Measurement, analytics, attribution and tracking

728x90 Banner: Leaderboard Dimensions, Design and QA

A 728x90 banner is a horizontal display-ad canvas measuring 728 pixels wide by 90 pixels high, commonly used in leaderboard placements where concise hierarchy and fast recognition are essential.

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What is a 728x90 banner?

The leaderboard stretches a fixed composition across 728 pixels while limiting its depth to 90 pixels. That panoramic strip contains 65,520 pixels and has a 364:45 aspect ratio, approximately 8.09 units of width for each unit of height.

The format supplies a long horizontal path but very little vertical depth. It is suited to desktop and larger-screen inventory where identity, proposition, condition and action can be organized from left to right. This page addresses leaderboard-specific composition, placement and responsive fallback.

Specification review completed 2026-08-09: the check found the leaderboard in Google's uploaded-size catalogue and its examples for computer inventory. Verify the campaign product and publisher supply before production.

Why is 728x90 called a leaderboard?

The name describes a broad horizontal unit commonly used across the upper, lower or intermediate regions of desktop pages. It does not guarantee a top-of-page position, premium inventory or a particular viewability result.

Because the unit can span much of a content column, it is often seen near navigation or section boundaries. The creative must remain clearly advertising and must not imitate publisher menus, breadcrumbs or alert bars.

Keep placement labels in campaign reporting. A header leaderboard and a between-content leaderboard may receive different attention even with the same creative file.

How should an eight-to-one canvas be organized?

Horizontal stage	Decision job	Design check	Reject when
Source	Identify the advertiser or product	Recognition survives peripheral viewing	The logo is an unexplained mark
Context	Name the audience problem or use case	The topic is explicit without adjacent copy	The opening is decorative only
Proposition	State one supported reason to act	Claim and qualifier remain connected	Several benefits compete
Action	Describe the destination result	The label is specific and visually separate	It resembles publisher navigation

The sequence can reverse for right-to-left languages, but the decision logic must remain intact. Do not distribute words evenly simply to fill the width; use empty space to separate jobs and preserve reading order.

How should leaderboard copy be written?

Write one concise proposition that can be understood during a horizontal glance. Use a supporting phrase only when it supplies a necessary condition or evidence. Avoid a miniature paragraph spread across the strip.

Attach numbers to units, markets and timeframes. The wide canvas can make a large figure prominent while pushing its condition to the far edge, so review the complete claim as one statement.

The action should say what the destination enables, such as reviewing options or creating an account. Vague commands do not explain the next state.

How should imagery be cropped for 728x90?

Select imagery with a subject that can survive a panoramic crop. A person, product or interface captured for a square format may lose its essential detail when reduced to 90 pixels high.

Place the focal subject away from copy and qualification zones. Use gradients only when they maintain contrast in the final compressed asset. Decorative backgrounds must not be mistaken for evidence of product function or campaign results.

Create the wide crop from the approved source rather than stretching another banner. Store the crop coordinates and rights record with the delivery package.

How can 90 pixels support readable typography?

Limit the vertical hierarchy. A headline, compact qualifier and action are usually the maximum useful layers. Several stacked lines force small type and uneven alignment across the width.

Test the final font and fallback at actual size. Watch for long product names, currency values and translated actions. Keep letter spacing natural and avoid condensed capitals chosen solely to squeeze text into one line.

Check contrast on the lowest-contrast image region and through the serving platform preview. Raster text cannot adapt to user settings, so legibility must be designed into the asset.

Where does 728x90 inventory occur?

Common contexts include desktop headers, page footers and horizontal spaces between content sections. Some application and tablet layouts may support the width, but availability depends on the publisher and ad product.

Header proximity can create false affiliation if the creative resembles site navigation. Between-content inventory can interrupt reading if the advertisement lacks a clear boundary. Review the actual publisher preview rather than a blank design board.

The pixel size alone does not establish a sticky, above-the-fold or premium position. Those are separate placement attributes that require evidence in the campaign setup.

When should a leaderboard be sticky?

Sticky behaviour is controlled by the publisher, not by the 728x90 file. A wide fixed unit can exceed available space as a viewport narrows, so anchoring requires strict breakpoint, zoom and collision checks.

Google AdSense sticky-ad guidance excludes 728x90 from certain sticky implementations within that product. That restriction should be read in its stated publisher context, while every other platform still needs its own current rule review.

Never force the wide asset into a sticky mobile bar. Use a supported mobile size or responsive creative and keep content, navigation and consent controls unobstructed.

How should desktop and mobile delivery diverge?

A fixed 728-pixel canvas needs a viewport and placement wide enough to display it without clipping or distortion. At narrower breakpoints, the campaign should request an eligible mobile unit or use a responsive product designed for asset recombination.

Do not shrink all elements proportionally until the banner fits. That preserves geometry while destroying readable type and touch context. Do not crop the action or qualification at the right edge.

Report the replacement format separately. A 320x50 mobile banner and 728x90 leaderboard face different contexts and should not share one creative performance label.

Which technical checks govern the delivery file?

Check	Leaderboard requirement	Typical risk	Verification evidence
Dimensions	Preserve the native 728-pixel span and 90-pixel depth	Platform scaling makes text soft	Served screenshot and asset properties
File weight	Meet the current campaign limit	Panoramic images retain unused detail	Final compressed delivery file
Animation	Keep identity and meaning in useful states	Long travel delays the action	Full timeline recording
HTML5 declaration	Declare the approved width and height	Wrong metadata changes validation	Uploaded platform preview
Destination	Continue the exact leaderboard promise	Redirects or generic pages lose context	Served click trace

Current Google Ads HTML5 guidance lists a 600 KB maximum supported ZIP. Use only the bytes needed for the concept; a platform ceiling does not remove the performance cost of heavier creative.

When does animation help a leaderboard?

Animation can move through a short horizontal comparison or demonstrate one product transition. Keep the first frame recognizable and avoid forcing the user to wait for the action or material condition.

Long lateral movement can resemble a ticker or publisher notification. Use motion that ends and maintain a meaningful fallback. Do not animate every text layer merely because the canvas is wide.

Current Google policy gives a moving image leaderboard a thirty-second ceiling, including repeated playback. Check whether the selected campaign and publisher impose shorter or stricter limits.

How should 728x90 be adapted from a campaign master?

Preserve the verified proposition, identity, material condition and destination. Rebuild the artwork for a panoramic reading path rather than slicing the centre from a rectangle or rotating a vertical design.

Decide which one image and one proof point deserve the width. Remove lower-priority elements instead of shrinking everything. Assign the leaderboard a unique asset ID and approval record.

Keep creative facts synchronized across sizes but keep measurement separate. Format-native composition is not duplicate campaign evidence.

Which leaderboard defects require correction?

The message reads as unrelated fragments across the width.
A panoramic crop removes the product or person being advertised.
Qualification text is pushed far away from the headline.
The design resembles a publisher menu, alert or breadcrumb bar.
The right-hand action clips on narrower desktop layouts.
Animation withholds the brand or destination cue.
A mobile breakpoint merely scales the fixed asset to unreadable size.

How should leaderboard performance be read?

Capture publisher, page region, viewport, asset version, viewability definition, intentional destination arrival and mature accepted outcome. Mark whether the placement was header, footer or between content.

Compare variants inside similar horizontal inventory. Differences in publisher prominence, auction cost and page position can otherwise be credited incorrectly to the creative.

Use raw click rate as a diagnostic, not a final decision. Check accidental interaction, landing-page continuity and accepted conversion value before scaling.

What must the leaderboard approval package show?

Include the exact 728x90 delivery asset, source project, approved copy, destination, rights record, specification date and rendered captures on representative publisher backgrounds. Record the campaign markets and any claim expiration.

For animation, capture initial, intermediate, final and fallback states. For responsive substitution, identify which mobile asset replaces the leaderboard and where reporting separates them.

Set a stop condition for clipping, unreadable qualifications, obsolete claims, navigation confusion or destination mismatch. Another reviewer should be able to reproduce the approval from the retained evidence.

Include captures at the narrowest permitted desktop width and at common zoom states. The left-to-right sequence must remain intact when browser chrome, publisher margins or consent tools reduce usable space. Record whether the serving system rejected, resized or substituted the file.

Keep a claim register for dates, prices, product availability and comparisons. Assign one named review condition to every statement that can expire, and withdraw the asset when its source no longer supports the visible wording.

Questions about 728x90 banners

What is a 728x90 banner?

A leaderboard stretches across 728 horizontal pixels while using just 90 pixels of height. The fixed strip contains 65,520 pixels and has an aspect ratio of roughly 8.09:1.

Where is a 728x90 leaderboard placed?

The format is commonly used in desktop page headers, footers or horizontal gaps between content sections. Exact inventory and behaviour depend on the publisher and campaign platform.

Is 728x90 a mobile format?

It is primarily a wide desktop or larger-screen format. A fixed 728-pixel asset should not be squeezed into a narrow mobile viewport; campaigns need an eligible mobile format or responsive alternative.

How should a 728x90 message be arranged?

Use a deliberate left-to-right sequence with advertiser identity, one proposition, any material qualification and one accurate action. The 90-pixel height cannot support stacked body copy.

Can a 728x90 banner be animated?

Only when current platform and publisher policies allow it. Keep the first state useful, retain identity and material qualifications, and ensure the complete sequence stays within applicable duration limits.

Is 728x90 the same as a responsive display ad?

No. A 728x90 upload is an approved fixed composition. Responsive display uses separate source assets that the platform can combine and resize for available inventory.

Primary references for leaderboard production

Test leaderboard creative with page-region evidence

Use FroggyAds to connect the 728x90 asset, desktop placement, audience and accepted outcome.

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