How to use the video ad skip rate calculator
The denominator is where skip rate usually goes wrong. Counting non-skippable impressions in the denominator drags the skip rate below its real value, because those viewers were never given a skip button. By definition only impressions where skipping was possible belong in the denominator, so this calculator asks which basis your figure came from and prints that basis in the result label.
Enter the number of times the skip button was pressed. A high skip rate is not automatically bad: skippable formats generally stop charging once the viewer skips past the billable point, so a campaign can run a high skip rate and a low effective cost at the same time. The real risk is delivering reach without ever landing the message.
Enter a target skip rate and the calculator rounds down the largest number of skips that still keeps you at or below it. Rounding down means reaching the number shown never pushes the rate past your target, and the next line shows how many skips you would have to eliminate from where you are today. No industry average is included: skip rates swing widely by creative length, category and placement, and a printed benchmark would invite the wrong conclusion, so set the target yourself.
Frequently asked questions
To match the definition of skip rate, use only impressions where skipping was possible. Running the whole campaign, non-skippable formats included, through the denominator dilutes the number.
Look at how many seconds play before the skip and at completion rate among viewers who stayed. Often reworking only the opening seconds is enough.