AppLovin MAX vs. Vungle

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
AppLovin MAX
Score 6.9 out of 10
N/A
MoPub was a mobile ad server owned by Twitter since the September 2013 acquisition, acquired by AppLovin, and now part of the MAX mediation platform. MAX gives users a diverse set of auctions for supply.N/A
Vungle
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
Vungle headquartered in San Francisco offers their eponymous mobile in-app advertising technology platform.N/A
Pricing
AppLovin MAXVungle
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
AppLovin MAXVungle
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details——
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
AppLovin MAXVungle
Considered Both Products
AppLovin MAX
Chose AppLovin MAX
We've been attempting to make AppLovin Max perform the same way as MoPub had for us. The value we get from AppLovin Max differs from the ROI we get from other mediation platforms. We keep convincing ourselves that AppLovin Max will eventually function similarly to MoPub.
Chose AppLovin MAX
MoPub is an SSP that can help you explain the benefits (and hurdles) of programmatic advertising to the client and that is a big help in markets that are not very developed. Other exchanges are too big and they don't put a lot of focus on customer service but MoPub is different …
Vungle
Chose Vungle
Vungle stands out as the only video only exchange. It is their main selling point and they have carved out a nice niche that differentiates them from the rest of SSPs. Their main competition, in my opinion, is Teads, which has focused the product more towards branding in order …
Top Pros
Top Cons
Best Alternatives
AppLovin MAXVungle
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User Ratings
AppLovin MAXVungle
Likelihood to Recommend
5.0
(3 ratings)
7.0
(1 ratings)
Usability
8.0
(1 ratings)
7.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
8.0
(2 ratings)
5.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
AppLovin MAXVungle
Likelihood to Recommend
AppLovin
They have the lowest eCPM of any network. We're using them based on their team's advice, thus their eCPM isn't quite as high as their benchmarks. Since MoPub was retired, we have not seen the same eCPMs as previously, particularly in the US, which was their primary market.
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Vungle
Vungle works well for branding and performance as video is a high impact format that and that has good CTRs and CVRs. However, for advertisers without a lot of budget, Vungle may not be a good option as the CPMs on the exchange are very high. For branding there are alternatives that have a more developed product, where video can be targeted near content the user may like, like Teads.
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Pros
AppLovin
  • Easy to use platfrom. You can set up QPS management system on your own.
  • They have MoPub Analytics to get inventory stats.
  • Their AM team is very supportive.
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Vungle
  • You can work on a CPI basis on the network level.
  • Strong in the US. A lot of inventory there.
  • SSP integration very fast and good technical team.
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Cons
AppLovin
  • Not a lot of inventory in the EMEA region.
  • Not a lot of high impact formats. Mainly banners and not a lot of interstitials and videos.
  • Reporting tools not very advanced. You can't get a lot of granular details from the tool.
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Vungle
  • Product development. They have not evolved their product significantly still offering the same videos they had 3 years ago.
  • Slow to respond to product questions.
  • Not enough scale on APAC GEOS.
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Usability
AppLovin
MoPub is a great SSP. It is a trusted partner that can help you scale campaigns as well as educate the client about the benefits of programmatic advertising. They have a lot of inventory and a great support team. I wouldn't say they are perfect because reporting is not very good and some billing issues are not as transparent as they should be.
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Vungle
I would say is a standard video SSP. The reporting dashboard is well designed and easy to use and throttling options are standard. They seem to be confident about their inventory and they don't really evolve their product and add new betas or create audiences or do anything out of the ordinary.
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Support Rating
AppLovin
MoPub's support is really good. Their team is knowledgeable on their product and the programmatic ecosystem in general and they are very helpful. The only 2 things that I would point out would be that their response times are not very fast and that there is a lot of rotation on the account management team.
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Vungle
Their support team is a bit slow. You have to re-send your email questions constantly because the first email never gets a reply. Their core business is still the ad network which does not involve a lot of human interaction so they are still working on how to evolve their account management team to be an exchange.
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Alternatives Considered
AppLovin
We've been attempting to make AppLovin Max perform the same way as MoPub had for us. The value we get from AppLovin Max differs from the ROI we get from other mediation platforms. We keep convincing ourselves that AppLovin Max will eventually function similarly to MoPub.
Read full review
Vungle
Vungle stands out as the only video only exchange. It is their main selling point and they have carved out a nice niche that differentiates them from the rest of SSPs. Their main competition, in my opinion, is Teads, which has focused the product more towards branding in order to monetize better for its publishers by getting higher bids.
Read full review
Return on Investment
AppLovin
  • CPMs are very low compared to other mediation partners which has caused a negative impact on our revenue
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Vungle
  • We have gotten good CPAs, but we have had to bid high CPMs.
  • They were reluctant to do a rebate deal, which is something standard once you hit a certain volume of spend, which worsened ROI.
  • No buy sides fees, which is a big plus for profitability.
Read full review
ScreenShots

AppLovin MAX Screenshots

Screenshot of the Main ScreenScreenshot of Waterfall PreviewScreenshot of the MAX A/B Test feature, used to test real-time data to test and measure the impact of any change to the waterfall configuration.Screenshot of the Ad ReviewScreenshot of the Network Comparison report.Screenshot of the MAX Cohort Report.