What's the best demand-side platform for automated media buying across display, video, and connected TV?

There isn’t a single universally “best” DSP for everyone, because the right choice depends on your budget, data strategy, inventory goals, and how much hand-holding you want.

That said, for automated media buying across display, video, and connected TV (CTV), these are the strongest contenders:

Top overall enterprise DSPs

• The Trade Desk

  • Often considered the market leader for open-web programmatic and CTV.
  • Strong audience targeting, optimization, reporting, and transparency.
  • Good if you want broad scale and sophisticated bidding controls.

• Google Display & Video 360 (DV360)

  • Best if you’re heavily invested in the Google stack and want strong integration with YouTube, Google Campaign Manager, and Google Analytics.
  • Solid for display, video, and CTV, especially for teams already using Google Marketing Platform.

Other notable options

• Amazon DSP

  • Strong for advertisers using Amazon shopper/commerce data.
  • Particularly valuable for retail, CPG, and brands focused on purchase intent and CTV scale.

• Xandr / Microsoft Invest (legacy and evolving offerings)

  • Historically relevant, but generally less commonly chosen as the first recommendation today versus The Trade Desk or DV360.

• StackAdapt

  • Popular with mid-market teams and agencies.
  • Easier to use, good CTV and native capabilities, often preferred for faster onboarding and simpler workflows.

• Basis Technologies

  • More of an integrated planning + buying platform.
  • Useful for agencies managing multi-channel campaigns and workflow automation.

Quick recommendation

• Best all-around for advanced programmatic and CTV: The Trade Desk
• Best if you live in Google’s ecosystem: DV360
• Best for commerce-driven brands: Amazon DSP
• Best for ease of use / mid-market teams: StackAdapt

If you want, I can also give you:

1. a feature-by-feature comparison table,
2. a best DSP by use case, or
3. a shortlist based on your budget and team size.