Though spending on pharmaceutical TV ads picked up last month following a summer slump, the third quarter’s overall total still paled in comparison to the preceding periods this year.
In Q3, the top 10 TV ad spenders poured a combined $544.8 million into airing their commercials, according to data shared with Fierce Pharma Marketing by iSpot.TV—that was more than $100 million below Q2’s $675.1 million total, which is a 19% drop, and an even steeper decrease from the first quarter’s whopping $730 million outlay.
Still, the third quarter’s haul did represent a sizable increase from the same time last year, when the top 10 spenders threw $486.2 million behind their ads in a Q3 that similarly marked that year’s low point.
Indeed, if last year’s spending pattern is any indication, the top 10 totals will likely skyrocket in the coming months to close out the year, as advertising peaks amid major sporting events and other TV broadcasts.
Breaking down this year’s third-quarter spending, the top 10 brands of July and August shelled out around $174 million each month, while September’s total ticked up to $199 million. For comparison, every other month in 2025 before the third quarter had surpassed the $200 million mark, with January weighing in at an impressive $302.5 million.
September’s upswing was undoubtedly bolstered by the post-summer return to regular TV show schedules and football broadcasts. In fact, though the regular professional football season didn’t start until that month, NFL programming loomed large in the full quarter’s spending breakdown: According to iSpot, six of the period’s top 10 brands listed the NFL as their top TV program by spend, including all of the top four spenders.
Those leaders were carryovers from Q2, albeit in slightly jumbled order. The third quarter’s TV ad spending was once again led by AbbVie’s Skyrizi, while its sister drug Rinvoq held steady at No. 3. This time around, however, Johnson & Johnson’s Tremfya took second place, and Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy fell to fourth as its total TV ad spending dropped from $96 million in Q2 to just over $66 million in Q3.
The fifth, sixth and seventh placeholders were also carbon copies of the Q2 list, even as each of their spending totals dropped between $13 million and $26 million quarter over quarter. Lundbeck and Otsuka’s Rexulti, Sanofi and Regeneron’s Dupixent and Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim’s Jardiance held those positions in the rankings, respectively.
Novo’s Ozempic fell one spot from its Q2 ranking, taking ninth place as its quarterly spending fell below $30 million. Meanwhile, rival GLP-1 for obesity, Lilly’s Zepbound, completely fell off the list after taking 10th in the second quarter.
Rounding out the list were two newcomers for the quarter: No. 8 was UCB’s Bimzelx, which first appeared in the monthly rankings in August, while Merck’s Capvaxive took 10th despite only cracking the monthly top 10 in September.
Below, find the full data for Q2’s 10 biggest TV pharma ad spenders, as compiled by iSpot.TV.
1. Skyrizi
Movement (from Q2 2025): No change
What is it? AbbVie’s immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $104.6 million (up from $100.1 million in Q2)
Number of spots: 10 (seven psoriasis, three Crohn’s disease/ulcerative colitis)
Biggest-ticket ad: “In the Picture” (est. $55.6 million)
2. Tremfya
Movement: Up two spots
What is it? Johnson & Johnson’s immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $78.2 million (down from $83.5 million in Q2)
Number of spots: Eight (five psoriasis, two UC/Crohn’s, one psoriatic arthritis)
Biggest-ticket ad: “Break Away: Relentless Weed” (est. $35.6 million)
3. Rinvoq
Movement: No change
What is it? AbbVie’s JAKi immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $74.5 million (down from $84.4 million in Q2)
Number of spots: Seven (two eczema, two UC/Crohn’s, three arthritis)
Biggest-ticket ad: “Just Okay: Umpire and Camping Trip” (est. $20.9 million)
4. Wegovy
Movement: Down two spots
What is it? Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 agonist for obesity
Est. national TV ad spend: $66.1 million (down from $96 million in Q2)
Number of spots: Two
Biggest-ticket ad: “Think Wegovy: Multiple Ways To Save” (est. $42.1 million)
5. Rexulti
Movement: No change
What is it? Lundbeck and Otsuka’s neurology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $51.3 million (down from $74 million in Q2)
Number of spots: Three (two depression, one Alzheimer’s disease)
Biggest-ticket ad: “A Different Kind of Difficult” (est. $22 million)
6. Dupixent
Movement: No change
What is it? Sanofi and Regeneron’s immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $40.9 million (down from $66.8 million in Q2)
Number of spots: 11 (five eczema, five asthma, one gastrointestinal)
Biggest-ticket ad: “This Is Better: Roller Disco” (est. $10.5 million)
7. Jardiance
Movement: No change
What is it? Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim’s diabetes and kidney disease drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $40.5 million (down from $53 million in Q2)
Number of spots: Five (two CKD, three diabetes)
Biggest-ticket ad: “Musical: Movie Night” ($12.7 million)
8. Bimzelx
Movement: Not listed in Q2
What is it? UCB’s immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $30.8 million (up from $28.5 million in Q2)
Number of spots: Eight (two psoriatic arthritis, five psoriasis, one hidradenitis suppurativa)
Biggest-ticket ad: “I'm Back: Showing Out” (est. $8.3 million)
9. Ozempic
Movement: Down one spot
What is it? Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 agonist for diabetes
Est. national TV ad spend: $29.7 million (down from $43.3 million in Q2)
Number of spots: Three
Biggest-ticket ad: “Testimonials: Michael and Tanya” (est. $16.6 million)
10. Capvaxive
Movement: Not listed in Q2
What is it? Merck’s pneumonia and invasive pneumococcal disease vaccine
Est. national TV ad spend: $28.2 million (up from $6.4 million in Q2)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “Been There Done That” (est. $28.2 million)