Video advertising · September 2026 Edition
StackAdapt vs YouTube Ads
Two of twelve models named StackAdapt first on the direct prompt; one named YouTube Ads. Both were named by all twelve models and StackAdapt carries 31 labels and YouTube Ads 41, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in nine categories this edition.
Named in two categories this edition.
First-choice share24%17%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate3%15%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#1#2A position in a field of 9; printed, not drawn.
Labels3141A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, StackAdapt reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.LinkedIn Campaign Manager was named alongside these two in eight of the twelve direct answers. StackAdapt vs LinkedIn Campaign Manager · YouTube Ads vs LinkedIn Campaign Manager
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all twelve models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the video advertising page.
By framing
How many of the twelve models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
StackAdaptFirst choices, of twelve modelsYouTube Ads
Direct211 against StackAdapt
Paraphrase80
Comparative08
Budget-constrained07
Scale-constrained10
Negative026 against YouTube Ads
Bars are first choices, 0 to 12 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to twelve.
The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where StackAdapt and YouTube Ads stood in it.
StackAdapt first, YouTube Ads an alternative
2 of 12 modelsYouTube Ads was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Claude Haiku 4.5StackAdapt alternatives: AdRoll ABM, MNTN, Vibe.co, YouTube Ads
Perplexity SonarStackAdapt alternatives: Demandbase, LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Vibe.co
YouTube Ads first, StackAdapt not the choice
1 of 12 modelsStackAdapt was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Gemini 3.5 FlashLinkedIn Campaign Manager, YouTube Ads alternatives: MNTN, VISTY, Vibe.co
Neither was the first choice, one was named
6 of 12 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.GPT-5.4 miniLinkedIn Campaign Manager alternatives: YouTube Ads
Grok 4.1 FastLinkedIn Campaign Manager alternatives: Demandbase CTV, YouTube Ads
Mistral SmallLinkedIn Video Ads alternatives: Vidyard, Wistia, YouTube Ads
DeepSeek V4 FlashLinkedIn Campaign Manager alternatives: StackAdapt, YouTube Ads
Kimi K2LinkedIn Campaign Manager alternatives: StackAdapt, YouTube Ads
GLM 4.7 FlashXLinkedIn Campaign Manager alternatives: Meta Ads, YouTube Ads
Neither was named
3 of 12 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Llama 4 Maverickno first choice alternatives: Goldcast, Vibe.co
Qwen 3.7 FlashLinkedIn Campaign Manager, YouTube Ads via Google Video/PMax campaigns alternatives: Meta Ads, Reddit Ads
MiniMax M2.5LinkedIn Video Ads alternatives: Vidyard, Wistia
Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
YouTube Ads leads by fifteen points.
YouTube Ads17%#2 of 9StackAdapt2%#6 of 9Mid-marketThe figures above
The order flips: StackAdapt leads at mid-market.
StackAdapt24%#1 of 9YouTube Ads17%#2 of 9Enterprise
The order flips: YouTube Ads leads at enterprise.
YouTube Ads2%#6 of 10StackAdapt0%#7 of 10What the models said about StackAdapt
No label in this category carried a quote.
What the models said about YouTube Ads
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.
“Brand Safety: Content classification issues, especially in sensitive categories” GLM 4.7 FlashX · negative prompt · hard negative
“recommends avoiding influencer and UGC channels on YouTube due to brand safety risks... brands have been advised to be cautious when advertising on the platform” Llama 4 Maverick · negative prompt · soft negative
“YouTube (when using GVP/non-premium inventory) ... While YouTube itself has better controls, the Video Partners network that runs alongside it is the major risk” Mistral Small · negative prompt · soft negative
“The Overall Winner: YouTube Ads (via Google Ads)... widely considered the best video advertising platform for companies on a tight budget” Gemini 3.5 Flash · budget prompt · first choice
“YouTube/Google Ads | Brand awareness, wide reach | Largest global reach, diverse ad formats, strong targeting across Google network” MiniMax M2.5 · comparative prompt · first choice
“Best for: Everything — awareness, consideration, and conversion on a single buy. Performance brands use it as their video anchor.” DeepSeek V4 Flash · comparative prompt · first choice
Also compared
Comparisons are drawn for the top three products in each category. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.