Snapchat has shared some notes on what it will be focusing on as it continues to build its ad business in 2026.

Which will prove critical for the company. Snapchat’s growth has stalled in both the U.S. and EU regions, while it’s also lost over 400k users in Australia this week, due to the teen social media ban, and was recently banned in Russia outright. That means that it needs to maximize the opportunities that it has with its existing user base, as opposed to relying on audience growth.

And at the same time, Snap is about to see its costs increase due to its investment in AR glasses, which it plans to launch in 2026. The challenge for Snap is that with well-resourced competitors also making inroads in the AR wearables space, it’s going to be tough for a smaller player to compete.

As such, Snap could be on track for a tough year, which is why its ad team needs to innovate to maximize ad spend.

In terms of developments, Snapchat says that it’s made significant progress this year, and is now ranked as the second most preferred ad platform by consumers (based on Kantar’s “Media Reactions” study).

As per Snap:

“2025 in particular was marked by meaningful progress in translating human connection into real results for advertisers. We empowered brands to reach Snapchatters across the full platform and beyond.”

Snapchat says that, moving forward, it will be focusing on three key areas:

Performance improvements – Snap says that its AI-powered smart campaign tools are delivering better results, and it plans to incorporate more AI tools in 2026, including creative optimization, which will determine the best combination of image, video and text to drive performance, and enhanced machine learning to improve ad targeting.
Creative tools – Snapchat’s also looking to integrate more AI options into its Lens creation process, which will give more advertisers the capacity to create their own immersive experiences.
Native campaign options – Snap says that its Sponsored Snaps inbox ads have been well received, and it plans to expand on this, by offering more native ad solutions that align with user behavior.

On the latter front, Snap also highlights its recently launched Reminder Ads which enable Snapchatters to set reminders directly from an ad, in order to then receive timely notifications for an event.

Snap says that these elements will be the foundational focus of its ad innovations moving forward, with the platform looking to make it as easy as possible for anyone to create a resonant, engaging Snap campaign, using the latest AI tools.

You can check out Snapchat’s full 2026 ads overview here.