In short
- Dynamic retargeting is the flagship product: show users the exact products they browsed
- Inventory across the open web (display networks), not just walled gardens like Meta or Google
- Also runs prospecting and Commerce Media campaigns beyond pure retargeting
- Heavy attribution dependence on third-party cookies, significantly hurt by ITP and Chrome cookie deprecation
What is Criteo
Criteo is a commerce-focused advertising platform founded in France in 2005. The flagship product is dynamic retargeting, serving display ads showing the exact products a user browsed on your site, across thousands of publisher sites on the open web.
Beyond dynamic retargeting, Criteo has expanded into prospecting (cold-audience acquisition), Commerce Media (retailer-network advertising), and audience-extension products. The retargeting roots still dominate the revenue mix.
How dynamic retargeting works
Three pieces:
- Site tag captures product-view events and user identifiers
- Product feed keeps Criteo informed of every SKU, price, image, and availability
- Ad delivery network serves display ads featuring the browsed products on partner publisher sites
When done well, the user is reminded of the products they considered, often within minutes of leaving the site, and conversion rates are high. The format and approach predate most of what Meta and Google now do natively.
The privacy headwind
Criteo’s model depends heavily on third-party cookies, which have been progressively restricted:
- Safari ITP (2017+) blocks third-party cookies outright
- Firefox ETP (2019+) blocks the same
- Chrome progressively restricts. Full deprecation has been announced, delayed, and re-announced multiple times
For Safari and Firefox users (~25% of consumer traffic), Criteo’s retargeting effectively doesn’t work. Chrome restrictions further compress addressable audience. The company has responded with first-party identity products and contextual targeting, but the core dynamic-retargeting model is structurally weaker than it was in 2018.
Measurement and incrementality
Like all retargeting, Criteo is prone to over-attribution. Many “converted” users would have come back via direct or organic search without ever seeing the Criteo ad. Incrementality testing routinely shows Criteo’s true contribution is 30-50% below the attributed number.
Mature teams measure Criteo via:
- Independent multi-touch attribution (not Criteo’s in-platform numbers)
- Periodic incrementality holdouts to calibrate the model
- Comparison to organic returning-customer baselines to detect cannibalisation
FAQ about Criteo
How does Criteo work?
Criteo is a commerce-focused ad platform best known for dynamic retargeting. It uses your product catalog and on-site behavior to show personalized product ads across the open web, often featuring the exact items a user viewed but did not buy.
How much does Criteo cost?
Criteo uses CPC or CPM bidding with no setup fee, plus a platform fee taken as a percentage of media spend. There is no published minimum, but in practice the platform expects meaningful ad budgets and is often a poor fit below a few thousand euros per month.
What are the best Criteo alternatives?
The closest alternatives for retargeting are AdRoll, RTB House, and Google Display retargeting, plus Meta Advantage+ for catalog-based remarketing. RTB House is the most direct head-to-head on dynamic creative and deep learning bidding.
Is Criteo good for small businesses?
Not really. Criteo’s minimum effective spend and account management model are geared to mid-market and enterprise advertisers. Smaller stores usually get better results from Meta and Google retargeting first, then evaluate Criteo once budgets justify a managed platform.
How to use Criteo?
Book a demo at criteo.com. Criteo onboards advertisers via their team, installs the Criteo OneTag, and launches dynamic retargeting campaigns within 2-4 weeks.
Why choose Criteo?
Criteo runs the largest commerce-specific retargeting network on the open web, ideal for e-commerce brands wanting dynamic product retargeting outside the walled gardens of Meta and Google.
Is Criteo free?
No, Criteo is a paid ad channel where you pay for media spend on a CPC or CPM basis. There’s no platform fee.
How to learn Criteo?
Criteo Academy offers free certification courses on commerce media. Their blog at criteo.com/blog covers retargeting and commerce media best practices.
What are Criteo reviews?
Criteo is rated 3.8 on G2 with 259 reviews. See the reviews for detailed feedback.
Does Criteo have an API?
Yes, Criteo provides REST APIs for campaign management, reporting, and product feeds. Documentation is at developers.criteo.com.
Does Criteo have a trial or a demo?
Criteo doesn’t publish a free trial. Book a demo at criteo.com for hands-on access through their team.
Does Criteo have AI?
Yes, Criteo Commerce Max uses AI-driven optimization for bidding, audience targeting, and creative selection, and Criteo is piloting agentic AI with OpenAI to serve ads inside ChatGPT in 2026. The Criteo GO self-serve platform is also fully AI-powered for cross-channel campaigns.
Criteo pricing
Criteo pricing starts at Custom. Plans are organised as CPC / Performance. See the full Criteo pricing page for current tiers and any add-ons.
