AdEx Q1 FY26: How Indian brands spent on ads and marketing

India Inc’s Q1 FY26 ad spend shows a split, with Swiggy, Maruti Suzuki, Nykaa, and Alphabet ramping up budgets, while P&G Hygiene, Colgate, Godrej Consumer, and ITC tighten spending.

By Yukta Raj| Aug 11, 2025 7:55 AM

AdEx Q1 FY26: How Indian brands spent on ads and marketing

FMCG giants like P&G Hygiene, Colgate, Godrej Consumer and ITC are cost trimmers as they scaled back ad spends to protect margins.

India Inc.’s advertising and promotional spending is witnessing a clear split, while some brands are aggressively expanding their marketing budgets to fuel growth, others are pulling back in a bid to protect margins. Latest quarterly and annual filings reveal divergent strategies across FMCG, auto, tech, e-commerce and telecom players. From Swiggy’s triple-digit surge in ad spends to Procter & Gamble Hygiene’s steepest cut, the data offers a telling view into corporate priorities in an uncertain consumer and macroeconomic environment.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of how major brands spent on marketing and promotions.

Titan's stable momentum in ad spends

Titan maintained a steady ad budget, with Q1 FY26 advertising expenses at Rs 328 crore, marginally higher than Rs 320 crore in the previous quarter. For FY25, the brand’s total AdEx stood at Rs 1,308 crore, reflecting consistent marketing efforts without major spikes or cuts.

Godrej Consumer scales overall costs but tightens ad budget

Despite recording a 13.4% rise in total expenses, Godrej Consumer Products Limited trimmed its advertising and promotional spends in Q1 FY26. On a consolidated basis, expenditure declined 5.15% year-on-year to Rs 313.83 crore, while on a standalone basis, it fell 10.11% to Rs 231.62 crore, indicating a more cautious approach to marketing outlay despite overall cost expansion.

Colgate-Palmolive focused on cost efficiency

The FMCG giant cut ad spends by 5.5% YoY in Q1 FY26, spending Rs 188.41 crore versus Rs 199.07 crore last year. The move reflects tighter marketing efficiency, while still sustaining strong brand recall.

HUL's quarterly uptick despite YoY decline

HUL’s Q1 FY26 ad spend stood at Rs 1,656 crore, slightly lower than Rs 1,681 crore YoY, but up 9.6% sequentially from Rs 1,510 crore in Q4 FY25. This sequential increase hints at renewed brand activity, possibly tied to seasonal launches or campaigns.

Emami's mild cuts in promotions

Ad and sales promotion expenditure declined by 2.1% YoY to Rs 179.75 crore in Q1 FY26, from Rs 183.69 crore in the same period last year, a modest trim likely aimed at balancing margins.

Swiggy bets big on brand visibility

Swiggy went aggressive, with ad and promo spends soaring 132% YoY to Rs 1,036 crore in Q1 FY26 against Rs 445 crore in Q1 FY25. Sequentially, spends rose 6% from Rs 978 crore in Q4 FY25. This aligns with its growth push in quick commerce and customer acquisition.

Procter & Gamble Hygiene's sharpest YoY cut

The 'Whisper' brand owner slashed ad and promotional expenses by 55.2% YoY in Q1 FY26, spending just Rs 68.73 crore versus Rs 153.6 crore last year, possibly a recalibration of brand strategy or timing of major campaigns.

ITC's annual decline in ad spend

In FY25, ITC’s ad and promotional spend dropped 3.89% YoY to Rs 1,331.69 crore from Rs 1,385.64 crore. Interestingly, advertising complaints halved from 15 to 6 in the same period, indicating not just lower spends but possibly cleaner, more compliant campaigns.

Maruti Suzuki goes aggressive on branding

Maruti Suzuki boosted ad and sales promotion spend by 11.42% in FY25, reaching Rs 1,742.6 crore; Rs 1,127.5 crore on advertising, Rs 615.1 crore on sales promotions. The YoY rise underscores its strong focus on consumer engagement in a competitive auto market.

Hyundai's cautious approach

Hyundai’s FY25 ad and promotional spend rose slightly to Rs 687.3 crore from Rs 684.2 crore in FY24. While overall “Other Expenses” surged, the share of advertising within it dipped from 10% to 9%, showing disciplined marketing allocation.

Bharti Airtel's strategic marketing spend

Airtel spent Rs 1,229 crore on sales and marketing in Q1 FY26, down from Rs 1,351 crore in Q4 FY25, yet sustaining a strong presence through content bundling and targeted customer acquisition strategies.

Nykaa's strong marketing investment

Nykaa increased ad and marketing spends by 34.5% YoY to Rs 994.82 crore in FY25, with marketing expenses forming 12.5% of revenue against 11.6% in FY24. The brand continues to invest heavily in visibility to capture market share.

Vi's balancing cuts with core ad focus

Vodafone Idea’s total expenditure on advertising, business promotion, and content fell from Rs 564.7 crore in FY24 to Rs 500 crore in FY25, driven largely by a steep reduction in content costs from Rs 336.9 crore to Rs 232.1 crore. However, the company marginally increased its core advertising and promotion spend from Rs 227.8 crore to Rs 267.9 crore, signalling a strategy of selective brand building despite ongoing financial constraints.

Info Edge's brands keep spending up

Info Edge’s consolidated ad and promo spends rose 8.95% in FY25 to Rs 373.11 crore, with standalone spends up 13.9% to Rs 312.45 crore. Heavy allocation went to ad expenses, Rs 301.5 crore, signaling continued investment in platforms like Naukri.com and 99acres.com.

Alphabet's (Google) steady marketing expansion

Alphabet’s sales and marketing spend grew 4.6% YoY in Q2 to $7.10 billion and 11.4% YTD to $14.72 billion. This coincided with a 10.4% jump in ad revenue, YouTube ads up 13%, reflecting sustained investment in growth engines like AI products and video advertising.

With this, it is clear that brand such as Swiggy, Maruti Suzuki, Nykaa and Alphabet are aggressive spenders as they ramped up their marketing budgets to drive growth and capture market share. In contrast, FMCG giants like P&G Hygiene, Colgate, Godrej Consumer and ITC are cost trimmers as they scaled back ad spends to protect margins. Titan, HUL, Hyundai and Airtel are steady investors.