YouTube Shorts Ads in India

What are YouTube Shorts ads?

Shorts ads are vertical video ads that play between Shorts in the Shorts feed. Google's DV360 help puts it simply: Shorts ads play between Shorts on YouTube. Viewers can swipe past them immediately, just as they swipe past any Short.

They look and behave like regular Shorts, with a call-to-action button and the option to like, comment or share. That native feel is the main appeal. A good Shorts ad feels like content, not an interruption.

How big is YouTube Shorts in India?

Very big. At Brandcast 2025, Google said YouTube Shorts has over 650 million monthly logged-in viewers in India, citing its internal data from June 2025. That is about 65 crore people, and it makes Shorts one of the largest short-video platforms in the country.

Viewing is heavily mobile and spread well beyond the metros. Hindi dominates, with large Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Marathi and Bhojpuri audiences. For many brands, Shorts is the easiest way to reach Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns on YouTube.

How are Shorts ads bought and priced?

Google's DV360 help says Shorts ads can be charged per impression, per view or per engagement, depending on the setup. With target CPM, you pay for impressions. Google Ads counts a view when someone watches 10 seconds, clicks the call to action, or likes, comments on or shares the ad.

Indicative CPMs for YouTube Shorts ads in India run about ₹50–140. Broad national reach sits low. Metro audiences and festive weeks sit higher. GST is extra and rates are confirmed per campaign.

What specs and creative work on Shorts?

Shorts ads use vertical video, and 9:16 is the format to aim for. Google recommends keeping them under 60 seconds. In our experience, 15 to 30 seconds is a sensible range for most brands.

Keep text and buttons away from the bottom and right edges, where YouTube places its own controls. Add burned-in captions, because many people scroll with the sound low. Use the first second well. A swipe takes less time than a blink.

Shot-on-phone styles often beat polished TV edits. A creator holding the product. A quick before-and-after. A 20-second recipe with a spice brand. A Diwali sale reveal that starts with the price, not the brand film.

Creator partnerships work well here. Google announced a Creator Partnerships Hub in Google Ads at Brandcast 2025 to help brands find and run ads with creators. In DV360 we can run creator-made videos as ads once the rights are agreed.

Make language versions cheaply by swapping the voiceover and captions. A Hindi base cut plus Tamil and Telugu versions covers a lot of India.

How do Shorts ads compare with Instagram Reels?

Both are vertical, full-screen and swipeable, so creative often travels between them with small edits. The buying is different. Shorts ads sit inside your YouTube plan in DV360, with the same frequency caps and reporting as your other YouTube and OTT buys. Many Indian brands run both and compare cost per thousand reached and view rate side by side before shifting budget.

How do you measure Shorts campaigns?

Look at impressions, reach and frequency first. Then check view rate and engagement, meaning likes, shares and clicks on the call to action. Watch for creative fatigue. Shorts audiences scroll fast, and the same ad can tire within a couple of weeks.

Brand Lift is available for eligible campaigns and is a good way to show recall from a format many still see as experimental. For performance goals, Shorts placements are also part of YouTube Demand Gen, which bids for conversions.

Tips for better results

Do not just crop a 16:9 film. Re-edit for vertical, with the subject centred and big. Start with motion or a face in the first frame.

Refresh creative often and test two hooks at once. Use Shorts for reach, then follow up with skippable in-stream ads for people who want the longer story. Our YouTube advertising hub shows how the formats fit together.