Criteo reports record Q4 2024 earnings, driven by retail media & AI innovation

Criteo reported record Q4 2024 earnings results, with its continued success in retail media and AI innovation propelling the company forward. In 2024, Criteo delivered double-digit Contribution ex-TAC (net revenue) growth for the third consecutive year and margin expansion for the second consecutive year, further solidifying its dominance in commerce media.

Earlier this year, Michael Komasinski was appointed Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board, effective February 15, 2025. Komasinski brings over 20 years of AdTech expertise and a proven track record of driving accelerated growth and scale.

With strong tailwinds and new leadership, Criteo is laser-focused on ensuring a unified commerce experience. In 2025, its goal is to empower advertisers to build full-funnel strategies using multi-channel reach, AI-driven optimization and seamless first-party data integrations to improve personalization and ad performance – all activated on the Criteo Commerce Media Platform.

Overview of Financial Results & Retail Media Figures

Overall media spend was $4.3 billion in 2024, growing 5% year-over-year at constant currency and $1.3 billion in Q4.
Adjusted EBITDA margin grew 500 basis points in 2024 to 35%.
Criteo’s Retail Media business exceeded $250 million dollars in revenue in Q4 and continued to gain market share in 2024 with 31% year-over-year growth in media spend.
Retail Media Contribution ex-TAC (net revenue) grew 25% year-over-year at constant currency in 2024 and 23% in Q4.

Retail Media Success Drives Scale and Innovation for Brands, Agencies & Retailers

Criteo expanded platform adoption to 3,500 brands, adding 1,000 new brands – three times the number of brands added in 2023.
Major Holdco agencies continue to leverage and grow with Criteo’s Commerce Media Platform – solidifying the company as a strategic partner for global agencies. In the U.S., Criteo delivered another quarter with over $150 million dollars in agency spend going through its DSP Commerce Max, resulting in more than 50% growth with U.S. Holdco agencies in 2024.
During Cyber Weekend in November, media spend grew 37% for the 10 largest retailers and the number of brands advertising across Criteo’s network increased by close to 20% compared to last year.
As part of its strategic collaboration with Microsoft Advertising, Criteo signed five new retailer wins across regions. Those retailers are expected to launch in the first half of 2025, and the company will begin testing its demand side tech integration with Microsoft Advertising in the first half of 2025.

AI Innovation Fuels Growth and Future Success

Criteo’s AI-powered Commerce Audiences, which allow marketers to activate audiences using the world's largest open commerce dataset, grew 15% year-over-year in Q4 and 32% for the year.
Criteo rolled out Commerce GO!, the next generation AI-powered automation and optimization tool that harnesses AI to enable faster and easier campaign creation and management. Now, marketers can launch campaigns in five clicks, with AI automating decisions around audiences, targeting and ad formats.

Quote from Megan Clarken:

“I’m incredibly proud of what our team has accomplished. This year, we solidified our position as a global leader in Commerce Media and delivered our strongest financial performance to date, marking our third consecutive year of double-digit growth,” said Megan Clarken, Chief Executive Officer of Criteo. “As I pass the baton to Michael Komasinski to lead Criteo into its next chapter of AI-driven innovation and growth, I do so with excitement for the Company's future.”

Also Read: Criteo partners with Swiggy to power offsite retail media campaigns