Cable TV Advertising: Benefits, Rates, & How It Works

by Frankie Karrer

8 Min Read

Trying to get your commercials on cable TV? You’re not alone! If you’re here, you’ve likely already seen some pretty intimidating figures thrown around about cable TV advertising rates.

There is no exact figure that anyone can definitively offer as to the actual cost of cable ads (until you actually buy them). However, we can tell you what factors go into the cost as well as teach you about more cost-effective and higher-performing options for television advertising.

But first, let’s cover the basics of cable advertising and how it works.

What Is Cable TV Advertising?

Cable TV advertising is commercial video content delivery provided by a cable operator to subscribers, in between programming, through coaxial cable or fiber optics. According to the FCC, this does not include any programming that is delivered without a wire via satellite.

Cable TV has been around for seemingly forever, so while the answer to this question may seem obvious to most, we’re approaching an era where this may be a legitimate question that advertisers are asking. That’s because watching content through Connected TV is slowly becoming the new normal for many TV viewers.

Benefits of Cable TV Ads

By advertising on cable TV, brands can serve ads across different networks and markets. The primary benefits of cable TV advertising are:

Targeted Local Reach: Cable TV ads allow advertisers to target specific geographic areas, making them ideal for local businesses looking to reach a community-focused audience.
Cost-Effective: Compared to national broadcast advertising, cable TV ads are more affordable, offering smaller businesses a viable entry point into television advertising without breaking the bank.
Niche Audience Targeting: With a wide variety of channels catering to specific interests and demographics, advertisers can more effectively reach niche audiences aligned with their product or service.
Flexible Advertising Options: Cable TV provides a range of advertising options, from traditional commercials to sponsorships and on-screen overlays, offering creative ways to engage viewers.
Enhanced Brand Visibility: Being featured on TV can significantly boost a brand’s visibility and credibility, leveraging the medium’s broad reach and impact to enhance brand recognition.

How Does Cable TV Advertising Work?

One of the easiest ways to start advertising on cable TV is by working with an advertising agency, that can help negotiate deals with a cable company directly. But if you were to do it yourself, there are a few steps you can take.

1. Identify Your Target Demographic

This demographic can be chosen based on several factors, including age, gender, income level, and more. Then you will need to contact the sales department of your cable provider and let them know what demographic you are interested in reaching. That salesperson can also provide you with the Scarborough data for any given cable network, which is a comprehensive breakdown of viewer demographic data.

2. Work With the Cable Sales Representative

Whether or not a given program has time for local advertisers will depend on that program’s Nielsen rating. In other words, if a lot of viewers watch that program, there may not be available ad space for local advertisers. If that is the case, you can utilize a “rotator package,” where your cable ad will be shown at some point within a window of time (usually that window is somewhere between six to 12 hours). The problem with this kind of package is the lack of control over when your ad is served. For example, if your ad is on TV at 3 AM, it’s much less likely that any significant audience will see it.

3. Request an Affidavit of Performance

This log will let you know if your commercial was aired during the agreed-upon time or window, and provide information about the audience numbers during your spot. This is how you can calculate your cost per viewer.

Types of Cable TV Advertising

There are two types of cable advertising: “spot” and “network.”

Spot TV Advertising

Brands that buy commercial time on a cable system at a specific time of day, and/or before or after a certain program, would be considered a “TV spot.”

For example, a 30-second advertising spot is (perhaps unsurprisingly) a commercial that lasts 30 seconds. Spots can vary in length, ranging from brief 15-second commercials to long-form spots that are 40 seconds or longer.

TV spots aren’t necessarily confined to specific geographic regions, either. They can be local or national spots. A national TV spot might allow you to reach a mass audience on large networks such as ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, and others. On the other hand, if you’re a small business owner, you might be more interested in a local TV spot where you can display ads within a specific city or geographic region.

Network TV Advertising

A “network” buy is when brands purchase air time directly through a national cable channel such as ESPN or Food Network. Network buys are generally more expensive than TV spots.

To word this distinction another way, network buys are purchased from the networks themselves, whereas spots are purchased from cable providers and only appear to those specific subscribers.

Broadcast vs. Cable Advertising

As opposed to cable TV Advertising, which allows brands to target zones based on specific audiences, broadcast TV advertising is advertising on networks that cover an entire market or DMA (Designated Market Area). For example, broadcast TV includes all of your local channels, such as ABC, NBC, and FOX, while cable advertising will include all of the channels that viewers have to pay for (like MTV and HGTV).

Because of this, advertising on broadcast TV will allow you to get your ads in front of a broader group of people. So while this means that you cannot target specific audiences, if your goal is to spread awareness of your brand, then this might be a good option.

Learn more about streaming TV advertising.

Cable TV Advertising Rates

How much does cable TV advertising cost? While cable TV advertising costs always depend on many factors, cable is often considered cheaper than some of its linear TV counterparts. This is because cable TV advertising is usually used to reach smaller, more specific audiences. So while the CPM (cost per thousand) might be higher due to the narrower parameters, local advertisers will be able to ensure they aren’t wasting money on consumers who will never visit their locations.

However, there is the option for brands to buy the full Designated Market Area if they are advertising to more than 4 zones. A Designated Market Area, or DMA, is a geographic region within the U.S. where the entire population will receive the same TV and radio options. And because there are only 210 DMAs in all of the United States, they tend to each cover large swaths of the population.

Ultimately, the cost of advertising on cable TV will vary based on the frequency of the ads, the cost of the creative, and whether a rotator package is selected (more on that in the next section).

Learn more about TV advertising costs.

Why You Need Performance TV

Traditional cable advertising comes with high costs, limited targeting, and no clear way to measure results. Connected TV (CTV) offers a smarter alternative—delivering the reach of television with the precision and performance of digital. MNTN Performance TV helps brands transition from cable to CTV with these key features:

Premium CTV Inventory: Run ads on top-tier streaming networks, ensuring your brand appears in high-quality, brand-safe environments.
MNTN Matched: AI-powered audience targeting finds the right viewers based on demographics, interests, and intent—no wasted impressions.
Verified Visits™: Track CTV-driven site visits and conversions, giving you clear proof of campaign impact.
Reporting Suite: Access real-time performance data, from reach and engagement to lower-funnel conversions, all in one dashboard.
Automated Optimization: AI continuously refines your OTT advertising campaigns to improve efficiency and maximize return on ad spend.

Cable can’t compete with CTV’s precision and measurability. Upgrade your TV advertising strategy with MNTN’s self-serve software—sign up today.

Advertising on Cable TV: Final Thoughts

Ultimately, there are many ways you can get your ads on TV. Whether you choose to go with cable TV advertising or a CTV/OTT platform like Performance TV, the most important thing to factor into your decision-making process is what your ultimate goal will be.

While traditional linear advertising avenues like cable let brands target audiences based on specific locations, PTV allows advertisers to run their TV campaigns like a digital channel, and track the results in real time. Essentially, you get all the benefits of cable TV advertising, but with much better targeting and measurement.