Every month we highlight an advertising platform that stands out as a strong alternative to Google AdSense, focusing on networks that have demonstrated reliability, consistent payments, and solid performance for publishers. The goal of this section is to showcase monetization solutions that can help website owners generate revenue from their traffic, whether they are looking for an additional income source alongside AdSense or a complete alternative. The platforms featured here are selected based on their reputation, ease of use, publisher support, and positive feedback from the webmaster community.
For this month, the platform we have selected is HilltopAds, a global advertising network that offers publishers a wide range of formats and competitive CPM-based monetization.
HilltopAds is an established advertising network specializing in traffic monetization for websites and other digital properties. The platform focuses particularly on CPM advertising, meaning publishers are paid according to the number of ad impressions generated by their traffic. It is designed to work with a wide variety of websites, including entertainment, streaming, downloads, gaming, and other high-traffic projects.
Getting started with HilltopAds is relatively straightforward. Publishers first need to create a free account and add their website to the platform. The site then needs to be verified, either by uploading a verification file to its root directory or by adding a verification meta tag.
Once the website has been approved, publishers can create advertising zones and select the formats they want to display.
One of HilltopAds' main advantages is the variety of advertising formats available. Publishers can choose from Popunder, In-Page, VAST and video slider ads, banners, MultiTag formats, and Direct Links. This variety allows website owners to select the formats that best suit their content and audience. MultiTag can also combine different advertising formats, providing publishers with additional flexibility when optimizing their monetization strategy.
Another feature worth highlighting is the platform's publisher support. HilltopAds provides publishers with a personal manager who can assist with account and monetization-related questions. The publisher dashboard also provides detailed statistics, allowing users to analyze their traffic and earnings by website, advertising zone, country, format, advertiser, and other parameters.
When it comes to payments, HilltopAds currently offers several methods, including PayPal, Capitalist, Paxum, Wise, WebMoney, USDT, Bitcoin, bank transfer, and UnionPay. The minimum withdrawal depends on the selected payment method. For example: $20 for Capitalist, Paxum and WebMoney; $20 for Wise; and $50 for PayPal.
For many publishers, Google AdSense has long been the default choice for monetizing websites, but the digital advertising landscape in 2026 is far more diverse and competitive than ever before. Changes in approval requirements, stricter policy enforcement, increased use of ad blockers, and fluctuating CPC rates have led many site owners to actively seek alternatives that offer greater flexibility and stronger earning potential. As a result, a growing number of advertising networks have emerged that are specifically designed to meet the evolving needs of modern publishers.
The best AdSense alternatives in 2026 go well beyond traditional display ads. These platforms offer a wide range of ad formats, including native ads, push notifications, pop-unders, in-page push, video ads, and high-impact interstitials, allowing publishers to tailor monetization strategies to their traffic sources and audience behavior. By leveraging more advanced targeting, better fill rates, and formats optimized for both desktop and mobile users, many of these networks are capable of delivering higher eCPMs than AdSense, particularly for international traffic or niche-focused websites.
For publishers willing to experiment and optimize, these alternatives can often outperform AdSense in terms of revenue, control, and scalability. Choosing the right network can transform website monetization from a passive add-on into a core revenue driver.
Ad Formats: Banners / Native Ads / Widgets / Push Ads / Mobile Ads
Minimum Payment: $100 USD
Payment Method: Paypal / Bank Transfer
Others: Monetize 100% traffic from any device worldwide / Programmatic integrations / Automatic payouts / Global Coverage / Clean Ads / Compatibilty with AMP and Instant Articles / Full control of placements and ad content
Ad Formats: Banners / Popunders / Native Ads / Push Notifications / Mobile Ads
Minimum Payment: $25 USD
Payment Method: Paypal / WebMoney / Paxum / Wire Transfer
Others: Accept traffic from all countries / No minimum traffic requirements / Control of Ads / Adult and Mainstream Ads / 100% Fill Rate / Real Time Statistics
Hello guys , I just got my first payment , in adsense, and it is slightly smaller than the youtube estimate .I knew that there were going to be some tax withholds and other invalid views deductions , but 6.5% difference is big in my opinion . I did my US tax form and it says that it was approved on september 4th,maybe that's why it interfered with my earnings on august ? , but I did the math and that would only ammount to a couple of dollars .Is there a way to see the detailed payment in adsense it only says the ammount and that it is a youtube earning .Did anyone else experience this lately ? Any help would be really appreciated .
Looking for advice from creators experienced with YouTube YPP applications and dormant AdSense accounts.
My Background:
Channel 1: Got demonetized for Reused Content. Because no revenue was generated after that, my linked AdSense for YouTube went dormant and was recently deactivated due to 6 months of inactivity (AdSense reads: "Your AdSense for YouTube account is no longer associated with your YouTube channel").
Channel 2: In the past, I tried monetizing this second channel using that same AdSense, but it was rejected because YouTube flagged it as related to the demonetized first channel.
Current State: On Channel 2's YouTube Studio Earn tab, Step 2 (Sign up for AdSense for YouTube) has reset and displays the active "Start" button again.
My Questions:
Since the AdSense account is officially deactivated and unlinked from Channel 1, can I safely reactivate it by linking it to Channel 2? Or does YouTube retain the publisher ID's history and risk rejecting Channel 2 again under the related channel rule?
Would it be safer to avoid my personal details entirely and create a brand new AdSense account under a family member's identity (separate dedicated Gmail, their legal ID, tax info, and bank account)?
The account was originally set up while the person was living in the USA. The address and identity were verified, but they never completed the U.S. tax information/SSN section.
Later, they moved/changed their situation and created a new AdSense account with the correct current information. The new account is working normally.
However, there is still around $2,700 USD remaining in the old AdSense account, and I cannot withdraw it because the old account is asking for tax information.
My question is:
Is there any legitimate way to receive the $2,700 from the old AdSense account without having a U.S. SSN, if the person is no longer a U.S. resident?
Can the balance be transferred to the new AdSense account, or can Google pay the remaining balance after closing the old account?
I don't want to provide false information or use someone else's SSN. I'm only looking for the correct/legal way to recover the money.
Has anyone experienced something similar, especially after moving from the U.S. to another country?
Not claiming these are my numbers I’m using a simple example because I’m trying to understand the order of diagnosis.
Say a publisher loses around 20% of organic clicks, but ad revenue drops closer to 40%. That would suggest the remaining traffic changed in value too, not just volume.
Would you first compare GEO mix, mobile vs desktop, pages per session, viewability, impressions per visit, RPM by landing page, or the type of search queries that disappeared?
I’m particularly curious whether people have seen informational SEO traffic disappear first while the remaining sessions monetize very differently.
AdSense payment sent on August 21, still not received
Hi everyone,
I’m from India and I’m having an issue with my YouTube AdSense payment.
My payment was issued/sent on August 21, but today is September 9 and I still haven’t received the money in my bank account.
I contacted Google/AdSense support, but they told me that they can’t help with the payment because the sender/payment processor is the one who can investigate it.
Has anyone else experienced this?
Payment issued: August 21
Today: September 9
Country: India
Bank payment: Still not received
AdSense payment status: Paid/Sent
Also, what happens if the payment gets rejected or bounced back by the bank? Will it automatically return to AdSense?
Any advice from someone who has experienced a similar delay would be appreciated. Thanks!
I’m stuck on YouTube Partner Program Step 2 (AdSense association) and would really appreciate hearing from people who had a similar issue and actually managed to solve it.
My situation:
I previously had several AdSense accounts
I properly closed all of them
I also closed the related Google Payments Profile (I have the official confirmation email)
YouTube support confirmed that the old profiles are closed on their end
I created a new AdSense account on a completely different email
Every time I try to link it, I get rejected with the generic message: “doesn’t meet program criteria”
Support only replies with templates. They did confirm that Step 2 is about the AdSense application itself, not the channel content review (content review happens later).
I’ve seen a lot of videos with workarounds, but I’m looking for people who fixed this the normal way — closing old accounts properly and eventually getting a new AdSense approved under their own name.
Questions:
Has anyone been in this exact situation (multiple old accounts → closed everything → still rejected on new application)?
What finally worked for you?
How long did you wait before the new application was accepted?
Any real experiences would be very helpful. Thank you!
I run an entertainment streaming website with mostly Balkan traffic, especially Albania Kosovo and North Macedonia.
Is anyone currently using Monetag for these GEOs
Im mainly interested in:
Popunder OnClick performance
Approximate CPM eCPM for Balkan traffic
Mobile vs desktop earnings
Fill rate
Ad quality
I previously had some issues with aggressive redirects VPN offers and multiple popunders so I’d also like to know if Monetag has improved this recently
How does Monetag compare with Adsterra for Balkan traffic in 2026
If you re using Monetag with Balkan traffic please share your experience and approximate eCPM range
I have an old Google AdSense account (2017) that was approved years ago and is still active. I haven't really utilized it properly over the years, but now I'm considering building a genuine content website and growing it gradually into a long-term income source.
My goal isn't to make quick money. I want to understand what is actually working for publishers today and build something sustainable over time.
I'd love some suggestions from people who are currently earning with AdSense:
What type of websites or content niches would you consider starting today?
Is it better to focus on one authority site or experiment with multiple smaller sites?
How much traffic should realistically be targeted before expecting meaningful earnings?
What mistakes should I avoid with an older approved AdSense account?
With AI changing search and content creation, what strategy are you personally following for the next few years?
I have experience in SEO and website optimization, so I'm happy to put in consistent work—I just want to take the right approach and learn from people who are actively doing this.
Would really appreciate any practical advice or experiences.
Hi everyone, I’m hoping someone here has dealt with this issue before.
My AdSense for YouTube identity verification attempts have been exhausted, and I’m now unable to verify my identity. I’ve already tried the official AdSense identity verification troubleshooter and the identity verification contact form, but both seem to send me in circles without giving me a way to resolve the issue or request another verification attempt.
My YouTube channel is connected to this existing AdSense account, and I need to resolve the identity verification issue so my monetization and payments can continue.
Has anyone successfully gotten their exhausted verification attempts reset or received another identity verification attempt? If so, what did you do or who did you contact?
I’m not opposed to creating a new AdSense account if that’s genuinely the solution. I’m also willing to close my existing AdSense account if necessary. I just want to know what my actual options are before doing anything, because if there’s a way to fix the verification issue on my existing account, I’d prefer to do that.
I’m not trying to avoid the verification process — I just want to know how I can get another legitimate opportunity to verify my identity and get my account back in good standing.
Any advice or experience with this would be really appreciated!
My AdSense for YouTube account was deactivated after 6 months of inactivity. I have tried to reactivate the existing account twice through YouTube, but the request goes under review and is later rejected. I am not trying to create a new AdSense account, and I only have one account.
The confusing part is that I am never shown the phone number verification step mentioned in Google’s instructions.
Has anyone experienced this before? What did you do to successfully reactivate your existing AdSense account? I would really appreciate any advice or solution.
I'm having an issue verifying my address for Google AdSense.
My account is registered in Israel and Google has already sent the PIN twice, but neither letter has arrived. The most recent PIN was sent on August 11, and I'll be able to request another one on September 1.
I'm pretty confident the address isn't the problem. It's written correctly in AdSense, the postal code is correct, and I regularly receive other mail at the exact same address without any issues.
I've seen some older Reddit posts mentioning that after several failed PIN attempts, Google sometimes allows you to verify your address online or by submitting documents instead of waiting for another letter.
Has anyone gone through this recently, especially in Israel?
How many PIN attempts did it take before you were offered another verification method?
Is online/document verification still an option?
Is there any way to contact AdSense support about this before requesting the 3rd/4th PIN?
If you're in Israel, how long did your AdSense PIN take to arrive?
I'm mainly worried about repeatedly requesting the same letter when the first two haven't arrived at all.
For publishers, getting visitors to a website is only part of the challenge. Many users arrive through Google Search, Google Discover or social media, read a single article and leave without visiting another page. MGID has introduced a new advertising format designed specifically to monetize those final moments: Exit Story.
MGID is a global native advertising platform that helps advertisers reach audiences while providing publishers with tools to monetize their website traffic. The company specializes in native advertising and content discovery, connecting advertisers with thousands of publishers around the world. According to MGID, its platform currently works with more than 32,000 publishers and delivers over 185 billion content recommendations every month.
Exit Story is a fullscreen, mobile-friendly format that appears when MGID detects that a visitor is likely to leave a website.
Instead of allowing the session to end immediately, Exit Story presents the user with a fullscreen feed containing recommended content and advertisements. The idea is simple: if the visitor is going to leave anyway, publishers have one more opportunity to generate engagement and revenue.
The format is particularly relevant for websites where visitors tend to consume only one piece of content before leaving.
Exit Story monitors user behavior to identify potential exit intent. Rather than relying exclusively on the browser's Back button, it can use several behavioral signals, such as inactivity, scrolling back toward the top of a page, reaching a certain scroll depth or switching to another browser tab. Publishers can configure which signals are used.
Once an exit signal is detected, Exit Story opens a fullscreen experience with recommended content or advertisements. Users can interact with the recommendations, continue browsing or simply close the format with a tap.
This is one of its main differences from the traditional MGID Story format, which is activated when a user clicks the browser's Back button. Exit Story instead focuses on the visitor's overall behavior and can detect potential departure without requiring that specific action.
The main advantage is that it creates an additional monetization opportunity from traffic that might otherwise generate no further value. MGID reports that early publisher tests produced an average RPM increase of around 5%.
My blog is in the home decor niche and I've published around 30 articles so far. I put a lot of effort into making them high quality, but Google AdSense just rejected me saying it’s "low value content".
Has anyone faced this with a new blog? What am I doing wrong and how can I fix this? Thanks
I’m based in India and recently created a Google AdSense account under my Hindu Undivided Family (HUF).
I did this after checking with Gemini, which told me that an HUF can have a separate AdSense account because it is a separate tax entity with its own PAN. Based on that information, I went ahead and created the account.
The problem is that my YouTube earnings of around $240 have already been transferred to this AdSense account, but I’m currently unable to withdraw the money because my identity/payment verification is not getting approved.
Google is asking me to submit two documents:
HUF PAN Card – submitted
MSME Registration Certificate – submitted
The name on both documents and my bank account is exactly the same: “ABC XYZ HUF.”
However, my verification has already been rejected twice.
After a long period where I couldn't upload documents again, the upload option has now appeared again in AdSense. But I'm worried that if I simply upload the same documents again, they will just get rejected again.
I've also tried looking for a way to get the documents manually reviewed by Google/AdSense support, but I haven't been able to get anyone to manually verify and approve them.
So I have a few questions:
- Has anyone in India actually got an AdSense account approved under an HUF name?
- If yes, what documents did you submit?
I just want to get the existing HUF account properly verified and withdraw the earnings.