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Find the Best Creative & Full-Service Advertising Agencies in the United States

A creative agency sells ideas: the thought that ties a TV spot, a poster, a social post and a shop window into one campaign. A full-service agency adds the work around the idea, such as strategy, production management and often media buying, so a single team answers for the whole campaign. This page lists creative and full-service advertising agencies in the United States. Filter by city, then look at the campaigns each one has won awards for and the brands it works with.

All (4,618)New York City (392)Los Angeles (211)Chicago (152)San Francisco (95)Washington (85)Atlanta (73)
4,618 agencies listed, How is the directory ranking calculated?
Agency ↕Age ↕Location ↕
Showing 3,851–3,875 / 4,618 listings

Choosing a Creative and Full-Service Advertising Agency

Advertising agencies in the United States range from creative shops of a few people to networks with hundreds of staff. The small shop is often closer to the work, because the people who pitch are the people who write. A large full-service agency brings planners, producers and a media team under one roof. Decide first whether you need a sharp idea or someone to run every part of the campaign.

Our directory currently lists 4,618 creative and full-service advertising agencies in the United States. The records draw on the winner lists of advertising competitions, on the services agencies describe on their own websites and on the brands they serve. A campaign that won awards shows you how an agency thinks, which a credentials deck rarely does.

Finding the Right Creative and Full-Service Advertising Agency

Agencies that have claimed their record are listed first on this page, and within each group the order follows a directory score. Every agency in our directory has 20 stars to give. It places them on the categories where it is strongest, and each star an agency puts on creative and full-service advertising is worth 10 points in this list. Our system does not let an agency look equally strong in every category. So the order here is not a verdict on the quality of the work. Because stars carry most of the score, focus on creative and full-service advertising matters more than anything else.

For agencies that have not yet claimed their record, we place the stars ourselves. We look at the services listed on the agency's own website and at any awards it has won. On top of the stars, a complete profile adds up to 10 points, and each work in the agency's portfolio adds 1 point, up to 20. How we calculate the directory ranking explains in detail how the listing order is worked out.

The Creative & Full-Service Advertising Top 100

The Creative & Full-Service Advertising Top 100 covers agencies all over the world. Agencies from the United States are judged against the rest of the world with the same yardstick. The list rests mainly on each agency's award record in creative and full-service advertising, and an award won in another field does not lift an agency here. No agency can pay to get into the Top 100 or to climb it.

Creative and Full-Service Advertising Agencies by City

Creative work still runs on meetings, from the first briefing and the concept presentation to the long sessions where an idea is pulled apart and rebuilt. Many brands therefore prefer an agency they can reach in an afternoon. The city filter at the top of the page shows the agencies in one city at a time. If none of them suits you, the list for all of the United States gives you more to compare.

Is Your Agency Not on This List?

If your agency works in Creative & Full-Service Advertising and is not on this page, you can tell us about your agency via the submission form. If you already have a record in the directory, you can claim it and update your logo and details yourself. Claimed agencies are listed first in the directory lists they belong to; the Top 100 lists are not affected. Listing in our directory is free.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What affects the price of creative and full-service advertising?+

The fee depends on how the agency charges for its time and how much of the campaign it runs. Some agencies work on a monthly retainer, some charge per project and a few tie part of the fee to results. A single campaign idea for one channel costs far less than an integrated campaign across TV, outdoor and digital. Production costs and media budgets usually come on top of the agency fee, so ask for them as separate lines.

Which are the best creative and full-service advertising agencies in the United States?+

That depends on the brief. An agency famous for big TV campaigns may be the wrong choice for a brand that lives online, and a creative shop known for bold ideas may not want to run your whole marketing calendar. Agencies that have claimed their record open the list. Everyone is then sorted by directory score, where the stars an agency places on creative and full-service advertising weigh most and its profile and portfolio add a smaller share. How the directory ranking works has the full formula. To see the agencies with the strongest award record worldwide, open the Creative & Full-Service Advertising Top 100.

Are all of an agency's awards shown here?+

Not always. Our directory does not cover every competition, or every award within a competition, and awards from a competition outside our coverage do not appear on the list. Some award levels, such as honorable mentions, student categories and finalist places, may be missing too. So the awards you see on an agency's page are often only part of what it has won.

What should I look for in a creative and full-service advertising agency?+

Be precise about what you are buying. If you want a campaign idea, judge the agency on ideas: ask to see work that changed how people saw a brand, and what that work achieved. If you want one partner for the whole year, look at how it plans, produces and reports, and at who will run your account from week to week. Meet the people who will actually work on your brand, not just the senior team at the pitch. Ask how many rounds of creative changes are included and who owns the ideas and finished materials. Once you have a shortlist, our site lets you ask claimed agencies for quotes.

What do creative and full-service advertising agencies do?+

Most agencies in this category offer some or all of the following.

• Campaign ideas: the central concept, the line and the look that a whole campaign is built on

• Integrated campaigns: one idea carried across TV, outdoor, print, digital, social media and retail

• Brand advertising: long-running platforms that shape how people see a brand over many years

• Strategy and planning: audience insight, the brief, positioning and how success will be measured

• Copy and art direction: headlines, scripts, layouts and the visual style for every format

• Full-service support: production management, account handling and, in some agencies, media planning

Buying airtime and ad space is the job of Media Planning & Buying agencies. Shooting and finishing the film itself falls under Commercial & Video Production. Running a brand's social channels every day, with community management and content calendars, belongs to Social Media Marketing.

How many creative and full-service advertising agencies are listed in the United States?+

Our directory lists 4,618 creative and full-service advertising agencies in the United States.

Which cities in the United States have the most creative and full-service advertising agencies?+

In our directory, New York City (392), Los Angeles (211) and Chicago (152) have the most creative and full-service advertising agencies in the United States.