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Revenue wing / head-to-head

Mediavine vs Raptive

Reviewed08·2026

Since Raptive's October 2025 threshold cut, the two premium networks compete for the same publishers earlier than ever. The published terms are unusually symmetrical; the differences worth deciding on are the bases, the geo rules and the toolsets.

By Oliver Wakefield-Smith. Oliver Wakefield-Smith runs a portfolio of ad-monetized publisher sites and reads these dashboards weekly.

Published terms, side by side

Mediavine vs Raptive published terms, verified 2026-08-01
DimensionMediavineRaptive
Entry50,000 sessions / 30 days Mediavine2026-0825,000 monthly pageviews Raptive2026-08
Geo rulesReviewed at application; no printed percentage50% US/CA/UK/AU/NZ at 25k-99,999 PV; 40% at 100k+ Raptive Help2026-08
Published share75% base; to 85% legacy tiers; 75-90% on 2026 programs Mediavine Help2026-0875%; Net 45 on the 15th; no joining fees Raptive Help2026-08
Reporting basisSession RPMPageview RPM
Recent structural news2026 earnings-keyed program structure for new sitesThreshold cut (Oct 2025); AlchemyAI acquisition (Jun 2026)

Who qualifies for which, in practice

The units decide most cases. A site with 1.4 pages per session hits 25,000 pageviews at roughly 18,000 sessions, so Raptive's door opens years of growth before Mediavine's 50,000-session bar on the same trajectory. But the geo gate cuts the other way: Raptive prints a hard traffic-mix requirement Raptive Help2026-08, while Mediavine reviews quality without a printed percentage. English-market lifestyle sites often clear both; internationally-read sites often clear only Mediavine.

Beyond the numbers

Both publish 75% at the base, which moves the decision to what is not identical: Mediavine prints a climb path to 85-90% Mediavine Help2026-08, publishes its requirements culture openly, and reports on sessions; Raptive pays Net 45 with published payment dates Raptive Help2026-08, reports on pageviews (directly comparable with your AdSense history), and is investing visibly in AI-era publisher tooling. Neither publishes per-site uplift, so the final tiebreak belongs to your own test, priced with the what-if dial. Two 75% shares can still pay differently; the needle only settles on your own dashboard.

Questions this page keeps getting

Which is easier to qualify for, Mediavine or Raptive?

Raptive's 25,000 pageviews usually arrives before Mediavine's 50,000 sessions, but Raptive adds geo rules: 50% US/CA/UK/AU/NZ traffic at the 25k tier. A non-English-market site can clear Mediavine's number and fail Raptive's mix.

Who pays a higher revenue share?

Published bases match at 75%. Mediavine publishes climbs to 85% (legacy impression tiers) or 80-90% (2026 earnings-keyed programs); Raptive's published figure is 75% with payment Net 45. Beyond the printed numbers, differences are per-site.

Can I compare their RPM figures directly?

No. Raptive reports per 1,000 pageviews and Mediavine per 1,000 sessions, so Mediavine's number reads higher on identical earnings. Convert with your pages-per-session before comparing anything.