Front-store loyalty data, CVS Pharmacy's ad network

CVS Media Exchange: Ad Formats & Advertising Agency Support

RMIQ plans CVS CMX campaigns for beauty, wellness and everyday brands using ExtraCare front-store purchase data across 90M+ addressable shoppers.

CVS Media Exchange (CMX) is the CVS retail media network, run by CVS Pharmacy. Brands that sell at CVS buy ads on CVS.com and the app, offsite across display, video, social and audio, and on in-store screens and audio, with reporting tied to in-store and online sales.

What the data covers, what the ads may show

Front-store ExtraCare data, and the CMX ad rules that travel with it

CMX publishes where its targeting data comes from, and an Ad Policy with pre-approval, image and disclaimer rules.

The data, in CMX's own words

CMX FAQ

CMX says advertisers target ads "informed by front-store ExtraCare purchase history data combined with digital engagements on CVS properties."

  • 61M+ General Merchandise & Consumables shoppers (2023 data)
  • 57M+ Beauty & Personal Care shoppers (2023 data)
  1. Some categories need pre-approval

    Ad Policy

    Categories "subject to pre-approval by the CMX Ad Policy team on a case-by-case basis" include "content featuring influencers" and "products not sold or dispensed by CVS."

  2. Beauty images carry the Beauty Unaltered mark

    Beauty ads

    "All beauty ads must be authentic images that have not been materially digitally altered and include the 'Beauty Unaltered' mark."

  3. ExtraCare offers need CMX's disclaimer

    Promotions

    An ad with an ExtraCare promotion, offer or coupon needs "specific, CMX-provided disclaimer language both on the ad and on the CVS.com landing page."

  4. No CVS data in measurement without consent

    Measurement

    Advertisers agree "not to use any data obtained from CVS for measurement or analytics purposes without prior written consent" from CMX.

Sponsored slots, streaming TV, Trendcaps

CVS Media Exchange ad formats on CVS.com, offsite and in the store

  • CVS.com and the app

    • Pricing: CPC for sponsored products, CPM for Sponsored Brand

    Sponsored products run on keyword bids with SKU-level reports; Sponsored Brand can "conquest and lockout all Sponsored Brand ads for each of your keywords." Display runs on the homepage, Deals and Rewards, order tracking and the digital circular.

  • Offsite display, video, social and audio

      Display reaches "75+ premium publishers" and video includes CTV; social covers Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Reddit, and audio runs on iHeart, Pandora and Spotify.

    • In the store

      • Units: Digital Trendcaps, Front Entrance Screens, Waiting Area Screens, in-store audio, checkout ads

      In-store audio is "dayparted to the hour," and creative may not point to "external experiences" such as QR codes.

    Managed, marketplace, programmatic

    Placements and the CMX route each one sells through

    CMX's contact form is open to "a brand that sells at CVS," or "an agency or AdTech company working on their behalf."

    1. CMX's managed team

      CMX's specs guide points each brand to a CMX Partner Manager and Account Manager.

    2. CMX Private Marketplace for CVS.com

      For CVS.com sponsored products, CMX also offers its Private Marketplace: "direct access to our Sponsored Product offering."

    3. CMX Programmatic Self-Service

      Brands use their "existing DSP seat at The Trade Desk," a demand-side platform, for "offsite programmatic media": display, CTV and audio, bought at auction once CMX has "determined eligibility for access."

    4. Self-serve in-store audio

      CMX also announces "programmatic self-serve in-store audio" in 6,900 CVS stores.

    AI planning, new screens, wider measurement

    CVS Media Exchange news: CorIQ, entrance screens and sales counted beyond CVS

    CMX reports closed-loop sales on viewable impressions and tests incrementality against control groups.

    1. April 27 to 29, 2026

      CorIQ, CMX's AI media platform

      CorIQ is built on "first-party ExtraCare loyalty data"; CMX claims a "13% average ROAS improvement" from 2025 internal data.

    2. April 13 to May 10, 2026

      Front Entrance Screens case

      An energy drink brand's entrance-screen campaign reported a "33% new-to-brand buyer rate" and "$7.38 ROAS" (CVS internal data).

    3. July 31, 2026

      Sales outside CVS stores

      CMX's general manager told Circana that, in early testing, "60% of the incremental impact of a CMX dollar invested" falls outside CVS stores. With Rest of Market Measurement from Circana, Dove's 2026 beta campaign showed a "+12% ROM sales lift."

    Discretion, counts, specs

    Policy review, store counts that differ and a 57-page spec book

    1. Review at CMX's discretion

      CMX "reserves the right to reject, remove or request modifications to an ad in its sole discretion."

    2. Store counts that differ by page

      CMX counts signage at more than 7,400 stores and self-serve in-store audio at 6,900; Circana's write-up puts the checkout test at 3,900; CMX's solutions page puts signage and storewide radio in more than 9,000 stores.

    3. Specs for every surface

      The August 2026 ad specs guide runs 57 pages, and social creative needs CMX's copy document.

    Front-store categories first

    Audience groups, Ad Policy checks, SKU bids: RMIQ's CVS Media Exchange agency service

    RMIQ lists CVS among its supported networks and offers to plan CMX campaigns around front-store purchase signals, one sales goal per campaign.

    • Products matched to CMX's audience groups

      RMIQ places each product in the CMX audience group that fits it and sets one dashboard goal, such as new buyers.

    • Briefs checked against the Ad Policy

      RMIQ checks each brief for the Beauty Unaltered mark, the ExtraCare disclaimer and any category that needs pre-approval.

    • Keyword bids by product

      CVS.com sponsored products sell through CMX's team or its Private Marketplace; whichever route the buy takes, RMIQ plans the SKU-level CPC keyword bids.

    Instacart record, CMX yardstick

    Set against CMX's entrance-screen case: Darey Brands' new-to-brand growth on Instacart

    CMX's entrance-screen case above reports a new-to-brand buyer rate. RMIQ has no CVS case study; Darey Brands grew new-to-brand revenue with RMIQ on Instacart.

    • Darey Brands

      Instacart, under two months
      • ROAS increase: 75%
      • New-to-brand revenue: 2.7x

      Senior Brand Manager Matt Gorella says the revenue gain came "without adding execution work on our side."

      Read the Darey Brands story

    CMX, its data, RMIQ

    CVS advertising agency FAQ

    What is CVS Media Exchange (CMX)?

    CVS Media Exchange is the CVS retail media network, run by CVS Pharmacy. It sells ads on CVS.com and the app, offsite display, video, social and audio, and in-store screens and audio. CMX counts more than 90 million addressable ExtraCare members.

    What data does CVS Media Exchange use to target ads?

    In CMX's words, advertisers target ads "informed by front-store ExtraCare purchase history data combined with digital engagements on CVS properties." CMX sizes audience groups such as more than 57 million Beauty and Personal Care shoppers (2023 data). Advertisers may not use CVS data for measurement or analytics without CMX's written consent.

    What retail media technology does CVS use?

    CMX runs CorIQ, the AI media platform built on ExtraCare data that it presented in April 2026, and offsite self-service through The Trade Desk. Results show in the CMX Performance Dashboard, Circana measures sales beyond CVS, and LiveRamp clean rooms serve Pinterest and Reddit.

    Which routes sell CVS.com sponsored products?

    CMX sells them through its team and through the CMX Private Marketplace, which it offers for "direct access to our Sponsored Product offering." Bids are CPC on keywords, with SKU-level reports. RMIQ plans those bids product by product and checks beauty creative for the Beauty Unaltered mark before it reaches CMX.

    CMX references7 sources

    Each source is listed with the date it was published; pages that show no date are marked with the date they were read.

    1. CVS Health Corporation, Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, filed August 5, 2026; Form 10-K for fiscal year 2025, filed February 10, 2026
    2. CVS Media Exchange, Ad Specs guide (PDF), last updated August 2026
    3. CVS Media Exchange pages: homepage and FAQ, about, audience, solutions, site search advertising, Sponsored Brand, display, video and streaming, social, audio, in-store, Programmatic Self-Service, Performance Dashboard, iROAS, CorIQ, POSSIBLE 2026, insights, ad specs, advertising policy, contact, no date shown, read October 25, 2026
    4. CVS Media Exchange case studies: Front Entrance Screens (campaign April 13 to May 10, 2026), Dove Rest of Market Measurement (2026 beta), Haleon on Reddit, no date shown, read October 25, 2026
    5. Circana, CVS on Retail Media Measurement and the Fragmented Funnel, July 31, 2026
    6. Path to Purchase Institute, CVS Media Exchange Leans Into AI to Accelerate Campaign Planning, Optimization, May 6, 2026
    7. RMIQ, Darey Brands case study, August 31, 2026; Walmart Connect ads guide, February 2, 2026; retail media agency page, October 14, 2026; homepage and case studies listing, read October 25, 2026

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