Native Ads

Native ads are ad assets that are presented to users through UI components that are native to the platform. They're shown using the same types of views with which you're already building your layouts, and can be formatted to match your app's visual design.

When a native ad loads, your app receives an ad object that contains its assets, and the app — rather than the Google Mobile Ads SDK — is responsible for displaying them.

Broadly speaking, there are two parts to successfully implementing native ads: Loading an ad using the SDK and then displaying the ad content in your app.

Load ads

Native ads are loaded with NativeAd.createForAdRequest static method, which returns a promise that resolves with a NativeAd object. The first argument of the method is the "Ad Unit ID". For testing, we can use a Test ID, however for production the ID from the Google AdMob dashboard under "Ad units" should be used:

NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE)
  .then(setNativeAd)
  .catch(console.error);

Native ad Options

Native ads have many advanced features that allow you to make additional customizations to create the best possible ad experience.

You can pass an optional NativeAdRequestOptions object as the second argument to NativeAd.createForAdRequest to customize the ad request:

NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE, {
  aspectRatio: NativeMediaAspectRatio.LANDSCAPE,
});

Preferred media aspect ratio controls

Media Aspect Ratio Controls let you specify a preference for the aspect ratio of ad creatives.

Specify requestOptions.aspectRatio with a NativeMediaAspectRatio enum value when calling NativeAd.createForAdRequest.

• When unset, the returned ad can have any media aspect ratio.
• When set, you will be able to improve the user experience by specifying the preferred type of aspect ratio.

The following example instructs the SDK to prefer a return image or video with a specific aspect ratio.

NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE, {
  aspectRatio: NativeMediaAspectRatio.LANDSCAPE,
});

AdChoices placements

The AdChoices position controls lets you choose which corner to render the AdChoices icon.

Specify requestOptions.adChoicesPlacement with a NativeAdChoicesPlacement enum value when calling NativeAd.createForAdRequest.

• If unset, the AdChoices icon position is set to the top right.
• If set, AdChoices is placed at the custom position as requested.

The following example demonstrates how to set a custom AdChoices image position.

NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE, {
  adChoicesPlacement: NativeAdChoicesPlacement.TOP_LEFT,
});

Start mute behavior

The start muted behavior lets you disable or enable a video's starting audio.

Specify requestOptions.startVideoMuted with a boolean value when calling NativeAd.createForAdRequest.

• The start muted behavior is enabled by default.
• When disabled, your app requests the video should begin with audio.
• When enabled, your app requests that the video should begin with audio muted.

The following example shows how to start the video with un-muted audio.

NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE, {
  startVideoMuted: false,
});

Other Ad Request Options

You can specify other request options to be sent while loading an advert, such as keywords and location. Setting additional request options helps AdMob choose better tailored ads from the network. View the RequestOptions source code to see the full range of options available.

Display ads

When a native ad loads, your app is then responsible for displaying the ad (though it doesn't necessarily have to do so immediately). To make displaying system-defined ad formats easier, the SDK offers some useful resources, as described below.

NativeAdView component

For the NativeAd format, there is the corresponding NativeAdView component. This component is a wrapper component that publishers should use as the root for the NativeAd. A single NativeAdView corresponds to a single native ad. Each view used to display that ads assets should be placed within the view hierarchy of the NativeAdView component. Pass the NativeAd object to the nativeAd prop of the NativeAdView component to register the ad view:

const NativeComponent = () => {
  const [nativeAd, setNativeAd] = useState<NativeAd>();

  useEffect(() => {
    NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE)
      .then(setNativeAd)
      .catch(console.error);
  }, []);

  return (
    <NativeAdView nativeAd={nativeAd}>
      // Components to display assets must be placed here
    </NativeAdView>
  );
};

NativeAsset component

NativeAsset component, which should be placed within the view hierarchy of a NativeAdView, is used to register the view used for each individual asset. Registering the views in this way allows the SDK to automatically handle tasks such as:

• Recording clicks.
• Recording impressions (when the first pixel is visible on the screen).
• Displaying the AdChoices overlay.

NativeAsset component is a headless component, which means the component does not have UI implementation. Customize your UI components as needed and place them inside the NativeAsset component, setting the assetType prop to the asset type you are displaying:

const NativeComponent = () => {
  const [nativeAd, setNativeAd] = useState<NativeAd>();

  useEffect(() => {
    NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE)
      .then(setNativeAd)
      .catch(console.error);
  }, []);

  return (
    <NativeAdView nativeAd={nativeAd}>
      <NativeAsset assetType={NativeAssetType.HEADLINE}>
        <Text>{nativeAd.headline}</Text>
      </NativeAsset>
    </NativeAdView>
  );
};

NativeMediaView component

Main image and video assets are displayed to users via NativeMediaView. It should be placed within the view hierarchy of a NativeAdView, as with any other asset view.

Unlike other asset views, the NativeMediaView automatically populates its content.

const NativeComponent = () => {
  return (
    <NativeAdView nativeAd={nativeAd}>
      <NativeMediaView />
      // Other assets..
    </NativeAdView>
  );
};

Resize Mode

The NativeMediaView component respects the resizeMode property when displaying images. The resizeMode defaults to cover.

Supports the following values:

• cover: Scale the image uniformly (maintain the image's aspect ratio) so that:
  • Both dimensions (width and height) of the image will be equal to or larger than the corresponding dimension of the view (minus padding)
  • At least one dimension of the scaled image will be equal to the corresponding dimension of the view (minus padding)
• contain: Scale the image uniformly (maintain the image's aspect ratio) so that both dimensions (width and height) of the image will be equal to or less than the corresponding dimension of the view (minus padding).
• stretch: Scale width and height independently, This may change the aspect ratio of the source image.

const NativeComponent = () => {
  return (
    <NativeAdView nativeAd={nativeAd}>
      <NativeMediaView resizeMode={'contain'} style={{ aspectRatio: 1 }} />
      // Other assets..
    </NativeAdView>
  );
};

AdChoices overlay

An AdChoices overlay is added as an ad view by the SDK when a backfill ad is returned. If your app uses native ads backfill, leave space in your preferred corner of your native ad view for the automatically inserted AdChoices logo. Also, it's important that the AdChoices overlay is seen, so choose background colors and images appropriately. For more information on the overlay's appearance and function, refer to the programmatic native ads implementation guidelines.

Ad attribution for programmatic native ads

When displaying programmatic native ads, you must display an ad attribution to denote that the view is an advertisement. Learn more in policy guidelines.

Code example

These are the steps for displaying a native ad:

1. Place the NativeAdView, register it by setting the nativeAd prop to the NativeAd object.
2. For each ad asset to be displayed:
   • Populate the asset view with the asset in the NativeAd object.
   • Register the asset view by wrapping it with the NativeAsset component.
3. Place the NativeMediaView inside your native ad layout to display media asset.

const NativeComponent = () => {
  const [nativeAd, setNativeAd] = useState<NativeAd>();

  useEffect(() => {
    NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE)
      .then(setNativeAd)
      .catch(console.error);
  }, []);

  return (
    // Wrap all the ad assets in the NativeAdView component, and register the view with the nativeAd prop
    <NativeAdView nativeAd={nativeAd}>
      // Display the icon asset with Image component, and use NativeAsset to register the view
      {nativeAd.icon && (
        <NativeAsset assetType={NativeAssetType.ICON}>
          <Image source={{uri: nativeAd.icon.url}} width={24} height={24} />
        </NativeAsset>
      )}
      // Display the headline asset with Text component, and use NativeAsset to register the view
      <NativeAsset assetType={NativeAssetType.HEADLINE}>
        <Text style={{fontSize: 18, fontWeight: 'bold'}}>
          {nativeAd.headline}
        </Text>
      </NativeAsset>
      // Always display an ad attribution to denote that the view is an advertisement
      <Text>Sponsored</Text>
      // Display the media asset
      <NativeMediaView />
      // Repeat the process for the other assets in the NativeAd.
    </NativeAdView>
  );
};

Receiving ad events

The NativeAd object emits events that you can listen to.

Use the addAdEventListener method to listen to ad events emitted by the NativeAd. Pass one of the NativeAdEventType enum values to specify the event type.

Check the NativeAdEventType source code to see the full range of events available.

const NativeComponent = () => {
  const [nativeAd, setNativeAd] = useState<NativeAd>();

  useEffect(() => {
    NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE)
      .then(setNativeAd)
      .catch(console.error);
  }, []);

  useEffect(() => {
    if (!nativeAd) return;
    const listener = nativeAd.addAdEventListener(NativeAdEventType.CLICKED, () => {
      console.log('Native ad clicked');
    });
    return () => {
      listener.remove();
      // or
      nativeAd.destroy();
    };
  }, [nativeAd]);

  return (
    <NativeAdView nativeAd={nativeAd}>
      // Components to display assets must be placed here
    </NativeAdView>
  );
};

Destroying ads

Always destroy the NativeAd object when it is no longer needed to free up resources.

Calling the destroy method also removes all event listeners registered on the NativeAd object.

const NativeComponent = () => {
  const [nativeAd, setNativeAd] = useState<NativeAd>();

  useEffect(() => {
    NativeAd.createForAdRequest(TestIds.NATIVE)
      .then(setNativeAd)
      .catch(console.error);
  }, []);

  useEffect(() => {
    if (!nativeAd) return;
    return () => {
      nativeAd.destroy();
    };
  }, [nativeAd]);

  return (
    <NativeAdView nativeAd={nativeAd}>
      // Components to display assets must be placed here
    </NativeAdView>
  );
};

Caveats / Limitations

NativeAsset placement

Place the asset view(such as Text, Image component) as a direct child of the NativeAsset component, and do not wrap the asset view with another view. The SDK automatically handles tasks such as recording / handling clicks on the asset view. Wrapping the asset view with another view can interfere with these tasks.

Do:

<NativeAsset assetType={NativeAssetType.CTA}>
  <Text style={{ padding: 8 }}>{nativeAd.cta}</Text>
</NativeAsset>
<NativeAsset assetType={NativeAssetType.ICON}>
  <Image source={{uri: nativeAd.icon.url}} width={24} height={24} style={{ borderRadius: 8 }} />
</NativeAsset>

Don't:

<NativeAsset assetType={NativeAssetType.CTA}>
  <TouchableOpacity style={{ padding: 8 }}>
    <Text>{nativeAd.cta}</Text>
  </TouchableOpacity>
</NativeAsset>
<NativeAsset assetType={NativeAssetType.ICON}>
  <View style={{ borderRadius: 8, overflow: 'hidden' }}>
    <Image source={{uri: nativeAd.icon.url}} width={24} height={24} />
  </View>
</NativeAsset>

Not implemented features

These features are not implemented in the current version:

• Custom Ad Choices view
• Custom video playback controls
• Custom click gestures
• Custom native ad formats