app-ads.txt: the SofAds line and where it goes
Ad buyers check that SofAds may sell your app's ad slots by reading a file on your own website, app-ads.txt. Add one line to it and your listing can go live. Until SofAds finds the line, the listing gets test ads only.
The line
The dashboard shows the exact line on each listing, with your seller ID filled in. It looks like this:
# https://yourstudio.example/app-ads.txt
sofads.com, YOUR_SELLER_ID, DIRECTsofads.comis the ad system's domain. Keep it exactly like this.YOUR_SELLER_IDis your organization's seller ID. It is the same for all your apps and matches your entry in the SofAds sellers.json.DIRECTmeans you work with SofAds yourself, not through a reseller.- When SofAds has a certification authority ID, the dashboard adds it as a fourth field. Copy the line as shown.
When SofAds works with partner networks, the dashboard lists their lines too. Add all of them: buyers from a partner skip apps whose app-ads.txt doesn't name that partner.
Where the file goes
At the root of your developer website: https://yourstudio.example/app-ads.txt, as plain text. Buyers find that website through the store page, which lists the developer URL you entered in the store's seller portal. They try HTTPS first, then HTTP, and only look at the root of the domain, so a file in a subfolder is never found.
One file covers every app you publish under that website, on every platform. If you already have an app-ads.txt for other networks, add the SofAds line to it.
Before the app is in the store
An app in development has no store page, so there is no developer URL for buyers or for SofAds to read yet. You can still prepare:
- Add the listing in the dashboard with just the platform and your app's ID on it: Tizen, webOS, Whale TV or Titan OS. The store URL can wait.
- Optionally enter your developer website on the listing. SofAds then checks that site for the line already.
- When the app is live, add the store URL on the listing. SofAds reads the developer URL from the store page and checks the file there.
When the listing goes live
SofAds checks the file when you save the listing and then every day. When it finds the line, the listing becomes live and real ads start. If the line disappears later, the listing drops back to test ads until it is back.
| Listing | What it means |
|---|---|
| In development | No store URL yet. Test ads only; add the store URL once the app is live. |
| Pending | Store URL added, waiting for the SofAds line. Test ads only. |
| Live | The line was found. Real ads. |
| Removed | The app is marked as removed from the store. |
The listing page also shows the result of the last check:
| Check | What to do |
|---|---|
| Found | Nothing. The line is there. |
| Missing | The file exists but has no SofAds line: add it. |
| Not found | There is no app-ads.txt at the root of the website: upload it. |
| No developer URL | SofAds doesn't know your website yet: add the store URL, or the developer website on the listing. |
| Error | The website couldn't be reached. SofAds tries again at the next check. |
| Unchecked | Not checked yet. |
Stores and buyers crawl on their own schedules, so give partner demand a few days after a change. Store-specific details, such as how Samsung and LG publish the developer URL, are in the guide app-ads.txt for TV apps.
Sources
Checked on October 8, 2026.
- IAB Tech Lab: ads.txt and app-ads.txt
- IAB Tech Lab: app-ads.txt specification (GitHub)
- IAB Tech Lab: sellers.json
Keep reading
- Test ads and test devices: what your app shows until the listing is live.
- app-ads.txt for TV apps: developer URLs and crawler gaps per store.