TV advertising prices do not move in a straight line. They change by season, region, channel group and audience. The supplied 2025 cost-by-area files show why a TV plan should be built around timing, geography and audience, not just a headline national CPT.
What the data shows
- Seasonality matters: ITV1 Adults pricing peaks in Sep at an index of 141 versus the annual average of 100.
- Men 16-34 move even harder: the Men 16-34 index peaks in Sep at 172, then falls to 69 in Nov.
- Regional variation is material: LWT is the highest annual Adults region at 25.23, while UTV is the lowest at 6.61.
- Channel choice changes the price: ITV Breakfast Adults sits at 4.86, ITV1 Adults at 12.89, and Ratcheted Channels Adults at 16.14.
The Adults seasonal shape is the first planning lesson. September is materially above the annual average, with October and November also elevated. January to April are softer, which can make them useful for controlled tests, response campaigns or advertisers that want more weight for the same budget.
The Men 16-34 index shows why audience choice matters. In this file, Men 16-34 pricing rises well above average from May to October, peaks in September, then drops heavily in November and December. A campaign targeting younger men may therefore face a very different buying calendar from an Adults campaign.
Regional pricing is not just a map of population. London, LWT and Carlton price above the national ITV1 average in this file, while UTV, West Country, Granada and GRBD are much lower. That matters when a brand can trade nationally but only needs demand in selected areas.
Audience context: price is only half the story
The cost data above shows where prices move, but audience distribution explains why the same price can mean different value in different regions and against different age groups. Ofcom’s Media Nations 2025 UK report says UK individuals aged 4+ watched an average of 2 hours 24 minutes of broadcast TV per day on TV sets in 2024. Ofcom also reports that weekly broadcast TV reach was 73.8% overall, but much higher among people aged 65+ (94%) and much lower among 16-24s (45%).
The nation-level pattern is important for regional planning. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all sit above the UK average for daily broadcast TV minutes in Ofcom’s 2025 nation reports, while England sits below the UK average. This does not automatically make one area better or worse to buy; it means the planner needs to compare price, viewing volume, audience age profile and sales geography together.
Older audiences
Older audiences remain easier to reach through broadcast TV. Ofcom reports 65+ weekly broadcast TV reach at 94% in 2024. In Wales, Ofcom reports viewers aged 65+ watched an average of about six hours of broadcast TV per day in 2024, far more than younger age groups.
Younger audiences
Younger audiences are more fragmented. Thinkbox’s TV Viewing Report 2025 says VOD represents 69% of Total TV viewing for 16-34s. That supports using BVOD and connected TV alongside linear airtime when the target is Men 16-34 or Adults 16-34.
That is why the Men 16-34 seasonal index above should not be read as a simple instruction to avoid expensive months. A higher price may reflect scarcity, event demand or a harder-to-reach audience. The planning question is whether the extra cost buys incremental reach, stronger programme context or a response window that the campaign genuinely needs.
Background
CPT is useful, but it is only one lens. The cheapest airtime is not always the best airtime, and the most expensive airtime is not automatically wasteful. A proper TV buying decision has to weigh cost against sales opportunity, audience quality, programming environment, timing, geography, creative suitability and likely response.
Sales and demand signals
Regional price only matters when it is compared with the commercial opportunity in that region. Store coverage, distribution, search demand, sales history, call centre capacity, ecommerce conversion and local competition can all change the value of a TV impact.
Programme environment
Programme context affects attention and brand fit. News, sport, daytime, entertainment, drama, films and breakfast viewing can all deliver different mindsets. The right environment can justify a higher price when it improves relevance or response.
Seasonal impact
September, Q4, school holidays, paydays, weather shifts, sport calendars and retail peaks all change demand. Sometimes the expensive month is expensive for a reason. The question is whether the brand benefits from that moment or is simply paying into market heat.
Regional factors
Regional value depends on more than the regional CPT. It can be shaped by local viewing levels, audience age profile, population density, sales penetration, retail footprint, regional competitors, media pressure and whether the creative message feels locally relevant.
Audience quality
An Adult impact, an ABC1 Adult impact and a Men 16-34 impact are not interchangeable. Some audiences are more expensive because they are harder to reach, more commercially valuable, more concentrated around specific content, or more fragmented across linear, BVOD and connected TV.
Availability and negotiation
Published or historical pricing does not show the whole trading picture. Late availability, broadcaster demand, share deals, value, copy length, campaign flexibility and booking lead time can all affect what is actually achievable in market.
Creative fit
A schedule can only do so much if the advert does not suit the viewing moment. A brand film, retail promotion, app download message, insurance quote prompt or album release all need different levels of explanation, urgency and frequency.
Short-term opportunities
Some of the best TV value appears tactically: late availability, a competitor going quiet, a sudden weather change, a sporting result, payday timing, a retail promotion, a stock position, or a regional sales push. A flexible advertiser can sometimes buy into these moments faster than a brand locked into a rigid annual plan.
Measurement and response
The final judgement should include what happened after transmission: web visits, brand search, calls, leads, sales, app installs, regional uplift, promo code use, econometric learning or matched-market evidence. A slightly higher CPT can still be better value if it drives stronger business outcomes.
Commercial readiness
Short-term opportunity only works if the business is ready. Creative must be cleared, landing pages must convert, call centres must be staffed, stock must be available and reporting must be set up before the airtime goes live.
A better planning question
Instead of asking only, “where is the CPT cheapest?”, the better question is: where can this campaign reach the right people, in the right mood, at the right time, in the right geography, with enough weight to create a measurable effect?
Planning implications
1. Timing can be as important as channel
If the same audience costs more in September than February, the campaign calendar becomes a buying decision. Retail, education, finance, travel and betting campaigns often have real seasonal reasons to pay into expensive months. Other advertisers may be able to shift weight into softer periods and buy more impacts.
2. Audience choice changes the seasonal answer
The Men 16-34 index is not just a slightly different version of the Adults index. It is more volatile, with a steeper autumn peak and a much weaker November and December. That means the right month for one audience is not automatically the right month for another.
3. Regional plans can reduce wastage
When the product is not available nationally, or when sales strength differs by region, a regional TV plan can concentrate spend where it has the best chance of working. The data shows that the cost of reaching Adults is not equal across ITV sales areas, so a single national average can hide useful buying opportunities.
4. A cheap CPT is not always the best answer
ITV Breakfast is much cheaper on this Adults measure than ITV1, but it has a different viewing context, daypart and response profile. The right choice depends on audience fit, creative message, desired response window and whether the campaign needs scale, frequency or efficient testing.
5. High-demand months need earlier planning
When prices rise, availability and programme access can tighten too. Campaigns planned for autumn, major retail windows or sport-adjacent periods should be briefed early enough to manage clearance, copy delivery and airtime negotiation.
How to read these figures
The values above are taken from the supplied 2025 Cost By Area files and treated as CPT-style pricing measures for comparison. They are useful for showing relative movement by month, region, channel group and audience. A live buying recommendation should still check current availability, audience target, spot length, copy rotation, daypart mix and broadcaster deal terms.
Regional ranking in the supplied file
| Rank | Region | Annual Adults value | Vs ITV1 average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LWT | 25.23 | +96% |
| 2 | London | 21.04 | +63% |
| 3 | Carlton | 18.78 | +46% |
| 4 | Central | 13.80 | +7% |
| 5 | Meridian | 13.50 | +5% |
| 6 | South East | 13.06 | +1% |
| 7 | MidWest | 12.68 | -2% |
| 8 | Scotland | 12.51 | -3% |
| 9 | Anglia | 12.45 | -3% |
| 10 | Wales & West | 11.44 | -11% |
| 11 | West Macro | 11.04 | -14% |
| 12 | YTTTV | 10.83 | -16% |
| 13 | Border | 10.75 | -17% |
| 14 | North | 10.62 | -18% |
| 15 | GRBD | 10.42 | -19% |
| 16 | Granada | 10.39 | -19% |
| 17 | West Country | 9.94 | -23% |
| 18 | UTV | 6.61 | -49% |
For related planning context, see regional TV advertising UK, TV airtime buying UK, TV advertising costs UK and the TV media buying glossary.