In 2026, an ad post in a Telegram channel costs anywhere from a few thousand rubles in small channels to hundreds of thousands and more in large ones. According to a study by the agency Agenda PR, cited by eLama as of 1 September 2026, a post in a channel with up to 10,000 subscribers costs 10,000–17,000 rubles (RUB), and in channels with over a million subscribers from RUB 400,000. There is no single price list: the channel owner sets the price, and you judge it by CPM, the cost per thousand views. The data below comes mostly from the Russian-language Telegram market, where buying posts in channels (known as “posevy”) is a large, well-documented ad channel.
Ad post prices by channel size
Subscriber count is the first benchmark, though not the most important one. Different sources give comparable but not identical ranges, so we show them separately.
| Channel size | Price per post | Source |
|---|---|---|
| up to 10,000 subscribers | RUB 10,000–17,000 | Agenda PR, via eLama, September 2026 |
| 10,000–50,000 | about RUB 20,000–35,000 | Agenda PR |
| 50,000–100,000 | about RUB 40,000 | Agenda PR |
| 100,000–200,000 | about RUB 70,000 | Agenda PR |
| 200,000–500,000 | about RUB 120,000 | Agenda PR |
| 500,000–1 million | RUB 350,000–400,000 | Agenda PR |
| over 1 million | RUB 400,000 to 1,500,000 and more | Agenda PR |
Other 2026 estimates are lower or higher depending on the sample. According to a Clickise article on Sostav (June 2026, prices as of early 2026), small channels with 5,000–15,000 subscribers charge RUB 1,500–8,000 per post, mid-sized channels with 50,000–100,000 charge RUB 15,000–50,000, large channels with 300,000+ from RUB 80,000, and top news and entertainment channels from RUB 250,000. Digital marketer Anna Krin, quoted by Unisender (February 2026), gives RUB 10,000–40,000 for channels with 10,000–30,000 subscribers and RUB 40,000–150,000 for channels with 50,000–150,000.
Prices by topic
Topic affects price as much as size: ads in niches with high-spending audiences (business, finance, marketing, IT) cost more. In February 2026, Unisender published ranges from the Russian ad exchange Telega.in for the 1/24 format (a post that stays for one day):
| Topic | up to 10,000 subscribers | 10,000–50,000 subscribers |
|---|---|---|
| Business and startups | RUB 900–20,000 | RUB 15,000–65,000 |
| Finance and investing | RUB 6,000–15,000 | RUB 20,000–60,000 |
| Health and medicine | RUB 5,000–12,000 | RUB 15,000–40,000 |
| Marketing and PR | RUB 5,000–10,000 | RUB 12,000–35,000 |
| Psychology | RUB 4,000–10,000 | RUB 12,000–35,000 |
| Education | RUB 4,000–9,000 | RUB 10,000–30,000 |
| Lifestyle | RUB 3,000–7,000 | RUB 8,000–20,000 |
The most expensive segment is B2B IT. According to kod.ru (September 2025), in the first half of 2025 the CPM of native placements in IT channels reached RUB 16,200, and the average cost per subscriber exceeded RUB 800, up from RUB 376 a year earlier.
CPM of paid posts: how to compare channels
The price of a post alone tells you little: a channel with 50,000 subscribers may get fewer views than one with 20,000. That is why channels are compared by CPM:
CPM = placement price / average post reach × 1,000.
For example, a RUB 20,000 post with an average reach of 8,000 views gives a CPM of RUB 2,500. Benchmarks from published data:
- Market spread. Denis Maksimov of Spiral Agency, quoted by Unisender, says the CPM of paid posts ranges from RUB 1,000 in one channel to RUB 10,000 in another.
- Examples by topic. eLama, as of 1 September 2026, cites average CPMs in a sample of channels from the Telega.in and WOWBlogger exchanges: food and cafés RUB 2,412, news and media RUB 2,662, marketing RUB 4,175.
- Cost per view. In the same Unisender article, an expert gives RUB 1–2 per view in lifestyle and humor channels, up to RUB 1 in news channels, and RUB 2–3 up to 15–20 in doctors’ and experts’ niches.
Keep in mind that an ad post usually gets less reach than average: in an example from the Unisender article, it was 34% lower than the channel’s organic posts.
What a subscriber costs
The final efficiency of a paid post is measured by cost per subscriber (CPS): the placement price divided by the number of new subscribers. There is no universal norm. According to Clickise (June 2026), a subscriber from entertainment channels can cost less than €1, while in premium business blogs it is €5–10 and more. A traffic arbitrage expert quoted by Unisender considers RUB 300–500 per subscriber a good price. How to calculate CPS and payback is covered in our article on metrics.
What drives the price
- Reach and engagement. Average post views and engagement rate matter more than subscriber count.
- Topic and audience spending power. Finance, business and IT cost more than lifestyle and entertainment.
- Format. A 1/24 post (one hour at the top, 24 hours in the feed) is cheaper than 2/48 or a permanent post; pinning costs extra. A native post in the author’s voice costs more than a straightforward ad.
- Geography and audience quality. A narrow, high-spending audience costs more than a mass one.
- Intermediary. According to Clickise, direct deals are 5–15% cheaper than buying through an exchange, which is the exchange’s fee.
- Mandatory costs in Russia. Under Russian law, ads are labeled with an erid token and reported to the state ad register, and since 1 November 2024 channels with 10,000+ subscribers can only carry ads if they are on the Roskomnadzor register. More in our article on ad labeling in Russia.
How prices changed in 2026
In 2026 the Russian market for paid posts was affected by restrictions on Telegram in Russia. According to eLama (August 2026), from February to April 2026 average post prices fell 17%, cost per click fell 10%, and average CTR held at about 0.21%. On 25 March 2026, Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) announced a transition period until the end of 2026 during which liability for advertising in Telegram will not be applied. The legal context is covered in Is Telegram advertising legal in Russia (this is not legal advice).
For comparison, in official Telegram Ads the average CPM for broad topic targeting fell from €1.64 in January to €0.97 in August 2026, according to SA Media agency data cited by ppc.world. The cost of official ads is covered in How Much Does Telegram Ads Cost, and the choice between formats in Telegram Ads vs channel ad buys.
How not to overpay
- Calculate CPM from the average reach of recent posts, not from subscriber count, and compare several channels in the same topic.
- Check statistics in TGStat or Telemetrio: sudden subscriber spikes, low engagement and identical reach on every post are signs of fake audience.
- Look at the reach of past ad posts in the channel: they show real results better than averages.
- Ask for a price list and case studies and negotiate: new and niche channels often discount a series of posts.
- For Russian channels, check Roskomnadzor registration if the channel has over 10,000 subscribers, and agree on labeling.
- Tag your links (separate invite links or UTM tags per channel) to calculate the cost per subscriber.
- Start with a test. Anna Krin, quoted by Unisender, recommends budgeting about RUB 100,000 for a test, and RUB 150,000–300,000 in competitive niches, then scaling only the combinations with an acceptable cost per result.
You can look for placements in our channel catalog, and other growth options are covered in How to Promote a Telegram Channel.
FAQ
How much does an ad in a small Telegram channel cost?
According to an Agenda PR study (eLama data, September 2026), a post in a channel with up to 10,000 subscribers costs RUB 10,000–17,000. According to Clickise, channels with 5,000–15,000 subscribers may charge from RUB 1,500. The range depends on topic and reach.
What CPM is normal for paid posts?
There is no single norm: Spiral Agency estimates that the CPM of paid posts ranges from RUB 1,000 to 10,000. eLama gives averages of about RUB 2,400–4,200 for different topics as of September 2026. Compare CPMs within the same niche.
What does the 1/24 format mean?
The post stays at the top of the channel feed for 1 hour, after which the admin may publish other posts, and is deleted after 24 hours. Similarly, 2/48 means two hours at the top and 48 hours in the feed. A permanent post costs more.
Why does a channel have many subscribers but low reach?
Part of the audience may be inactive or fake. That is why a post’s price is judged by average reach and CPM rather than subscriber count, and the channel’s dynamics are checked in TGStat or Telemetrio.
Is it cheaper to buy directly or through an exchange?
According to Clickise (June 2026), direct deals are 5–15% cheaper, which is the exchange’s fee. On the other hand, an exchange handles part of the channel vetting, paperwork and labeling, which saves time.
Which is better: paid posts or Telegram Ads?
It depends on the goal and niche. Paid posts offer native presentation and a free format; Telegram Ads offers scale and bid control. See our detailed comparison “Telegram Ads vs channel ad buys”.
