Guangzhou DOOH Guide · 2026

DOOH Advertising in Guangzhou

AdQuick aggregates Guangzhou's 9,000+ digital screens -- the Tianhe CBD, Pearl River New Town, Beijing Road, CAN airport, and the Metro -- into one plan-buy-measure workflow. Programmatic CPMs CNY 25-180+ on Tianhe LEDs; activate from CNY 12,000 on DSPs, six-figure Canton Fair takeovers available.

Inventory, pricing, programmatic activation, CTR-M / CODC-SPACES measurement, SAMR / Advertising Law / PIPL compliance, and Canton Fair event-window planning — one guide.

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20,000+ digital screens
¥15,000 test budgets
USD / HKD / ¥ settlement
PIPL-compliant audience extension
20,000+
Digital screens in Guangzhou
¥40–¥1,200
CPM range (USD $6–$170)
¥15,000
Programmatic test budget
~75M
Annual Baiyun Airport pax
Access all DOOH formats
Digital Billboards
Transit & Airport
Place-Based
Programmatic

Digital Out-of-Home Advertising in Guangzhou

DOOH in Guangzhou (广州) — China's third-largest city and the southern anchor of the Greater Bay Area — covers 20,000+ digital screens across Baiyun International Airport (CAN), Guangzhou Metro, CRH high-speed rail, Canton Tower, Tianhe CBD, Pazhou Canton Fair, Beijing Road, and place-based networks. CPMs run from ¥40–¥120 (USD $6–$17) for residential and elevator digital up to ¥400–¥1,200+ (USD $57–$170) for premium airport, landmark, and Canton Fair spectaculars.

Overview

What Is Digital Out-of-Home Advertising in Guangzhou?

Digital out of home (DOOH) — called 数字户外广告 (shùzì hùwài guǎnggào) — is outdoor advertising delivered on digital screens rather than printed posters. In Guangzhou, DOOH spans Baiyun International Airport (CAN), the 16+ line Guangzhou Metro plus the APM Tianhe Automated People Mover, the CRH high-speed rail network at Guangzhou South / East / Station, the iconic 600m Canton Tower (广州塔 / 小蛮腰), Tianhe CBD landmark towers (CITIC Plaza, Taikoo Hui, IFC Guangzhou, CTF Finance Centre), Zhujiang New Town and Haixinsha Asian Games Park, Beijing Road and Shangxiajiu pedestrian streets, the Pazhou Exhibition Complex hosting the biannual Canton Fair, premium malls (Taikoo Hui, Grandview, IGC, Parc Central, SKP Guangzhou), and place-based networks across yum cha restaurants and Cantonese tea houses. Digital now accounts for roughly 45–55% of total Guangzhou OOH spend, transacted on CPM, Share of Voice (轮播份额), monthly rate (月租), or Programmatic Guaranteed pricing.
Inventory Layers

Four DOOH Inventory Layers in Guangzhou

Guangzhou DOOH inventory is defined by venue environment. Below, the four layers that matter for planning.

Iconic Landmark

Canton Tower Pearl River LED, Tianhe CBD skyscraper digital (CITIC, Taikoo Hui, IFC, CTF Finance Centre), Zhujiang New Town, Beijing Road pedestrian corridor, and Haixinsha Asian Games Park spectaculars.

Transit & Airport

Baiyun International Airport (CAN) Terminals 1 & 2, Guangzhou Metro 16+ lines plus APM Tianhe (~10M daily riders), and CRH high-speed rail at Guangzhou South / East / Station.

Street-Level

JCDecaux Greater China street furniture and bus shelters, Yagoo Media programmatic, Shangxiajiu Pedestrian Street, and Yuexiu historic core.

Place-Based

Focus Media elevator and office LCDs (China's dominant network), premium malls, cinema digital (Wanda, CGV, UA, Pearl River), DiDi rideshare, and yum cha / tea house networks.

Guangzhou — third-largest Chinese ad market and the southern gateway to the Greater Bay Area.
The capital of Guangdong Province (广东省) and the anchor of the GBA — Guangzhou + Shenzhen + Hong Kong + Macau + 7 mainland cities.
~86M
Greater Bay Area residents
~10M
Daily Guangzhou Metro riders
~200K
Canton Fair buyers / session
45–55%
Digital share of OOH spend
Pricing Data

How Much Does DOOH Advertising Cost in Guangzhou?

DOOH pricing in Guangzhou depends on venue type, format, daypart, campaign duration, and buying model. Four pricing models are in active use.

CPM

Cost per mille — increasingly dominant for programmatic DOOH (pDOOH). Range: ¥40–¥1,200+ (USD $6–$170) depending on venue.

Share of Voice

Loop share (轮播份额) — the traditional dominant Chinese direct-buy model for premium Canton Tower, Tianhe CBD, Beijing Road, and Baiyun Airport landmark LED spectaculars. Brands purchase a percentage of the screen's playout loop for weekly / monthly periods.

Monthly Rate

月租 / yuèzū — used on many direct-buy Metro and roadside concessions; the standard Chinese OOH buying unit.

Programmatic Guaranteed

Fixed impression count at a negotiated CPM, delivered via DSP against a reserved deal ID.

Indicative Guangzhou DOOH rates by format (2026)

Format Typical CPM (¥ RMB) Approx USD Typical Minimum Buy Buying Model
Apartment / office elevator LCD (Focus Media / Framedia) ¥40–¥120 $6–$17 ¥12,000/month Loop share / programmatic
Guangzhou Metro platform digital (D6 equivalent) ¥80–¥220 $11–$31 ¥35,000/week SOV / programmatic
Guangzhou Metro Line 3 (busiest line) + APM Tianhe ¥100–¥260 $14–$37 ¥45,000/week SOV / programmatic
Guangzhou Metro station dominations (Tianhe Coach, Gangding, Zhujiang New Town, Canton Tower, Tiyu Xilu, Tiyu Zhongxin, Guangzhou South, Guangzhou East) ¥200–¥500 blended $28–$71 ¥180,000/week Direct / PG
In-train Guangzhou Metro LCD ¥70–¥180 $10–$26 ¥30,000/week SOV / programmatic
Guangzhou South Station CRH high-speed rail digital ¥150–¥380 $21–$54 ¥65,000/week Direct / PG
Guangzhou East Station + Guangzhou Station digital ¥120–¥300 $17–$43 ¥50,000/week SOV / direct
Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN) digital ¥400–¥1,200 $57–$170 ¥220,000/week Direct / PG
Canton Tower (广州塔) landmark + Pearl River Night Cruise-visible LED Quoted by slot share — ¥350,000–¥1,400,000/month SOV packages
Tianhe CBD / CITIC Plaza / Taikoo Hui / IFC / CTF Finance Centre landmark digital Quoted by slot share — ¥280,000–¥1,200,000/month SOV packages
Zhujiang New Town skyscraper + Haixinsha digital Quoted by slot share — ¥220,000–¥900,000/month SOV packages
Beijing Road pedestrian shopping street landmark LED Quoted by slot share — ¥250,000–¥900,000/month SOV packages
Shangxiajiu Pedestrian Street traditional Cantonese retail ¥140–¥340 $20–$49 ¥60,000/week SOV / programmatic
Pazhou Exhibition Complex event-window (Canton Fair biannual) Event pricing — ¥300,000–¥1,200,000/event Direct / PG
Premium mall digital (Taikoo Hui, Grandview Mall, IGC, Parc Central, Onelink Walk, Tianhe City, Mall of the World, Joy City, Wanda Plaza, SKP Guangzhou) ¥150–¥400 $21–$57 ¥65,000/week SOV / programmatic
Focus Media elevator + office building LCD (dominant Chinese network) ¥60–¥180 $9–$26 ¥20,000/month Loop share / programmatic
Framedia / VisionChina office + retail digital ¥60–¥180 $9–$26 ¥20,000/month Loop share / programmatic
JCDecaux Greater China street furniture + bus shelter ¥90–¥220 $13–$31 ¥35,000/week SOV / programmatic
Shamian Island colonial-heritage adjacency Quoted by venue — ¥80,000–¥300,000/week Direct / limited heritage
Yuexiu District historic core ¥120–¥280 $17–$40 ¥45,000/week SOV / programmatic
Tianhe Sports Center match-day (Guangzhou FC) Event pricing — ¥150,000–¥500,000/event Direct / event
Chimelong Tourist Resort (Panyu) Event pricing — ¥100,000–¥400,000/event Direct / event
Cinema digital (Wanda Cinemas, CGV, UA, Pearl River Cinema) ¥160–¥380 $23–$54 ¥60,000/week SOV / direct
Taxi / rideshare digital (DiDi-integrated) ¥60–¥150 $9–$21 ¥18,000/month Programmatic / direct
Programmatic open exchange (blended) ¥70–¥300 $10–$43 ~¥5,000 test Auction

Ranges reflect typical Guangzhou in-charge rates for commercial campaigns; agency-negotiated rates and programmatic auction clearing prices can run below these floors. Cross-border advertisers can settle in USD or HKD with automatic ¥ (RMB) conversion — subject to Chinese cross-border currency regulations. For live quotes tied to actual availability, pull pricing through the AdQuick marketplace.

Venues & Corridors

Guangzhou DOOH Format & Venue Breakdown

DOOH inventory in Guangzhou is defined by venue environment, not creative format. Below, the venue categories that matter and who owns them.

Venue Category Primary Media Owners Typical CPM (¥) Best For
Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN) Baiyun Airport Advertising concessionaires ¥400–¥1,200 International + domestic premium; top-3 Chinese airport (~75M annual pax); China Southern hub
Guangzhou Metro (16+ lines including Line 3 + APM Tianhe) Guangzhou Metro advertising concessionaires, Yagoo, VisionChina ¥80–¥500 Mass commuter, ~10M daily Metro riders
Guangzhou South Station CRH (high-speed rail hub to Beijing, Shanghai, HK) CRH concessionaires ¥150–¥380 Intercity + Hong Kong (via XRL), Greater Bay Area
Guangzhou East Station + Guangzhou Station CRH / GBA rail concessionaires ¥120–¥300 Intercity rail, cross-GBA commuter
Canton Tower (广州塔) Pearl River landmark Canton Tower concessionaires SOV packages Iconic 600m landmark, Pearl River Night Cruise visibility, tourism
Tianhe CBD (CITIC, Taikoo Hui, IFC, CTF Finance Centre) Building concessionaires, JCDecaux China, Focus Media ¥200–¥1,000 Finance, B2B, premium retail, luxury
Zhujiang New Town + Haixinsha Asian Games Park Building concessionaires, ZNT concessionaires SOV packages Modern luxury residential, Haixinsha events, Canton Tower adjacency
Beijing Road (北京路) historic pedestrian Building concessionaires, Yagoo, JCDecaux SOV packages Mass retail, tourism, ~800K weekend footfall
Shangxiajiu Pedestrian Street (Liwan) Local Guangzhou concessionaires ¥140–¥340 Traditional Cantonese retail, Lingnan heritage
Pazhou Exhibition Complex (Canton Fair) Pazhou concessionaires Event pricing World's largest trade fair — 2M+ attendees biannually (April/May + October/November)
JCDecaux Greater China / JCDecaux China JCDecaux China ¥90–¥220 Street furniture, bus shelter, premium transit
Yagoo Media (VIOOH partnership) Yagoo Varies Leading Chinese DOOH operator, programmatic-native
Focus Media (分众传媒) Focus Media ¥60–¥180 China's largest elevator/office DOOH network — dominant in Chinese cities
VisionChina Media (华视传媒) VisionChina Varies Transit DOOH specialist
ChinaDOOH (Vistar partnership) ChinaDOOH Varies Chinese DOOH marketplace / aggregator
Redhot Media Redhot Media Varies China DOOH inventory listing specialist
Shamian Island colonial-heritage Limited heritage concessions Direct only Tourism, heritage-careful brands
Yuexiu District historic core Local Guangzhou concessionaires, JCDecaux ¥120–¥280 Traditional commercial, older demographics
Haizhu District (Canton Tower + Pazhou) Haizhu concessionaires Varies Trade fair + landmark, premium
Premium malls (Taikoo Hui, Grandview, IGC, Parc Central, Onelink Walk, Tianhe City, Mall of the World, Joy City, Wanda, SKP Guangzhou) Mall concessionaires, Yagoo, Focus Media ¥150–¥400 Shoppers, luxury, fashion, CPG
Tianhe Sports Center (Guangzhou FC home) Tianhe Sports Center concessionaires Event pricing CSL football, concerts, events
Chimelong Tourist Resort (Panyu) Chimelong concessionaires Event pricing Family, tourism, Safari Park + Ocean Kingdom
Cinema digital (Wanda Cinemas, CGV, UA, Pearl River Cinema) Cinema-chain concessionaires ¥160–¥380 Entertainment, younger audiences
Taxi / DiDi rideshare digital Local Guangzhou operators ¥60–¥150 Nightlife, 25–45 mobile reach
Place-based (yum cha restaurants, tea houses, gyms) Local Cantonese networks ¥100–¥250 Cantonese food culture, hospitality

Signature Guangzhou DOOH sites

Guangzhou's Iconic Inventory

Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN): one of China's top-3 airports by passenger traffic (~75M annual); primary hub for China Southern Airlines (SkyTeam Chinese flag carrier and China's largest fleet); serves both international and domestic.
Canton Tower (广州塔 / 小蛮腰 "Little Waist"): the 600m hyperbolic-hourglass-shaped structure opened for the 2010 Asian Games; one of the world's tallest freestanding buildings and the iconic Pearl River / 珠江 landmark; visible from the Pearl River Night Cruise (a primary Guangzhou tourism draw).
Tianhe CBD (天河区): Guangzhou's primary financial and commercial district with CTF Finance Centre (530m), IFC Guangzhou (432m), CITIC Plaza (391m) — the "Three Tallest" skyscrapers defining Guangzhou's skyline — plus Taikoo Hui premium mall, Tianhe City, and Tianhe Sports Center (Guangzhou FC home).
Zhujiang New Town (珠江新城): the modern skyscraper district across from Canton Tower; anchored by Grandview Mall, Mall of the World, and the Haixinsha Asian Games Park (the 2010 Asian Games opening ceremony island).
Beijing Road (北京路): Guangzhou's main historic pedestrian shopping street in Yuexiu District; European-style 19th-20th century facade with ~800,000 weekend pedestrian flows.
Shangxiajiu Pedestrian Street (上下九步行街): the traditional arcaded Cantonese retail corridor in Liwan District; features Lingnan-architecture qilou (arcade houses) and defines traditional Guangzhou retail identity.
Pazhou Exhibition Complex (琶洲会展中心): host of the biannual Canton Fair (广交会 / China Import and Export Fair) — the world's largest trade fair by exhibition area and visitor count, held every April/May and October/November since 1957 with ~200,000 buyers from 200+ countries per session.
Guangzhou South Station (广州南站): one of China's largest high-speed rail hubs; gateway to Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong (via 广深港高铁 XRL high-speed rail, 14-min journey to West Kowloon Station Hong Kong since 2018), and the Greater Bay Area.
Shamian Island (沙面岛): the colonial European concession island preserving 19th-century Portuguese-French architecture; Guangdong heritage tourism destination; tightly heritage-regulated for DOOH.
Chimelong Tourist Resort: one of Asia's largest theme-park resorts with Chimelong Safari Park and Chimelong Ocean Kingdom (Guangdong's answer to Disney); ~20M+ annual visitors.
Tianhe Sports Center (天河体育中心): home of Guangzhou FC (former Evergrande Super League dominance and two-time AFC Champions League winner 2013, 2015); historic venue from the 1987 6th National Games.
Haixinsha Island (海心沙): the Zhujiang New Town island that hosted the 2010 Asian Games opening ceremony; now a waterfront park and event venue.

Guangzhou Metro digital formats

Transit Format Dimensions / Resolution Typical Location Slot
Platform digital 6-sheet (D6 equivalent) 1080×1920 portrait Platform walls, concourses 10–15 sec in 60-sec loop
Digital lightbox / column wrap Various Station pillars, passageways 10 sec
In-train LCD 1920×1080 Metro carriage interiors 10 sec loop
APM Tianhe in-train digital (Zhujiang New Town) Custom APM carriage interiors 10 sec
Station Digital Domination Multiple synchronised screens Tianhe Coach, Gangding, Zhujiang New Town, Canton Tower, Tiyu Xilu, Tiyu Zhongxin, Haizhu Square, Guangzhou South, Guangzhou East Customised

Creative approval: Guangzhou Metro creative is reviewed by Metro advertising concessionaires under Guangzhou Municipal Administrative Measures on Outdoor Advertising (广州市户外广告管理办法) and National Advertising Law (广告法). Allow 10–15 business days for clearance.

Baiyun Airport (CAN) digital formats

CAN digital is operated through Baiyun Airport Advertising concessionaires across Terminal 1 (T1 — international + domestic) and Terminal 2 (T2 — opened 2018, one of China's largest airport terminals). Formats include departure-hall LED, gate-area portrait digital, baggage-claim digital, transit-corridor landscape, China Southern Airlines first/business-class lounge digital, and the new Baiyun Airport Metro Line 3 connection zone. Bilingual Mandarin Chinese / English standard; Cantonese / 粤语 occasionally appears; additional languages (Japanese, Korean, Arabic) common for specific origin routes. Creative review timeline: 15 business days.

JCDecaux Greater China in Guangzhou

JCDecaux Greater China operates major Guangzhou street-furniture concessions including bus shelters and select landmark DOOH. Programmatic access via VIOOH's growing China integration.

Signature Event

Canton Fair & Pazhou Exhibition Complex: The World's Largest Trade Fair DOOH Moment

The Canton Fair (广交会 / China Import and Export Fair) is Guangzhou's defining DOOH event moment and one of the world's most concentrated B2B DOOH opportunities. Held biannually at the Pazhou Exhibition Complex (琶洲会展中心) in Haizhu District since 1957.

What makes Canton Fair the world's largest trade fair

World's largest by exhibition area: ~1.5 million square metres across 5+ phases.
World's largest by visitor count: ~200,000 international buyers from 200+ countries per session.
Held twice yearly: April/May Spring Session and October/November Autumn Session — each running across 3 phases of ~5 days each.
Total session footprint: ~600,000–800,000 unique international + domestic B2B attendees per session.

Why Canton Fair matters for Guangzhou DOOH planning

For international B2B brands entering or scaling in China, the Canton Fair window is the single highest-concentration Chinese-market DOOH opportunity — two discrete 3-week windows per year that concentrate hundreds of thousands of global buyers in one city.

Canton Fair DOOH strategies

Pazhou Exhibition Complex adjacency: dedicated event-window SOV takeovers within and around the complex; quoted per session per complex-adjacent site.
Guangzhou Metro Line 4 + Line 8 + APM Tianhe extensions to Pazhou: dominations on the Canton Fair-connecting metro lines.
Baiyun Airport + Guangzhou South Station inbound-traveller takeovers: capturing the international-buyer arrival wave.
Hotel-adjacent digital: major Canton Fair attendee hotels concentrate along Pearl River + Tianhe corridors.
Creative approach: bilingual Mandarin Chinese / English standard; additional languages (Arabic for Middle East buyers, Spanish for Latin America, Russian for CIS, Portuguese for Brazil / Angola / Lusophone) significantly valued given the global buyer mix.
Booking lead time: plan 12–16 weeks ahead given high Canton Fair-window demand across Pazhou-adjacent inventory.

The Canton Fair is to Guangzhou DOOH what Salone del Mobile is to Milan, CES is to Las Vegas, IFA is to Berlin, Cannes Lions is to Cannes, SXSW is to Austin — the signature globally-significant event window that defines the city's B2B DOOH calendar.

Programmatic

Programmatic DOOH (pDOOH) in Guangzhou: How to Activate

A DSP sends bids into an SSP representing one or more media owners. When a play opportunity opens on a screen, the SSP runs an auction (or fulfils a reserved deal) and returns the winning creative to the ad server. Screen-level identifiers, venue taxonomy, and dayparting determine which auctions your campaign participates in.

Major DSPs actively buying Guangzhou DOOH inventory

AdQuick

DSP and marketplace — transacts programmatically across every major SSP and aggregates direct media-owner inventory from JCDecaux China, Yagoo Media, Focus Media, VisionChina, ChinaDOOH, Redhot Media, Baiyun Airport, Guangzhou Metro, Canton Tower, Tianhe CBD, Beijing Road, Pazhou Exhibition Complex, and Tianhe Sports Center into a single unified plan with CTR-M / CODC-SPACES audience planning, bilingual Mandarin / English creative delivery, PIPL-compliant mobile audience extension, and Canton Fair event-window consultation.

Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH

2024 China marketplace partnership expanding Vistar's China DOOH access.

VIOOH + Yagoo Media

2024 programmatic DOOH partnership expanding China's DOOH landscape.

Broadsign Ads

Integrated with Broadsign Reach SSP; China operator coverage.

JCDecaux China / Greater China

Native Chinese street-furniture programmatic via VIOOH.

The Trade Desk (OpenPath DOOH)

DOOH as a channel within TTD's omnichannel buying; growing China access.

StackAdapt DOOH

Omnichannel DSP with DOOH module; Guangzhou supply via SSP integrations.

Yahoo DSP

Omnichannel DSP with DOOH access for APAC inventory.

Adomni

Self-serve DOOH DSP with international inventory access.

Moving Walls

Measurement + DSP platform with strong APAC coverage.

Focus Media proprietary programmatic

China's largest elevator/office DOOH network with native programmatic offer.

Tencent Ads / ByteDance / Baidu

Chinese-native ad-tech giants with DOOH integration in Guangzhou.

Major SSPs & media owner programmatic paths in Guangzhou

VIOOH SSP

Yagoo Media (primary — 2024 partnership), JCDecaux China street furniture and premium transit accessible via VIOOH SSP.

Vistar SSP

ChinaDOOH (2024 partnership), Focus Media, and other Chinese media-owner inventory via Vistar.

Place Exchange

Integrated into The Trade Desk, Yahoo DSP, and other omnichannel DSPs for APAC DOOH supply.

Hivestack SSP

Strong APAC footprint; accessible Guangzhou inventory via deal IDs.

Broadsign Reach

Broadsign-integrated SSP for China operator inventory.

ChinaDOOH

Chinese DOOH marketplace; accessible via AdQuick, Vistar Media, and direct.

Targeting capabilities for Guangzhou pDOOH

Venue targeting — buy only Baiyun Airport, Guangzhou Metro, CRH stations, Canton Tower, Tianhe CBD, Zhujiang New Town, Beijing Road, Shangxiajiu, Pazhou, mall, elevator, or place-based using IAB OOH venue taxonomy.
Geofence / 区 (qū, district) / 街道 (jiēdào, neighbourhood) / postal code — fence to Tianhe District (CBD, Taikoo Hui, CITIC Plaza, Tianhe Sports Center), Yuexiu District (Beijing Road, historic core), Haizhu District (Canton Tower, Pazhou, Haizhu Square), Liwan District (Shangxiajiu, Shamian), Baiyun, Huangpu, Huadu (Baiyun Airport), Panyu (Chimelong), Nansha (Free Trade Zone), Conghua, Zengcheng, or a radius around a POI.
Daypart — commute windows (AM 7:30–10:00 / PM 17:30–20:00), lunch peaks, yum cha / morning tea time (9:00–11:00 — distinctive Cantonese daypart), afternoon tea / dim sum (14:00–17:00), evening dining (18:00–21:00), Friday-Saturday nightlife, event-based.
Mobile audience extension — DiDi Chuxing, WeChat / Tencent ecosystem, Alipay / Ant Group, Xiaohongshu / Little Red Book, Douyin / TikTok China, China Mobile / Unicom / Telecom telco segments (subject to PIPL consent).
Dynamic creative optimisation (DCO) — creative variations served by location, weather, typhoon status, time, or audience segment. Mandarin Chinese / Simplified Chinese is the domestic default; bilingual Mandarin / English standard for Baiyun Airport, Canton Fair Pazhou, and Tianhe CBD international precincts; Cantonese / 粤语 a distinctive Guangzhou creative asset; Canton Fair creative often deploys 6–8 languages (Mandarin, English, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, French, Japanese).

Contextual and moment-based activation

Weather-reactive — hot humid Guangzhou summers with occasional typhoon warnings, mild winters; weather-aware creative for retail and apparel.
Typhoon tracking — distinctive Southern Chinese trigger, April–November typhoon season.
Canton Fair biannual cycle — Spring April/May + Autumn October/November — the defining Guangzhou B2B DOOH moment.
Chinese New Year / Spring Festival (春节) — the single largest Chinese commercial cycle, January/February.
Mid-Autumn Festival / 中秋节 — September/October — the defining Cantonese cultural cycle with mooncake and lantern festivals.
Dragon Boat Festival / 端午节 — June — Pearl River + traditional-culture activations.
Golden Week / National Day (国庆节) — October 1-7 — major travel/retail cycle.
Guangzhou FC Super League — match schedules at Tianhe Sports Center.
618 + Double 11 + Double 12 — the major Chinese e-commerce shopping festivals (Tmall, JD.com, Pinduoduo, Vipshop retail cycles).

Programmatic deal types in Guangzhou

Deal Type Mechanic Best For
Open exchange Auction-based, lowest CPM, growing share Test budgets, broad reach, optimisation
Private marketplace (PMP) Invite-only deal with preferred floor and premium inventory Most common programmatic path for brand campaigns
Programmatic Guaranteed (PG) Fixed impression count, fixed CPM, reserved inventory Flagship campaigns with guaranteed delivery
Measurement

Measuring DOOH in Guangzhou: CTR-M, CODC-SPACES & Attribution

Chinese OOH and DOOH is measured through multiple complementary sources; an honest disclosure: China does not yet have a single authoritative unified DOOH impression currency.

1. Chinese measurement layers

✓
CTR-M — emerging Chinese DOOH impression framework from CTR Market Research.
✓
CODC-SPACES — China Outdoor Data Consortium SPACES; emerging visibility framework aligned toward VAC-equivalent outputs.
✓
Operator-reported impressions from Baiyun Airport, Guangzhou Metro, Pazhou, Focus Media, VisionChina.
✓
Focus Media proprietary data (~4M elevator screens nationally).
✓
Nielsen China / Kantar China / Ipsos China / CTR / iResearch panel research.
✓
Moving Walls third-party attention and attribution for cross-border programmatic buyers.

2. Verification & attribution partners

✓
CTR-M / CODC-SPACES — emerging Chinese DOOH impression frameworks.
✓
Moving Walls — attention measurement, impression verification, attribution across APAC.
✓
Adelaide AU — attention measurement; AU scores for creative and placement quality.
✓
Nielsen China / Kantar China / Ipsos China / CTR — brand lift studies (awareness, consideration, intent).
✓
DiDi / WeChat / Alipay / Douyin / Xiaohongshu — mobile-based location verification and Chinese-native first-party data (subject to PIPL consent).
✓
Taobao / Tmall / JD.com / Pinduoduo / Vipshop / Douyin — Chinese e-commerce sales lift (where permitted under PIPL).
✓
Branded search lift — correlates DOOH exposure with Baidu / WeChat / Xiaohongshu / Douyin branded search volume (Chinese search is Baidu-led, not Google).

3. Core Guangzhou DOOH KPIs

Impressions (operator-reported + CTR-M / CODC-SPACES-benchmarked), reach, frequency, Share of Voice (SOV), CPM, CPV, store visits, branded search lift on Baidu / 百度 + WeChat Search + Xiaohongshu + Douyin, Taobao / Tmall / JD.com / Pinduoduo / Vipshop / Douyin sales lift, and conversion lift where first-party data is available under PIPL compliance.

Digital share of Guangzhou OOH45–55%
Baiyun Airport annual passengers~75M
Guangzhou Metro daily ridership~10M
Canton Fair buyers / session~200K
Beijing Road weekend pedestrians~800K
Greater Bay Area residents~86M
Focus Media elevator screens (national)~4M

Honest disclosure on Chinese measurement: China does not yet have a single authoritative unified DOOH impression currency comparable to UK Route, Germany ma DOOH, Spain Geomex, Italy Audioutdoor, Canada COMMB, US Geopath, or Japan's emerging LIVE BOARD VAC. Chinese DOOH measurement is fragmented across CTR-M, CODC-SPACES, Focus Media proprietary data, and operator-reported data — though rapid maturation is underway as pDOOH adoption grows.

Creative Specs

Guangzhou DOOH Creative Specs & Best Practices

Standard creative specs across Guangzhou DOOH formats, with a distinctive emphasis on Mandarin / English bilingual creative for international precincts and the Canton Fair multi-language opportunity unique to Guangzhou.

Standard creative specs

Format Resolution Aspect Duration File
Guangzhou Metro D6 / mall portrait / elevator 1080×1920 9:16 10–15 sec MP4, JPG, PNG
In-train / street-furniture landscape 1920×1080 16:9 10 sec MP4, JPG, PNG
Baiyun Airport (CAN) large-format 1920×1080 or custom 16:9 10–15 sec MP4, JPG, PNG
Guangzhou South Station CRH 1920×1080 or custom 16:9 10–15 sec MP4, JPG, PNG
Canton Tower + Tianhe CBD + Beijing Road landmark LEDs Custom (building-specific) Varies 15–30 sec Owner-specified
Pazhou Exhibition Complex Canton Fair Custom Varies Varies Owner-specified

Best practices

Motion & Audio

Motion: widely supported on Guangzhou Metro, CRH, Baiyun Airport, mall, and landmark DOOH; roadside digital on Pearl River Delta Ring Expressway, Guangzhou Ring Expressway, and major arterials subject to Guangzhou Public Security Bureau Traffic Administration motion limits.
Audio: rarely supported — exceptions include cinema (Wanda Cinemas, CGV, UA, Pearl River Cinema) and some upmarket restaurant / tea house networks.

Language & Cultural Sensitivity

Mandarin / Simplified Chinese (简体中文): domestic default for Guangzhou.
Bilingual Mandarin / English: standard for Baiyun Airport, Canton Fair Pazhou, Tianhe CBD international precincts, and luxury campaigns.
Cantonese / 粤语: a distinctive Guangzhou creative asset for local-heritage authentic campaigns — equivalent of using Catalan in Barcelona, Bavarian in Munich, or Kansai-ben in Osaka. Formal commercial creative still defaults to Mandarin Putonghua.
Canton Fair multi-language: creative often deploys 6–8 languages (Mandarin, English, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, French, Japanese) — a distinctive Canton Fair opportunity.

Text Sizing & Safe Zones

Text height: ≥ 1/10 of the shortest screen dimension; Chinese character sets (Simplified Chinese 简体 and occasionally Traditional Chinese 繁体 for premium/heritage creative) require careful font selection.
Safe zones: 5–10% margin from each edge; avoid the bottom 15% of Guangzhou Metro portrait D6s (sightline obstruction).
Cultural sensitivity: creative should respect Chinese cultural context; Chinese New Year / Mid-Autumn / Dragon Boat themed creative is particularly valuable in the Cantonese cultural heartland. Avoid imagery that contradicts traditional Chinese values or regulatory content rules.

Duration, DCO & File

Creative duration: 10–15 seconds for transit and street; 15–30 seconds for Canton Tower / Tianhe CBD / Beijing Road landmark LED.
Dynamic triggers: widely supported via DCO; popular with weather, typhoon tracking, Canton Fair biannual windows, Chinese New Year, Mid-Autumn, Golden Week, 618 + Double 11 + Double 12, Guangzhou FC matches, Guangzhou Marathon.
File weight: 10–25 MB per asset; H.264 is the dominant codec.

Guangzhou Metro, Baiyun Airport, Municipal, SAMR & PIPL compliance timelines

Creative review timelines

Guangzhou Metro concessionaires: 10–15 business days.
Baiyun Airport Advertising: CAN airport creative review via concessionaires; 15 business days.
CRH / China Railway Guangzhou Bureau: high-speed rail station creative review; 10–15 business days.
Canton Tower / Tianhe CBD / Beijing Road building concessionaires: landmark creative review; 10–14 business days.
Pazhou Exhibition Complex: Canton Fair event-window creative; bespoke timelines, typically 14–21 business days.
Guangzhou Municipal Administrative Measures on Outdoor Advertising: municipal signage approval for new landmark installations; 6–12 weeks with heritage restrictions in Shamian Island colonial zone, Yuexiu Park, and designated historic districts.
Vendor Landscape

Guangzhou DOOH Vendor Landscape

Media owners, network operators, and the DSPs actively buying Guangzhou inventory.

Media owners & network operators

JCDecaux China / JCDecaux Greater China

Street furniture, bus shelter, and premium transit operator with VIOOH programmatic access.

Street Furniture · Transit

Yagoo Media

Leading Chinese DOOH operator with the VIOOH 2024 partnership opening Yagoo's inventory to international programmatic buyers.

Programmatic-Native

Focus Media (分众传媒)

China's largest elevator/office DOOH network — dominant Chinese city coverage with ~4M screens nationally.

Elevator · Office

VisionChina Media (华视传媒)

Transit DOOH specialist with Guangzhou Metro and bus inventory.

Transit

ChinaDOOH

Vistar Media 2024 partnership; Chinese DOOH marketplace for international programmatic access.

Marketplace

Redhot Media

China DOOH inventory listing specialist.

Inventory Listing

Baiyun Airport Advertising

CAN — China's top-3 airport with ~75M annual passengers; China Southern Airlines hub.

Airport

Guangzhou Metro concessionaires

16+ Metro lines plus the APM Tianhe Automated People Mover (~10M daily riders).

Transit

CRH / China Railway Guangzhou Bureau

Guangzhou South + Guangzhou East + Guangzhou Station high-speed rail.

High-Speed Rail

Canton Tower concessionaires

The 600m iconic Pearl River landmark.

Landmark LED

Pazhou Exhibition Complex concessionaires

Canton Fair — world's largest trade fair event digital.

Event Venue

Tianhe Sports Center concessionaires

Guangzhou FC match-day plus concerts.

Stadium · Events

Mall concessionaires

Taikoo Hui, Grandview, IGC, Parc Central, Onelink Walk, Tianhe City, Mall of the World, Joy City, Wanda, SKP Guangzhou.

Premium Retail · Luxury

Wanda Cinemas, CGV, UA, Pearl River Cinema

Guangzhou cinema digital networks.

Cinema

Chimelong Tourist Resort

Theme park and family entertainment with Safari Park and Ocean Kingdom.

Tourism · Family

Shamian Island / Yuexiu Park heritage concessionaires

Limited heritage-restricted concessions.

Heritage

DSPs actively buying Guangzhou inventory

AdQuick, Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH, VIOOH + Yagoo, Broadsign Ads, JCDecaux China / VIOOH programmatic, The Trade Desk (OpenPath DOOH), StackAdapt DOOH, Moving Walls, Adomni, Yahoo DSP, Focus Media proprietary programmatic.

AdQuick — The DOOH Platform & Marketplace for Guangzhou

AdQuick is a DSP and marketplace that transacts programmatically across every major SSP (Vistar, Hivestack, Place Exchange, Broadsign Reach, VIOOH, ChinaDOOH) and aggregates direct media-owner inventory from JCDecaux China, Yagoo Media, Focus Media, VisionChina Media, ChinaDOOH, Redhot Media, Baiyun Airport Advertising, Guangzhou Metro concessionaires, CRH concessionaires (Guangzhou South + East + Station), Canton Tower, Tianhe CBD + Beijing Road + Zhujiang New Town landmark operators, Pazhou Exhibition Complex, Tianhe Sports Center, Chimelong Tourist Resort, and premium mall concessionaires into a single unified plan — with native CTR-M / CODC-SPACES + operator-reported + Focus Media audience planning, bilingual Mandarin / English creative approval workflows with Cantonese cultural creative guidance and multi-language Canton Fair (6–8 languages) consultation, PIPL-compliant mobile audience extension via DiDi / WeChat / Alipay / Douyin / Xiaohongshu, SAMR / Advertising Law compliance guidance including the distinctive Chinese regulatory framework, Canton Fair biannual event-window activation consultation, and foot-traffic attribution all native — plus multi-currency USD, HKD, or ¥ (RMB) settlement subject to Chinese cross-border currency regulations. One platform to plan, buy, measure, and report across the full Guangzhou DOOH landscape — including Canton Fair Pazhou activation, Canton Tower Pearl River landmark campaigns, and Greater Bay Area cross-border coordination.

Districts

Best DOOH 区 (Districts) in Guangzhou

Guangzhou's 11 administrative districts each carry distinctive audience profiles and signature DOOH formats.

Area / 区 (District) Audience Profile Signature Formats
Tianhe District (天河区) CBD, finance, luxury retail, Guangzhou FC, 25–55 affluent Tianhe CBD (CITIC / Taikoo Hui / IFC / CTF Finance Centre), Tianhe Sports Center, Taikoo Hui landmark
Yuexiu District (越秀区) Historic core, government, traditional commercial, 30–65 Beijing Road pedestrian shopping, Yuexiu Park, historic Lingnan
Haizhu District (海珠区) Canton Tower + Pazhou Exhibition Complex Canton Tower Pearl River landmark, Pazhou Canton Fair event digital, Haixinsha Asian Games Park
Liwan District (荔湾区) Traditional Cantonese, heritage, Shangxiajiu Shangxiajiu Pedestrian Street, traditional Lingnan qilou arcade, Shamian Island adjacency
Baiyun District (白云区) Residential + commercial + airport legacy + Baiyun Mountain Baiyun Mountain, northern residential, former Baiyun Airport legacy
Huangpu District (黄埔区) Development zone, port, Guangzhou Science City Guangzhou Science City, Knowledge City, port adjacency
Huadu District (花都区) Baiyun Airport home district Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN), aerotropolis
Panyu District (番禺区) Chimelong + 2010 Asian Games venues + Universities Chimelong Tourist Resort, Guangzhou University Town, 2010 Asian Games legacy
Nansha District (南沙区) Greater Bay Area Free Trade Zone — southern gateway Nansha Free Trade Zone, GBA-facing port, HK/Macau-adjacent
Conghua District (从化区) Northern suburban, hot springs, agriculture Conghua Hot Springs, suburban leisure
Zengcheng District (增城区) Eastern suburban, residential Zengcheng town centre
Compliance

Regulatory & Privacy Considerations for Guangzhou DOOH

Guangzhou DOOH operates under a distinctive Chinese regulatory framework spanning national Advertising Law, municipal signage rules, PIPL data protection, and category-specific bans.

Approval timelines and municipal permits

Guangzhou Metro / Baiyun Airport / CRH creative approval: 10–15 business days for Metro and CRH; 15 days for CAN.
Guangzhou Municipal Administrative Measures on Outdoor Advertising: municipal signage rules with heritage restrictions in Shamian Island colonial zone, Yuexiu Park, Beijing Road conservation zones; 6–12 weeks for new landmark permits.
11 administrative districts (Tianhe, Yuexiu, Haizhu, Liwan, Baiyun, Huangpu, Huadu, Panyu, Nansha, Conghua, Zengcheng) — each with district-level Urban Management Bureau (城管局) signage authority.

National & data regulators

SAMR (State Administration for Market Regulation / 国家市场监督管理总局): national regulator enforcing Advertising Law (广告法) and Advertising Regulations.
Guangzhou Municipal Administration for Market Regulation: local SAMR enforcement.
CAC + PIPL (Personal Information Protection Law, 2021): Chinese data protection with strict cross-border-data transfer restrictions; mobile audience extension requires PIPL consent.
NRTA (National Radio and Television Administration): broadcast/media regulator with cross-media influence.
NMPA (National Medical Products Administration): pharmaceutical advertising; strict restrictions on prescription drug DTC.

Category restrictions (Chinese Advertising Law is notably strict)

Alcohol: permitted with SAMR restrictions; no targeting minors; must include moderate-consumption messaging; traditional rice wine (白酒) and beer widely advertised but with creative restrictions.
Tobacco: effectively banned across Chinese OOH including DOOH under Advertising Law.
Gambling / sports betting: fully illegal in mainland China; only state-operated welfare lottery (福利彩票) and sports lottery (体育彩票) permitted with strict restrictions.
Cannabis: fully illegal in China; commercial advertising fully prohibited with severe penalties.
Cryptocurrency: mainland China prohibited cryptocurrency trading and mining since 2021; commercial cryptocurrency advertising effectively banned under PBOC / CAC / SAMR enforcement.
Pharmaceutical: NMPA approval required; prescription drugs not DTC advertisable; severe penalties for non-compliant creative.
Political content: Chinese political advertising frameworks significantly differ from Western markets; creative must align with Chinese political content guidelines and the "content must be consistent with the Constitution, laws, and national policies" Advertising Law requirement.
Health claims / functional foods: strict SAMR and NMPA scrutiny; Chinese regulators actively enforce against misleading health claims.
Real estate: significant SAMR scrutiny on property-marketing claims; "fastest growing," "guaranteed appreciation," and investment-guarantee language prohibited.
Education / training: post-2021 "double reduction" (双减) policy restricts tutoring-industry advertising significantly.

Roadside & traffic compliance

Guangzhou Public Security Bureau Traffic Administration: roadside digital motion limits on Pearl River Delta Ring Expressway, Guangzhou Ring Expressway, and major arterials.
How to Buy

How to Buy Digital Out-of-Home Advertising in Guangzhou

Three viable buying paths, depending on budget, scale, and complexity.

01

Direct with a Guangzhou media owner or Chinese agency

Contact JCDecaux China, Yagoo Media, Focus Media, VisionChina Media, ChinaDOOH, Redhot Media, Baiyun Airport Advertising, Guangzhou Metro concessionaires, CRH concessionaires, Canton Tower / Tianhe CBD / Beijing Road / Zhujiang New Town landmark operators, Pazhou Exhibition Complex, or a Chinese agency (Dentsu China, Publicis China, GroupM China / Mindshare / MediaCom / Wavemaker, WPP China, Ogilvy China, BlueFocus) directly. Best for flagship, landmark, and large-budget direct buys (Canton Tower Pearl River landmark, Tianhe CBD skyscraper, Beijing Road pedestrian takeovers, Baiyun Airport premium walls, Guangzhou Metro Line 3 / APM Tianhe dominations, Canton Fair Pazhou activation). Downsides: Mandarin Chinese-language negotiation, ¥ RMB invoicing with Chinese cross-border currency regulations and Chinese VAT (增值税) of 6–13% by category, 11-district municipal permit knowledge, PIPL compliance, and slow plan stitching.

02

Programmatic via a DSP

Activate through any of the DSPs buying Guangzhou inventory: AdQuick, Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH (the 2024 China marketplace partnership), VIOOH + Yagoo Media (the 2024 programmatic partnership), Broadsign Ads, JCDecaux China / VIOOH programmatic, The Trade Desk, StackAdapt, Moving Walls, Adomni, Yahoo DSP, or Focus Media's native programmatic. Best for impression-based, flexible, and data-targeted campaigns from ¥15,000 test budgets upward. Cross-border advertisers should plan for USD / HKD settlement with Chinese cross-border currency regulations awareness. Downsides if picking a single non-unified DSP: some DSPs have limited Focus Media, Baiyun Airport, Canton Tower, or Pazhou access.

03

Through AdQuick — the unified DSP + marketplace approach

AdQuick is a DSP and marketplace — it transacts programmatically across every major SSP (Vistar, Hivestack, Place Exchange, Broadsign Reach, VIOOH, ChinaDOOH) and aggregates direct inventory from every major Guangzhou media owner in a single unified plan, with CTR-M / CODC-SPACES audience data, bilingual Mandarin / English creative approval workflows with Cantonese cultural guidance and multi-language Canton Fair (6–8 languages) consultation, PIPL-compliant mobile audience extension via DiDi / WeChat / Alipay / Douyin / Xiaohongshu, SAMR / Advertising Law compliance guidance, Canton Fair biannual event-window activation, multi-currency USD / HKD / ¥ settlement, and foot-traffic attribution all native. The fastest path for any international buyer entering the Chinese market via Guangzhou / Greater Bay Area, for Canton Fair-focused B2B buyers, or for any domestic buyer who wants full-market Guangzhou access without running parallel DSP seats and the 11-district municipal paperwork.

Budget Examples

Guangzhou DOOH Budget Examples

Three illustrative tiers — test, mid-market, and flagship — with the inventory mix, attribution, and compliance scope each typically covers.

Tier 1: Test / China-Entry
¥15,000–¥50,000

USD $2,100–$7,100. Single DSP self-serve activation with a directional read.

Platform: single DSP (AdQuick, Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH, VIOOH + Yagoo, or Broadsign Ads) with USD, HKD, or ¥ billing.
Geofence: Tianhe District + Yuexiu District + Haizhu District.
Inventory: Guangzhou Metro Line 3 D6 + Focus Media elevator LCD.
Flight: 2 weeks, 2 dayparts (AM commute + evening).
Reporting: operator-reported + CTR-M / CODC-SPACES-benchmarked impressions.
Attribution: mobile lift pixel for directional attribution (WeChat / DiDi).
Creative: bilingual Mandarin Chinese / English, SAMR pre-cleared.
Tier 2: Mid-Market Multi-Venue
¥180,000–¥750,000

USD $25,500–$106,000. Programmatic PMP across Guangzhou Metro, Focus Media, JCDecaux, and Tianhe CBD.

Inventory: Guangzhou Metro Line 3 / Line 1 / APM Tianhe, Focus Media elevator, JCDecaux China street furniture, Taikoo Hui + Grandview Mall + IGC + Parc Central mall digital, Tianhe CBD adjacency.
Direct PMP: Yagoo Media (via VIOOH), ChinaDOOH (via Vistar).
DCO: weather, typhoon tracking, and Canton Fair / Chinese festival cultural-calendar variants (3–4 creative variants).
Mobile audience extension: DiDi / WeChat / Alipay / Douyin / Xiaohongshu segments with PIPL consent.
Foot-traffic lift: Moving Walls or Kantar China / Nielsen China panel-augmented study.
Flight: 30 days.
Compliance: SAMR / Advertising Law / NMPA / PIPL pre-clearance.
Creative: bilingual Mandarin Chinese / English.
Tier 3: Flagship China-Entry
¥3,500,000+/quarter

USD $495,000+/quarter. Canton Tower + Tianhe CBD + Baiyun Airport + Pazhou Canton Fair flagship for Spring or Autumn sessions, Chinese New Year, or Mid-Autumn Festival.

Direct SOV: Canton Tower Pearl River landmark LED + Tianhe CBD (CITIC / Taikoo Hui / IFC / CTF Finance Centre) + Beijing Road + Zhujiang New Town + Shangxiajiu landmark LEDs.
Airport & rail: Baiyun Airport (CAN) premium digital takeover + Guangzhou South Station CRH high-speed rail premium digital.
Metro: Guangzhou Metro Line 3 full-line + APM Tianhe dominations (Tianhe Coach, Gangding, Zhujiang New Town, Canton Tower, Tiyu Xilu, Tiyu Zhongxin, Haizhu Square, Guangzhou South).
Canton Fair: Pazhou Exhibition Complex Canton Fair event-window takeover (Spring April/May OR Autumn October/November).
Stadium & tourism: Tianhe Sports Center Guangzhou FC event-day + Chimelong Tourist Resort tourism-peak.
Mall takeovers: Taikoo Hui + Grandview + IGC + Parc Central + SKP Guangzhou.
Programmatic PMP: rolling across Greater Bay Area (Guangzhou + Shenzhen + Foshan + Dongguan + Zhuhai) and major Chinese cities (Shanghai + Beijing).
Brand lift: Nielsen China, Kantar China, CTR, or Ipsos China.
Creative: bilingual Mandarin Chinese / English + Cantonese cultural variant + multi-language Canton Fair creative (Mandarin, English, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, French, Japanese — 6–8 languages) + DCO build (typhoon, Canton Fair, Spring Festival, Mid-Autumn, Mooncake, Golden Week, 618, Double 11, Double 12).
Attribution: dedicated China / Greater Bay Area attribution dashboard.
Tentpole integration: Canton Fair (Spring or Autumn) / Chinese New Year / Mid-Autumn / Dragon Boat / Golden Week / Guangzhou Marathon / 618 + Double 11 + Double 12 e-commerce festivals.
FAQ

Guangzhou DOOH FAQ

Common questions on cost, screen counts, programmatic activation, measurement, minimum budgets, creative specs, and Canton Fair / Chinese New Year / Mid-Autumn Festival event strategy.

DOOH advertising in Guangzhou (also called 数字户外广告 shùzì hùwài guǎnggào) is outdoor advertising shown on digital screens across China's third-largest city, the capital of Guangdong Province, and the southern anchor of the Greater Bay Area (Guangzhou + Shenzhen + Hong Kong + Macau + 7 GBA mainland cities with ~86M combined residents). Guangzhou DOOH spans Baiyun International Airport (CAN — one of China's top-3 airports with ~75M annual passengers), Guangzhou Metro (16+ lines plus APM Tianhe, ~10M daily riders), Guangzhou CRH high-speed rail (Guangzhou South + East + Station connecting Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong via XRL); Canton Tower (the 600m Pearl River landmark); Tianhe CBD (CITIC Plaza, Taikoo Hui, IFC Guangzhou 432m, CTF Finance Centre 530m); Zhujiang New Town + Haixinsha; Beijing Road; Shangxiajiu; Pazhou Exhibition Complex (host of the biannual Canton Fair); Shamian Island; premium shopping centres; Tianhe Sports Center; Chimelong Tourist Resort; and place-based networks in yum cha dim-sum restaurants and Cantonese tea houses. Guangzhou has an estimated 20,000+ digital OOH screens operated by JCDecaux China, Yagoo Media, Focus Media, VisionChina Media, ChinaDOOH, Redhot Media, Baiyun Airport Advertising, and Guangzhou Metro concessionaires. Most premium inventory is bookable programmatically through DSPs including AdQuick, Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH, VIOOH + Yagoo, and Broadsign Ads.
Guangzhou DOOH CPMs typically range from ¥40–¥120 (USD $6–$17) for apartment/office elevator LCDs and ¥80–¥220 (USD $11–$31) for Guangzhou Metro platform digital, to ¥400–¥1,200 (USD $57–$170) for premium Baiyun International Airport (CAN) digital and hundreds of thousands to millions of yuan per month as share-of-voice packages on Canton Tower Pearl River landmark, Tianhe CBD skyscraper LEDs, Beijing Road, and Zhujiang New Town spectaculars. Programmatic open-exchange inventory is accessible from around ¥70–¥300 (USD $10–$43) CPM. Self-serve test campaigns start around ¥15,000–¥50,000 (USD $2,100–$7,100), mid-market multi-venue flights run ¥180,000–¥750,000 over 30 days (USD $25,500–$106,000), and flagship China-entry buys start at ¥3.5M+ per quarter. Canton Fair biannual event-window takeovers at Pazhou start at ¥300,000–¥1,200,000 per event. Pricing varies by venue, daypart, buying model (CPM, SOV / loop share, monthly rate 月租, or PG), and campaign duration. Chinese OOH carries VAT (增值税) of 6–13% by category; cross-border advertisers can settle in USD, HKD, or ¥.
Guangzhou has an estimated 20,000+ digital out of home screens across Baiyun International Airport (CAN) Terminal 1 + Terminal 2, Guangzhou Metro 16+ lines (Lines 1-22 + APM Tianhe), Guangzhou South + East + Guangzhou Station CRH high-speed rail hubs, Canton Tower (广州塔), Tianhe CBD (CITIC Plaza + Taikoo Hui + IFC + CTF Finance Centre + Tianhe Sports Center), Zhujiang New Town + Haixinsha, Beijing Road, Shangxiajiu, Pazhou Exhibition Complex (Canton Fair), Shamian Island, Yuexiu Park, premium shopping centres (Taikoo Hui, Grandview Mall, IGC, Parc Central, Onelink Walk, Tianhe City, Mall of the World, Joy City, Wanda Plaza, SKP Guangzhou), Chimelong Tourist Resort, apartment and office elevator LCDs (Focus Media dominance), taxis / DiDi rideshare, and place-based venues. JCDecaux China operates Greater China street furniture and transit; Yagoo Media runs VIOOH-partnered programmatic; Focus Media dominates Chinese elevator/office DOOH (~4M screens nationally); VisionChina operates transit DOOH; ChinaDOOH is the Vistar Media-partnered marketplace; Redhot Media is the China DOOH inventory specialist; Baiyun Airport Advertising, Guangzhou Metro, CRH, and landmark operators complete the coverage.
Programmatic DOOH in Guangzhou is the automated, impression-based buying of digital outdoor advertising through a DSP. China's pDOOH market matured rapidly from 2024 onwards, driven by two milestones: the VIOOH + Yagoo Media 2024 partnership expanding China's DOOH programmatic landscape and opening Yagoo's Chinese inventory to international programmatic buyers via VIOOH's SSP, and the Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH 2024 partnership expanding Vistar's China marketplace access. Every major Guangzhou media owner — JCDecaux China, Yagoo Media, Focus Media, VisionChina Media, ChinaDOOH — has enabled programmatic paths via SSPs including VIOOH (primary for JCDecaux and Yagoo), ChinaDOOH (Vistar-partnered), Focus Media native programmatic, Broadsign Reach, and Hivestack SSP. Buyers can target by venue, district, daypart, and contextual triggers (weather, typhoon tracking, Canton Fair biannual windows, Chinese New Year, Mid-Autumn, Golden Week, Guangzhou FC matches, 618 / Double 11 / Double 12) with minimums as low as ¥5,000 on open exchange via DSPs like AdQuick, Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH, VIOOH + Yagoo, or Broadsign Ads.
Traditional OOH in Guangzhou is printed, paper-and-paste advertising posted on monthly (yuezu) cycles — the traditional Chinese OOH planning unit. DOOH is delivered on digital screens and priced on impressions (CPM), share of voice (SOV / loop share), monthly rate, or programmatic guaranteed (PG), with creative that can change by daypart, weather, typhoon tracking, Canton Fair biannual windows, Chinese New Year, Mid-Autumn Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Golden Week, Guangzhou FC matches, 618 + Double 11 + Double 12, or audience segment. DOOH enables dynamic creative, real-time triggers, tighter geofencing, and CTR-M / CODC-SPACES + operator-reported impression reporting — all without production delays. In Guangzhou specifically, digital now represents roughly 45–55% of total OOH spend, with the 2024 VIOOH-Yagoo and Vistar-ChinaDOOH programmatic partnerships marking Guangzhou's maturation as a top-tier Chinese programmatic DOOH market alongside Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen. Distinctive Guangzhou features include the Canton Fair biannual B2B DOOH opportunity (world's largest trade fair), Canton Tower Pearl River landmark, and Greater Bay Area cross-border (Shenzhen + Hong Kong + Macau) coordination opportunities.
Chinese DOOH measurement relies on a combination of CTR-M (CTR Market Research DOOH impression measurement), CODC-SPACES (China Outdoor Data Consortium SPACES) — the emerging Chinese DOOH visibility framework, Nielsen China / Kantar China / Ipsos China / CTR / iResearch panel-based audience research, Focus Media proprietary data (~4M elevator screens), operator-reported impressions from Baiyun Airport, Guangzhou Metro, Pazhou, and agency-backed cross-media measurement (Dentsu China, Publicis China, GroupM China). Unlike markets with mature JIC-based OOH audience currencies (UK Route, Germany ma DOOH, Spain Geomex, Italy Audioutdoor, Canada COMMB, US Geopath, Japan's emerging LIVE BOARD VAC), China does not yet have a single authoritative unified DOOH impression currency — an honest Chinese-market reality worth disclosing. Attribution for Guangzhou campaigns can combine mobile foot-traffic lift (DiDi / WeChat / Alipay / Douyin / Xiaohongshu subject to PIPL consent), Baidu + WeChat Search + Xiaohongshu + Douyin branded search lift (Chinese search is Baidu-led, not Google), Taobao / Tmall / JD.com / Pinduoduo / Vipshop / Douyin e-commerce sales lift, and brand lift studies. Moving Walls provides third-party attention and attribution for cross-border programmatic buyers.
Self-serve programmatic DOOH on platforms like AdQuick, Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH, VIOOH + Yagoo, and Broadsign Ads can be activated with test budgets from around ¥15,000–¥50,000 (USD $2,100–$7,100) in Guangzhou. Managed-service campaigns with a Chinese agency (Dentsu China, Publicis China, GroupM China, WPP, Ogilvy China, BlueFocus) typically start at ¥80,000–¥300,000 (USD $11,000–$42,500). Premium direct buys on Canton Tower, Tianhe CBD, Beijing Road, or Zhujiang New Town landmark LEDs start at ¥250,000+ per month as share-of-voice packages, and Baiyun International Airport (CAN) premium takeovers typically start at ¥220,000+/week. Canton Fair Pazhou event-window takeovers start at ¥300,000+ per event session (April/May Spring or October/November Autumn). Cross-border advertisers should plan for USD or HKD settlement with Chinese cross-border currency regulations awareness — AdQuick supports multi-currency billing.
There are three buying paths. Path 1: direct with a Guangzhou media owner or Chinese agency (JCDecaux China, Yagoo, Focus Media, VisionChina, ChinaDOOH, Redhot Media, Baiyun Airport, Guangzhou Metro, CRH, Canton Tower / Tianhe CBD / Beijing Road operators, Pazhou Exhibition Complex, Dentsu China, Publicis China, GroupM China, WPP China, Ogilvy China, BlueFocus) — best for flagship direct buys; requires Mandarin Chinese-language capability, ¥ RMB invoicing with Chinese VAT (6–13%) and cross-border currency regulations, 11-district municipal permits, and PIPL compliance. Path 2: programmatic via a DSP — AdQuick, Vistar Media + ChinaDOOH, VIOOH + Yagoo Media, Broadsign Ads, JCDecaux China / VIOOH programmatic, The Trade Desk, StackAdapt, Moving Walls, Adomni, Yahoo DSP, or Focus Media proprietary programmatic — best for impression-based, data-targeted campaigns from ¥15,000. Path 3: through AdQuick, the unified DSP and marketplace approach that transacts across every major SSP and aggregates direct media-owner inventory into a single plan with CTR-M / CODC-SPACES planning, bilingual Mandarin / English creative workflows with Cantonese cultural guidance and multi-language Canton Fair (6–8 languages) consultation, PIPL-compliant mobile audience extension, SAMR / Advertising Law compliance, Canton Fair event-window consultation, multi-currency USD / HKD / ¥ settlement, and attribution built in.
Most Guangzhou DOOH uses standard specs: 1080×1920 (9:16 portrait) for Guangzhou Metro platform D6s, apartment/office elevator LCDs (Focus Media dominant), and mall verticals; 1920×1080 (16:9 landscape) for in-train, JCDecaux street furniture, Baiyun Airport (CAN), CRH stations, and large-format; and custom resolutions for Canton Tower Pearl River landmark LED, Tianhe CBD skyscraper LEDs, Beijing Road, Zhujiang New Town, Pazhou, and building-specific landmark LEDs. Typical creative duration is 10–15 seconds in a 60-second loop (15–30 seconds for Canton Tower and landmark LED). MP4 (H.264) is the dominant codec; JPG and PNG universally supported. Audio is rarely permitted except in cinema (Wanda Cinemas, CGV, UA, Pearl River Cinema) and some upmarket tea house / restaurant networks. Mandarin / Simplified Chinese (简体中文) is the domestic default; bilingual Mandarin / English standard for Baiyun Airport, Canton Fair Pazhou, Tianhe CBD international precincts, and luxury campaigns; Cantonese / 粤语 creative is a distinctive Guangzhou creative asset for local-authenticity campaigns (the Chinese equivalent of using Catalan in Barcelona, Bavarian in Munich, or Kansai-ben in Osaka) — though formal commercial creative still defaults to Mandarin Putonghua. Canton Fair creative often deploys 6–8 languages (Mandarin, English, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, French, Japanese) — a distinctive Canton Fair opportunity unique to Guangzhou.
Event-anchored Guangzhou DOOH strategies pair flagship landmark takeovers with programmatic PMP windows triggered by event context. For Canton Fair (广交会) — biannual Spring April/May + Autumn October/November at Pazhou — the world's largest trade fair with ~200,000 international buyers from 200+ countries per session — Pazhou + Guangzhou Metro Line 4 / Line 8 / APM Tianhe extensions to Pazhou + Baiyun Airport inbound-traveller + Guangzhou South Station CRH + hotel-adjacent digital along Pearl River + Tianhe corridors with multi-language creative (Mandarin + English + Arabic + Spanish + Portuguese + Russian + French + Japanese — 6–8 languages). For Chinese New Year / Spring Festival (春节) and Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋节) — September/October — the defining Cantonese cultural cycle with mooncake and lantern festivals — Canton Tower + Beijing Road + Shangxiajiu + Tianhe CBD + mall dominations with festival-themed creative (red / gold colour palette, lion dance motifs, mooncake imagery). For Guangzhou Marathon (November), race-route DCO across Canton Tower, Pearl River waterfront, Tianhe, Zhujiang New Town. For Guangzhou FC Super League / CSL matches at Tianhe Sports Center (former Evergrande dominance, two-time AFC Champions League winner 2013 + 2015), stadium precinct + Tianhe CBD + metro Line 1 / Line 3 with club-specific fan-aware creative. For Dragon Boat Festival (端午节) (June), Pearl River + traditional-culture DCO. For Golden Week / National Day (October 1-7), Chimelong + Canton Tower + tourism-corridor DCO. For 618 + Double 11 + Double 12 e-commerce festivals, mall dominations + Taobao / Tmall / JD.com / Pinduoduo / Vipshop retail-cycle DCO. Build in 10–14 weeks of lead time for flagship Guangzhou-entry — plus 12–16 weeks for Canton Fair Pazhou-adjacent inventory given high biannual demand concentration — and plan for Guangzhou Metro, Baiyun Airport, Guangzhou Municipal, SAMR / Advertising Law, PIPL, and Canton Fair concessionaire creative approvals.

Start Your Guangzhou DOOH Campaign

AdQuick is the DOOH platform and marketplace that unifies programmatic buying across every major SSP with direct media-owner inventory across Guangzhou — Baiyun Airport, Guangzhou Metro, CRH, Canton Tower, Tianhe CBD, Beijing Road, Zhujiang New Town, Pazhou Canton Fair, Tianhe Sports Center, Chimelong, and premium malls — with CTR-M / CODC-SPACES audience planning, bilingual Mandarin / English creative delivery, PIPL-compliant mobile audience extension, SAMR / Advertising Law compliance, multi-currency USD / HKD / ¥ settlement, and foot-traffic attribution from a single platform.

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