Trust in advertising has risen from 36% to 39% over the past 12 months, primarily driven by young people, according to new research from the Advertising Association (AA).

Trust in ads has grown across all age groups, with a notable 16-point increase among 18-34-year-olds since 2022. In contrast, trust among those aged 55 and older has risen by just three points, highlighting that 18-34-year-olds are nearly three times more likely to trust advertising than those above 55.

UK advertising think tank Credos attributes this trust gap to a “generational digital divide”. Younger audiences increasingly trust online advertising, while trust among older generations remains low.

Over half (51%) of 18-34s trust online ads, compared to 34% of those aged 35-54 and just 14% of over 55s. Only 7% of those aged over 55 trust social media and even less (6%) trust influencer advertising. By comparison, the research finds 47% of 18-34s trust social media, while 45% trust influencer marketing.

Across the board, trust in all media channels also increased, with TV and cinema remaining at the top of the list, according to Credos. For those aged 35-54 (49%) and over 55 (31%), TV is the most trusted medium. Cinema tops the list for 18-34s (56%), signalling investment in brand advertising remains essential to help build consumer trust.

Director of Credos Dan Wilks believes a number of factors drove the overall increase in trust in 2024, including a strong festive ad season and “more enjoyable” advertising, with humour making a return post-pandemic.

“Our qualitative research has also shown an improved ad experience in some channels, with BVOD and influencers in particular being highlighted,” he says.

He claims the Advertising Standards Authority’s (ASA) multichannel national ad awareness campaign – which ran for the third time in 2024 and aimed to increase public awareness of co- and self-regulatory systems in the advertising industry – helped increase trust scores.

Advertising no longer the UK’s least trusted industry for first time in a decade 

The campaign research from October 2024 found 36% of UK adults recall seeing or hearing the ASA ads, while those who saw or heard the ads were more than twice as likely to trust the industry than those who did not.

“At the ASA, we love responsible advertising, we want it to be trusted and we want it to be deserving of that trust,” says ASA CEO, Guy Parker.

“If we all keep working towards that goal, including with an even bigger and better burst of ASA ads later in 2025, we’ll see even greater benefits to people, to brands, to media and, of course, to the economy.” 

In June last year, AA research found advertising was bumped off the bottom spot for consumer trustworthiness for the first time in a decade.

At the time, just 26% of UK consumers said they trust the government and media, while 30% trust advertising, up 7% from 2022 figures.

The most trusted industry is the medical profession (73%), followed by banking (48%), telecoms (43%) and energy (32%).