Jane Doe walks into Target and buys protein powder. If you run a competing protein brand, you've got about 30 days to win her next purchase before she's back at the same shelf reaching for the same tub.
You could try the usual playbook — social, paid search, influencers, a discount code on Instagram. But you’re probably already doing that. And so is everyone else.
You have to get in front of her, capture her attention in a new way: either retail or commerce media.
Both reach her in moments of purchase intent, both run on first-party data, and both are pitched with closed-loop measurement. But they work differently enough that the choice shapes the rest of your media plan.
Below, we explain what separates the two, where each one earns a slot in a 2026 plan, and the five questions to ask any retail media or commerce media network vendor before you sign.
What’s the Difference Between Commerce Media and Retail Media?
A retail media network is an ad platform owned by a retailer. Think Target Roundel, Amazon Ads, Walmart Connect, Kroger Precision Marketing. Merchants buy ads against that retailer's first-party shopper data and those ads run inside that retailer's ecosystem.
If we go back to the protein powder example: Jane Doe buys a competitor's tub at Target, you can show her your offer the next time she opens the Target app, walks past a digital screen in the store, or scrolls a site where Target Roundel is targeting her with Target's first-party data.
The targeting (no pun intended) works because Target owns the relationship with Jane. The catch is that every impression depends on Target being able to see her — and outside Target's ecosystem, she's invisible to you. When she checks out and leaves, the relationship ends.
A commerce media network sits one layer up, at the wallet. The data comes from the payment side — cards, banking apps, rewards platforms — so the network sees what shoppers buy across thousands of merchants and can reach them wherever they spend next.
If we go back to the protein powder example: Jane’s bank or rewards app sees the Target transaction come through her debit card.
As a competitor, you can show a cash back offer in her banking app the next morning or, even closer to her next purchase, 20 days out.
And you can reach every other consumer in the network whose purchase pattern looks like Jane's — same category, same price point, same merchant mix — including people who shop Target's competitors and people who don't shop Target at all. The reach follows the consumer, not the retailer.
TL;DR
Retail media is renting space inside one retailer's world. On their site, their app, their in-store screens, and the open web when their data can still see the shopper. The second the retailer loses sight of her, you do too.
Commerce media is more omnipresent because it's tied to a consumer's wallet. The wallet goes with her everywhere: the grocery run, the drive-thru, the gas station, the subscription she just renewed, the DTC checkout she's been eyeing for a week. Doesn’t matter where she shops, you’re going to show up in her banking app and email.
How the Industry Defines Commerce and Retail Media
Most vendors use category labels loosely. Here's how the most-cited industry sources draw the lines:
According to BCG:
“Commerce media brings media and transaction together, allowing consumers to buy directly from the content they consume. Retail and commerce media are growing faster than digital advertising, reflecting a broader shift in how attention converts into purchase. What has changed is where checkout happens. Platforms now embed transactions directly into media experiences: across ads, content, streaming TV, livestreams, and messaging—so discovery can turn into purchase without breaking context.”
The IAB treats commerce media as the broader category and retail media as a subset:
“Commerce media is an emerging practice where retailers and other companies utilize their physical assets, digital properties, first-party data, and connection to the shopper journey to create integrated media opportunities. Retail media is a core pillar under the commerce media umbrella and is the principal driver of revenue growth, brand partnerships, and customer experiences at leading retailers.”
Per McKinsey:
“CMNs are advertising ecosystems that have expanded beyond retail. For industries as varied as financial services, travel, and even healthcare, CMNs integrate ads directly into the customer experience across multiple online and offline channels. Many CMNs use first-party data from transactions, customer behaviors, and loyalty programs to deliver targeted ads, boosting relevance and sales.”
Their March 2026 Commerce Media at an Inflection Point report finds that 56% of US media buyers plan to increase commerce media spending in the next year.
eMarketer projects US retail media ad spending will hit $69.33 billion in 2026, a 17.9% jump from $58.79 billion in 2025. The broader commerce media forecast puts US commerce media at $118.44 billion by 2029.
Where the Two Channels Overlap
There’s a lot they have in common. Both:
- Use first-party data
- Pitch closed-loop measurement
- Grew because third-party cookies are dying
- Can run pay-for-performance campaigns
- Reach consumers in moments of purchase intent
The cleanest way to see how they differ in practice is to follow one shopper through one buying decision:
When Retail Media Makes Sense
RMNs work, especially for the right brand. If a meaningful share of your revenue moves through Amazon, Walmart, Target, Kroger, Albertsons, or Instacart, retail media budget belongs in the plan. It's the right channel for shelf-share, search-position-equivalent placement, and buy-box defense — sponsored product ads convert because the user is already mid-funnel.
The data backs this up. 65% of marketers say RMNs are playing a bigger role in their media mix this year, and nearly 70% of advertisers say their performance in retail media is better than in other channels. If your brand is sold at one of the major retailers, run RMN campaigns. The argument here isn't to replace them.
When Commerce Media Makes Sense
A commerce media network is the better fit when:
- Your brand isn't sold at a single dominant retailer (DTC, subscription, restaurants, fintech, services)
- RMN spend has plateaued and incremental dollars aren't producing incremental returns
- You need reach into Gen Z and Millennial shoppers who buy across many smaller merchants and aren't loyal to one retailer
- Incrementality matters and you don't want to pay for a separate lift study every quarter
- Pay-for-performance pricing fits your model better than upfront media commitments
The trend is also moving in this direction.
According to eMarketer, off-site retail media spend (ads that follow shoppers beyond Amazon or Walmart but use retailer first-party data) will grow at roughly twice the rate of on-site through 2026. And according to McKinsey, advertisers now work with a median of six commerce media networks as non-retail CMNs in finance, travel, and last-mile delivery mature.
Here’s a quick table to help you see the differences at a glance:
Retail Media is Bifurcating: What That Means For You
Retail media is splitting in two. According to eMarketer, Amazon and Walmart will “vacuum up” over 89% of the incremental US retail media dollars spent in 2026.
That leaves roughly 11% of new spending to be divided among every other RMN: Target, Kroger, Instacart, Albertsons, and the long tail of 200-plus retail media networks operating globally per RMIQ's 2025 Retail Media Market Guide.
If you sell at Amazon or Walmart, the math still works.
If you don't — or if your category doesn't have a single dominant retailer — RMN scale is hard to come by, and you're left chasing inventory across a dozen smaller networks, each with its own ad formats, measurement methodology, and reporting interface.
The walled-garden problem doesn't just exist inside one retailer, it exists across the entire fragmented RMN landscape. Commerce media, when it sits at the payment layer rather than the retailer layer, gives brands a way to reach high-intent shoppers without picking a horse in the Amazon-vs-Walmart-vs-everyone-else race.
It's also why Google is starting to feel the pressure.
eMarketer projects that in 2026, Google's share of total US search ad revenue will dip below 50% for the first time. AI-driven search (ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's own AI Overviews) is changing how people find products, and retailers and their media networks are capturing the commercial search queries that used to live on Google. Which means budget is migrating toward platforms that can prove sales impact at the transaction level, and that migration isn't slowing down.
What An “Independent” Commerce Media Network Is (and Why It Matters)
Most commerce media networks aren't independent. Walmart Connect runs on Walmart's data. Chase Media Solutions runs on Chase cardholders.
Each is a commerce media play, technically, but each one recreates the walled-garden problem that RMNs already have, just one layer up. You're back to paying for access to one institution's customers, with one set of reporting standards and one taxonomy.
An independent commerce media network isn't owned by a retailer or a single bank. It works across hundreds of issuers and millions of cardholders, so a brand isn't paying for access to one institution's customers — it's paying for access to wherever those customers shop next.
Kard is the first independent commerce media network, working across tens of millions of Gen Z and Millennial cardholders at fintechs, neobanks, and traditional banks, so brands can reach high-intent consumers without being locked into a single retailer's or issuer's ecosystem.
For more on the architecture and the budget question, see our deeper guide to commerce media strategies and how they drive ROI.
Your Media Plan Might Include Both
Most large brands should run both channels. The real question is how to allocate, and these are starting points rather than gospel — adjust based on category, margin, and customer profile.
If 40% or more of your revenue moves through a single retailer, lead with that RMN and layer commerce media for off-platform reach.
The RMN owns the highest-intent moment, and commerce media extends that reach beyond the retailer's checkout.
If your revenue is fragmented across many retailers or sold direct, lead with commerce media and use RMNs tactically for shelf defense at your top one or two retail partners. The reach math works in commerce media's favor when no single retailer is dominant.
For brands with no retailer presence at all (e.g., DTC subscription, services, fintech, restaurants), commerce media is the right channel.
5 Questions to Ask Any Retail or Commerce Media Vendor
- What's your reach, and is it exclusive or shared? Some commerce networks share issuer relationships, which dilutes brand exposure through double-dipping. The same cardholder seeing your offer in two different apps doesn't double your reach.
- How do you measure incrementality? Will you run a lift study? If they hesitate, that's the answer.
- What's your pricing model? Whether you're paying for impressions, clicks, or completed transactions matters. CPM and pay-for-performance are very different financial commitments.
- What audience segmentation do you support? New customers, existing customers, lapsed customers, lookalikes, category-specific. The more granular, the better the targeting.
- How granular is your reporting? Can you see transaction-level data, or only aggregated dashboards?
Read more about what to ask in an evaluation here.
Where to Put Your 2026 Dollars
The best brands know that retail media works and that commerce media works. They’re using both to their advantage, leading with whichever channel matches their distribution, layering the other for reach, and running clean incrementality tests so they actually know which dollars are doing work.
Not sure where commerce media fits in your plan? (especially if your brand isn't anchored to a single dominant retailer)
Kard is the first independent commerce media network. We work across tens of millions of Gen Z and Millennial cardholders at fintechs, neobanks, and traditional banks, so you can reach high-intent consumers without getting locked into one retailer's or one bank's ecosystem.
Talk to our team to learn more.
FAQs About Retail Media vs. Commerce Media
Is Commerce Media Replacing Retail Media?
No. RMNs are still growing, commerce media is just the broader category that includes them. Most brands will end up running both.
Are Card-Linked Offers Part of Commerce Media?
Yes, they can be. Card-linked offers are one of the primary ad formats inside commerce media networks, especially the financial media subset. Read more about how card-linked offers play into performance marketing here.
Can I Run Retail and Commerce Media Campaigns At the Same Time?
Yes, and most large brands should. They reach the consumer at different moments: RMNs win the on-site purchase decision, and commerce media wins everything that happens before and after.
