Survey Shows 88% Of Americans Expect To Get Interest-Based Ads; Record 85% Now Recognize AdChoices Icon

Large Majorities Say AdChoices Icon Is Useful and Easy to Understand, While Two-Thirds Say They Have Clicked the AdChoices Icon in Past

NEW YORK, Feb. 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The vast majority of Americans (88%) say they expect to get interest-based ads, and a record 85% recognize the blue triangular AdChoices icon that provides access to information and choices about those ads, according to a new survey conducted by the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA).

Conducted earlier this month, the survey found most Americans can correctly identify what the AdChoices Icon does (58%); have clicked on it in the past (67%), and say they find it useful (78%) and easy-to-understand (85%).

“The best way to understand consumer preferences is simply to ask people what they like and want,” said Lou Mastria, President & CEO of the DAA. “This survey shows that record numbers of Americans recognize AdChoices, understand what it does, and consider it a useful tool to get information and choices about the types of digital advertising they receive and expect to receive. That strong support for AdChoices extends to the policymaking process, as large majorities of respondents expressed support for this type of cross-industry delivered pro-consumer icon-based approach and the role of independent watchdogs like the DAA’s AdChoices program.”

Among the findings of the survey:

• Almost all respondents expect to get interest-based advertising (also known as targeted ads) with equal proportions saying they always (44%) or sometimes (44%) expect advertising to use information about their online interests to deliver relevant ads to them.
• A record number (85%) recognize the AdChoices Icon — up 6% since the same question was asked in 2024 — with more than half saying they recognize it a great deal (52%) and a third saying somewhat (33%).
• Most people (58%) understand what the icon does, correctly saying it gives a person information and choices about the types of ads they receive, a result up 5% since the last survey in 2024.
• Two-thirds say they have clicked the AdChoices Icon in an ad, website, or app, with responses divided between regularly (23%), occasionally (28%), and once or twice (16%).
• More than three-quarters (78%) say the AdChoices Icon is useful, the same as 2024, with respondents saying it is very (32%) or somewhat (46%) useful.
• The vast majority (85%) said the AdChoices Icon is easy to understand, same as 2024, with respondents saying it is very (40%) or somewhat (45%) easy to understand.
• More than three-quarters (78%) said the AdChoices Icon increases trust in the advertisers that use it, up 6% since 2024, with respondents saying it increased trust a great deal (22%) or somewhat (56%).
• A similar proportion (82%) said it’s important to have access to simple icon-based information and choices about advertising, up 4% since 2024, with respondents saying it is very (40%) or somewhat (42%) important.
• Americans strongly support the role of independent watchdogs like AdChoices in any new laws around advertising, with 87% saying any new laws should incorporate such watchdogs.

“Our goal at the DAA has always been to help responsible advertisers give American consumers the information and choice tools they need to control their advertising experience, and we are gratified by the overwhelmingly positive reaction we’ve seen both anecdotally and in these survey results to those efforts,” Mastria continued. “Working with our partners across the digital advertising industry, we have built the AdChoices Icon into one of the most recognized, trusted, and used consumer information and choice tools in history, and we look forward to continuing to update and improve it to meet consumer needs, regardless of the technological changes which may come to digital advertising media.”

The survey was conducted among 1,103 American adults via SurveyMonkey from February 19-20, 2026. Based on a confidence interval of 95 percent, the margin of error for the survey is +/- 3 percent. The full survey results are available on the DAA website at https://digitaladvertisingalliance.org/2026/DAA_AdChoices_Icon_Awareness_Survey.pdf.

About the Digital Advertising Alliance

The Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) is an independent not-for-profit organization which establishes and enforces responsible privacy practices for relevant digital advertising, while giving consumers information and control over the types of digital advertising they receive. The DAA runs the YourAdChoices, mobile AppChoices and PoliticalAds programs. Underlying the DAA’s efforts are the DAA Self-Regulatory Principles, including updates to address changing technologies and business models such as multi-site, mobile, and cross-device data. Compliance with the DAA Principles is independently enforced for all companies in digital advertising by BBB National Programs and the Association of National Advertisers (ANA). The DAA is managed by a consortium of the leading national advertising and marketing trade groups, including the 4As; American Advertising Federation; ANA; Interactive Advertising Bureau; and Network Advertising Initiative, with the advice of BBB National Programs.

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SOURCE Digital Advertising Alliance