<b>What header bidding actually is</b>

<b>What header bidding actually is</b>

Header bidding is an auction for your ad space that happens the instant your page starts loading — usually finished in under 300 milliseconds (less than half a second).

Why it matters: instead of one ad buyer getting first pick, many buyers bid at the same time. More bidders competing means a higher winning price for you.

Tiny example: five ad partners each say what they'll pay — $1.40, $2.10, $0.90, $3.05, $1.80. The $3.05 bid wins and that ad shows. You earned $3.05 instead of whoever happened to be "first in line."

One thing to try: open any big news site, watch an ad load, and picture that silent auction firing.

<b>In plain English:</b> it's a 200-millisecond auction held the moment your page loads.