Web Interstitial Ads: Revenue and Search Risk
A web interstitial is a full-page ad that appears between one page and the next. AdSense calls its version a vignette ad, and other networks use their own names. The reader meets it after clicking a link and has to close it to reach the page they wanted.
Updated · Every figure on this page is an estimate from our benchmark tables, not a quote from any network.
Five of the six web networks we model support the format: AdSense, Ezoic, Monumetric, Mediavine and Raptive. Media.net does not in our data. It pays well per view, but it is also the web format with the most ways to go wrong.
What this format contributes on a website
Estimated monthly revenue for a general site with 50,000 sessions, with and without this format, by network.
| Network | With | Without |
|---|---|---|
| Google AdSense | $305 | $266 |
| Ezoic | $413 | $359 |
| Media.net | Not offered | $212 |
| Monumetric | $455 | $396 |
| Mediavine | $736 | $640 |
| Raptive | $778 | $677 |
Adding this format lifts the estimate by about 15% on networks that support it.
How it earns
An interstitial is one large impression with the reader's full attention, and advertisers price it accordingly. Our model adds up to 15% on top of the reference RPM when it is on. On an AdSense Tier 1 reference of about $7.00, that is a modelled extra of about $1.05 per 1,000 pageviews.
Because it is normally capped to once per session and shown between pages, its contribution depends on how many pages each visitor reads. A site where people read one page and leave gets almost nothing from it, while a site with deep sessions has many more chances to show it.
What it does to the experience
Every interstitial stands between a reader and something they chose to see. That makes it the web format most likely to push up bounce rates and cut pages per visit, and those losses fall on every other ad unit on your site as well.
Google's Search guidance has long discouraged intrusive interstitials that cover the main content, especially straight after a visitor arrives from search, and the Better Ads Standards list prestitial ads with a countdown among the experiences to avoid. Showing one only between pages, never on arrival, is the established safe pattern. Check the current guidance before you turn the format on.
Best practice
- Show it only between pages, never on the first page of a visit.
- Cap it at once per session or less.
- Make the close button large, obvious and available at once, with no countdown.
- Judge it on revenue per session across the whole visit, since fewer pages read hits all your other units.
Common mistakes
- Firing an interstitial the moment a visitor lands from search.
- Stacking it with a newsletter pop-up or consent prompt so the reader faces several overlays at once.
- Treating the modelled uplift as guaranteed, when it can vanish if readers start viewing fewer pages.
All figures come from our benchmark tables: Android eCPMs by tier, category or niche multipliers, modelled fill and the iOS multiplier. They are estimates for planning, not quotes.
Questions people ask
Will interstitials get my site penalised in Google?
Google's guidance targets intrusive interstitials that block content, particularly on arrival from search. Ads shown only between pages with an easy close are the commonly accepted pattern, but read the current guidance yourself.
What is a vignette ad?
It is the name AdSense uses for its full-screen ad shown between page loads. You switch it on through auto ads and adjust its behaviour in your account settings.
Is an interstitial worth it on a small site?
Often not. Short visits leave few page changes to show it on, while the risk to reader goodwill stays the same. Run the calculator with interstitials on and off to see the modelled difference.