Dealer Ad Spend Hits $9.96 Billion As Radio Remains Key Local Reach Channel.

The nation’s auto dealers spent a record $9.96 billion on advertising last year as higher tariffs and an uneven economy did little to dampen their marketing efforts. The National Automobile Dealers Association reports the year over-year-increase was relatively small, as spending climbed just 0.4% from 2024. But it was enough to mark a continuation of a dealer ad spending recovery since the pandemic upended the market. The 2025 total also was sufficient to beat the previous record of $9.82 million set in 2016. It also marks a $2.48 billion increase since the low point in advertising was recorded in 2020.

One reason dealerships were willing to spend more on advertising, was their own businesses did better. Patrick Manzi, Chief Economist at NADA, reports the average franchised dealership saw its revenue increase by 4.5% in 2025 with gains across in every department. The supply chain woes of the pandemic years are also in the rearview mirror.

NADA, which represents the nation’s 16,990 franchised car and light truck dealers, says 16.2 million light-duty vehicles were sold last year. That was a 1.9% increase from a year earlier, as sales topped $1.3 million. It says the average new car selling price was a record $48,205, up $553 from a year earlier.

“The federal tax credit for electric vehicles expired at the end of September 2025, which caused consumers to flock to dealer lots in September to take advantage of the tax credit,” Manzi says. As a result, EV market share hit an all-time high of 11.8% in September, before falling to 5.9% in October.

NADA reports dealers also sold 13.1 million used cars last year, a 2% increase in sales volume, for an average $28,680. And local dealerships wrote more than 276 million repair orders, a 2% increase year-to-year, with service and parts sales totaling more than $164 billion.

NADA says the average dealer spent $739 on advertising for each new vehicle sold last year. That was an increase of $34 from a year earlier — the biggest bump since the post-COVID bounce back in 2022.

Spending levels on a per vehicle basis are also now higher than they were before the pandemic. When the last spending record was set in 2016, dealers averaged $633 spent on ads per vehicle sold.

Dealers once flooded television airwaves with ads, but that is no longer the case. NADA says three-quarters (74.9%) of dealer ad dollars went to digital media last year. The biggest portion went to search engine marketing, which captured more one in five dollars spent, followed closely by third-party listing sites. Another 14.2% went to social media advertising, which was up from 12.7% in 2024.

Most traditional channels lost about a half point from their share last year. Radio’s share of dealer ad money slipped to 6.9% last year, to total a still-significant $687.24 million. Television’s share also declined to 10.5% to just over $1 billion. Direct mail’s share slid to 5.6%. The biggest surprise may be that newspaper’s small share rose slightly to 2.1%, up from 1.9% a year earlier.

NADA estimates the typical new car dealership spent $586,246 on advertising last year, an 8% increase from a year earlier. Radio’s share of that total averaged $40,451 — down $314 from a year earlier. The typical dealer spent $61,556 with local television stations. But the average for both is less than was spent in each of the biggest digital channels. The report says dealers spent an average $86,247 on social media advertising last year.

The latest data from NADA shows 2026 will present new challenges for auto dealers. It reported the eighth consecutive month of year-over-year declines in April, with total sales pacing toward 15.9 million units sold in 2026.

“Vehicle affordability continues to limit the pace of new-vehicle sales. High interest rates and monthly payments are limiting the buying pool,” Manzi says in NADA’s latest Market Beat report. But even with gas prices well above $4 per gallon, Manzi says forecasters believe it will take sustained gas prices of greater than $5 a gallon before there is a big push to buy EVs.