Earned & PaidDisney
Disney spent $6.50B on advertising and marketing in fiscal 2025, up 6.6% on the year before and +51% since 2019. That's 6.9% of revenue, more than in 2019: leaning in.
Marketing spend by year
Bars: advertising and marketing expense, $B (10-K). Line: spend as a share of revenue.
Say vs do
We found no statement about the size of Disney's marketing budget on its earnings calls or in its 10-Ks, so here is its record against its peers.
What they said
No statement about the size of its marketing budget.
What they did
| Year | Marketing spend | Change | Share of revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $6.50B | +6.6% | 6.9% |
| FY2024 | $6.10B | -4.7% | 6.7% |
| FY2023 | $6.40B | -11.1% | 7.2% |
| FY2022 | $7.20B | +30.9% | 8.7% |
| FY2021 | $5.50B | +17.0% | 8.2% |
| FY2020 | $4.70B | +9.3% | 7.2% |
Against its peers. Compared with the 3 other Media advertisers we track (Netflix, Warner Bros Discovery, Fox): since 2019 its marketing spend went +51% (peer median +131%); its share of revenue moved +0.7 pts (median +1.8); last year +6.6% (median +12.5%).
How we check: a statement gets a verdict only when it's clearly about the size of the whole company's marketing budget over a full fiscal year; we compare it with the advertising and marketing expense in that year's 10-K. Statements about one quarter, one brand or channel, or the mix between brand and performance can't be checked against annual filings.
What they say about media
The marketing channels it talks about using for itself on earnings calls and in its 10-Ks and 10-Qs, since 2019; counts are statements, not spending.
- Connected TV & streaming “The decrease in advertising expense for fiscal 2023 compared to fiscal 2022 was due to lower spend for our DTC streaming services.” 10-K · Nov 21, 2023 · source
- Experiential & events “With this in mind, we have numerous activations planned across the entire company for Disney+ Day, including the streaming premiere of Marvel's Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which has already surpassed $430 million at the global box office.” Bob Chapek on the earnings call · Nov 11, 2021 · source
- Creative campaigns “And the power of this synergy will be on full display on November 12 when we celebrate Disney+ Day with an unprecedented companywide cross-promotional campaign.” Bob Chapek on the earnings call · Aug 12, 2021 · source
What they see in the market
What its leaders and filings say about the ad market: its own ad business, or the channels advertisers use, since 2019; counts are statements, not spending.
- Linear TV “Can you provide color on tone, trends, the upfront, et cetera?” Benjamin Daniel Swinburne, C.F.A. on the earnings call · Aug 12, 2026 · source
- Sponsorships & athletes · Creative campaigns “You have what appears to be an extremely strong hand in advertising for the coming year given your sports portfolio, the Super Bowl, political, et cetera, across your platforms.” Benjamin Daniel Swinburne, C.F.A. on the earnings call · Aug 12, 2026 · source
- AI in marketing “Our technology, advertising, and marketing teams, they're also exploring Gen AI-powered creative and they've implemented ad delivery in this format.” Josh D’Amaro on the earnings call · Aug 12, 2026 · source
- Connected TV & streaming “The decrease in advertising revenue was attributable to a decrease of 4% from lower rates, partially offset by increases of 1% from more impressions and 1% from the Fubo Transaction.” 10-Q · Aug 5, 2026 · source
- Programmatic & display “By the way, one thing I don't think is appreciated is that we're also working well selling inventory with Google and YouTube, basically offering advertisers to buy those platforms a differentiated audience through a Trade Desk mechanism.” Robert A. Iger on the earnings call · Nov 14, 2024 · source
In the news
- Disney (DIS) Pays for the Playoffs. What Happens When Series End Early? Yahoo Finance · Sep 29, 2026 · sponsorship
- Disney fans can now get major discounts with brand new free UK membership scheme Yahoo News UK · Sep 29, 2026 · campaign
- Disney+, Netflix to introduce subscriptions with ads in Poland Telecompaper · paywall · Sep 28, 2026 · platforms & adtech
- Disney's Infinity Vision Aims to Boost an Imax-Less 'Avengers Doomsday.' 'Endgame Encore' Showed It's Working TheWrap · Sep 28, 2026 · campaign
- College Football Meets Disney in NEW Sponsorship Deal AllEars.Net · Sep 27, 2026 · sponsorship