consultado junio 2026)
- Adthena — Ads in AI Search: Key takeaways from the front line: https://www.adthena.com/resources/blog/ads-in-ai-search/ (consultado junio 2026)
- CNBC — ChatGPT’s ad pilot has the industry excited (marzo 2026): https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/20/chatgpt-ads-testing-openai.html (consultado junio 2026)
- PYMNTS — OpenAI Expands ChatGPT Advertising to More Markets (marzo 2026): https://www.pymnts.com/artificial-intelligence-2/2026/openai-expands-chatgpt-advertising-to-more-markets-after-us-pilot/ (consultado junio 2026)