Before discussing budgets, it’s worth understanding the basics: what ad formats exist on Telegram and how they differ.
Currently, there are three:
- ads in Telegram Mini Apps
- Sponsored Telegram Ads (official format)
- advertising posts in channels
Each works in its own way, and your choice significantly impacts the results.
1. Sponsored Telegram Ads (official format)
Telegram’s official ads are the simplest format.
A short text of up to 160 characters marked “Sponsored.” These ads appear in channels with an audience of 1,000 or more subscribers and can lead to a Telegram channel, website, or chatbot.
This format is suitable for a wide range of products—from educational courses to services and subscriptions.
Telegram does not collect detailed user data by design. Because of this, targeting here is much less precise than on traditional advertising platforms. In fact, you’re working more with the channel’s context than with a specific person’s behavior. And this imposes its own limitations: the creative and the offer need to appeal to as broad an audience as possible, since there’s simply no fine-grained segmentation here.
2. Promotional posts in Telegram channels
This is a classic format and remains one of the most popular on Telegram. Essentially, it’s unofficial advertising that you purchase directly from channel owners or through agencies.
Each channel here plays by its own rules. For some, it’s just a text post; for others, it’s a full-fledged creative with an image or video. The format, presentation, and even the price depend on the specific admin.
Such placements can look like native recommendations or like direct advertising posts—it all depends on the agreements.
Pros
- Flexibility. There are no rigid constraints. You can test different formats, presentations, and budgets tailored to specific channels.
- Native integration. If done correctly, the ad looks like regular content. This makes it more engaging and drives higher interaction.
- More precise audience targeting. You can select channels tailored to your target audience. For example, separately for traders, separately for gaming or crypto newcomers.
- Access to a Premium audience. Posts are also seen by Telegram Premium users, which expands reach.
Cons
- No standards. Each channel has its own prices and formats. Campaign planning becomes manual work.
- Limited analytics. There are no proper optimization tools. You often have to take the admins’ numbers at face value.
- Variable traffic quality. Even if a channel is “on-topic,” it doesn’t guarantee results. A lot depends on the audience’s actual activity.
- Channel-level moderation. Each channel has its own rules. Some channels will allow crypto or gambling without issue, others won’t.
3. Advertising in Telegram Mini Apps
This is one of the newest formats, gaining significant traction in 2026. The concept is simple: ads are embedded directly into Telegram mini-apps and appear as part of the interface, rather than as a traditional ad.
In RichAds, several formats are available: push-style, interstitial, banners, video, and even playable ads. Plus, ads in bots have appeared separately.
The main difference from classic Telegram ads is that there is no explicit “Sponsored” label here. Because of this, the ads look more native and integrate better into the user experience.
Which formats work?
- Push-style ads. Similar to classic push notifications: icon + text. Thanks to native integration, they often yield a higher CTR.
- Video ads. Full-screen videos lasting 10–20 seconds with text and a button. They appear between app transitions and effectively capture attention.
- Embedded banner ads. Fixed banners within the interface. They don’t interfere with the main content but remain visible.
- Interstitial ads. Full-screen static ads with short text and a button. They are usually displayed between user actions, such as between levels.
- Playable ads. An interactive format where the user can immediately “try out” a product or game. Loads as an HTML5 file; pricing starts at approximately $3 CPM.
- Ads in bots. Classic ads with a description, a button, and several creative assets. CPM-based pricing, starting at ~$3.8.
Where is it displayed?
Most often—in clickers, casual games, and entertainment apps within Telegram. That is, where the user is already actively interacting with the interface.
Pros
- Less intrusive. The ad looks like part of the product, not something extraneous.
- Higher engagement. The new format + native design often yield a better CTR.
- Flexible targeting. You can target Premium/non-Premium audiences, motivated users, as well as segments such as users with a positive balance.
- Wide reach. Popular apps provide access to a large audience.
- Optimization tools. There are basic features like whitelists/blacklists for more precise targeting.
Cons
- Low ad awareness. Users don’t always realize it’s an ad. This is good for clicks, but it can affect traffic quality.
In short: Mini Apps are currently about cheaper traffic and quick hypothesis testing. But, as always with Telegram, it all comes down to the combination of “audience + format + offer.” Without this, even the newest tool won’t deliver results.