What is TrueView?
Last updated 3 October 2026
TrueView was Google's name for the YouTube ad formats that charge only when a viewer genuinely engages — watching 30 seconds, finishing a shorter ad, or clicking. Google has largely retired the brand name in its own interfaces, but the billing principle is unchanged and the term is still in wide use.
Why the name mattered
Before it, video advertising was sold on impressions: you paid when an ad was served, whether or not anyone watched. TrueView moved the charge to the view, which is why a skipped ad costs an advertiser nothing and why cost per view became the figure people compare.
What you will see instead
Google Ads now talks about skippable in-stream, in-feed video and Shorts ads as separate formats rather than TrueView variants. If a promotion service quotes you TrueView, it means skippable in-stream in almost every case.
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Prices, published
Our cost per 1,000 views for every audience and format, with no account needed.
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