Best Advertising Agencies in Seattle (2026)

Introduction

Seattle has nine advertising agencies worth a close look in 2026: one network office, a group of independent shops that make and place campaigns for Pacific Northwest brands, and several media specialists that plan and buy for clients across the US. They were chosen for recent work, 2025 and 2026 recognition, and the strength of their client rosters.

The network side of the market is thinner than its client base would suggest. Amazon, Microsoft, Starbucks and T-Mobile all sit in the region, but much of their agency work is run from New York, Los Angeles or in-house teams. WPP's VML, formed in October 2023 from VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson, keeps a creative office in Pioneer Square that was named one of Washington's Best Workplaces in June 2026. Omnicom's acquisition of IPG, completed at the end of 2025, retired the DDB, FCB and MullenLowe brands, and McCann, the IPG network it kept, lists no Seattle office. Independents have taken up much of the space: Copacino Fujikado says it was named Ad Age's 2026 Small Agency of the Year, and Mercer Island's Vision Media made Adweek's 2026 Fastest Growing Agencies list.

Every agency here has an active office in the Seattle area in 2026. The list runs in no fixed order of merit, since the right choice depends on your brief, budget and how you like to work. Idea-led creative shops are covered on our creative agencies page, and full-funnel and PR firms on the marketing agencies page.

The best advertising agencies in Seattle

1. VML Seattle

WPP · Pioneer Square · vml.com

VML Seattle works from First Avenue South in Pioneer Square and is led by chief creative officer Glen Scott, who also heads the office. VML was created in October 2023 when WPP merged VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson, and the Seattle office's Wunderman Thompson predecessor was named Advertising Agency of the Year at the 2022 Best of the West awards. In June 2026 VML Seattle was named one of Washington's Best Workplaces.

The office offers brand experience, commerce, customer experience and consulting, and draws on a network that Campaign named its Global Network of the Year for 2026 and that finished second among creative networks at Cannes Lions 2026. When VMLY&R expanded its Seattle creative department in 2020, the office's clients included Intel, Microsoft, Mazda and Driscoll's. Ask which accounts the Seattle team leads today, as network offices often share work across cities.

2. Copacino Fujikado (C+F)

Independent · Downtown · copacino.com

Copacino Fujikado is an independent creative and media agency on Fourth Avenue, led by CEO Scott Foreman and chief creative officer Mike Hayward. It describes itself as the only Seattle agency to win four Ad Age Small Agency awards in the last ten years, and it lists Ad Age's 2026 Small Agency of the Year and three 2026 Shorty Awards among its recent honours.

Media planning and buying sit alongside creative, research and production, so one team can make and place a campaign. Clients include the Seattle Mariners, Sound Transit, Holland America, Symetra, Consumer Cellular and Visit Seattle, for which it built drone scoreboards during the World Cup. In November 2025 it won the creative and media business for ORCA, the Puget Sound region's transit card.

3. Mekanism

Capitol Hill · mekanism.com

Mekanism describes its approach as the "Soul & Science" of storytelling, and Seattle is one of its seven offices, alongside San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. The Seattle office is on East Pike Street. The agency runs a media division, Mekanism Media, and an AI production unit it calls its AI Superstudio, and it was shortlisted for Campaign's 2026 Agency of the Year awards.

Alaska Airlines is a long-standing client, and its "Swell Deals" campaign is among the agency's award-winning work. A 2026 campaign for the Seattle insurer PEMCO has Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh explaining insurance through baseball. Other clients include Amazon, Ben & Jerry's and Peloton. With several offices sharing accounts, ask which one will lead your business.

4. Hydrogen Advertising

Independent, woman-owned · Pioneer Square · hydrogenadvertising.com

Hydrogen is an independent agency on South King Street, led by president Mary Knight since 2023, chief creative officer Michael McGrath and chief operating officer Hillary Miller. It is a shareholder in Worldwide Partners, a network of about 70 independent agencies in 40 countries, and was named to the Puget Sound Business Journal's Washington's Best Workplaces list in 2024.

It handles media strategy, planning and buying in-house as well as creative. Recent work includes a summer campaign for Thumbtack built around illustrations by the Seattle artist Eleanor Doughty, campaigns for WSECU and an energy-saving push for Puget Sound Energy. Past clients include Boeing, Starbucks, Microsoft, Seattle Children's and T-Mobile.

5. PB&

Independent, woman-owned · Pioneer Square · pbandseattle.com

PB& is a senior-led independent agency on First Avenue, run by Britt Fero and Ben Salaman. Its pitch is that "one smart move beats a dozen busy ones", and it keeps strategy, creative and media planning in one small team. The agency says Ad Age has twice recognised it in its Small Agency of the Year awards.

In January 2025 the Space Needle and Chihuly Garden and Glass named PB& their media agency of record. Other work includes a book-banning awareness campaign for Visit Seattle, campaigns for Windermere and the Seattle Christmas Market, and a 2025 identity redesign for Oregon Humane. The Seattle Kraken and Amazon also appear among its clients.

6. Vision Media

Independent · Mercer Island · visionmediaus.com

Vision Media describes itself as the largest independent media-only agency in the Pacific Northwest, with more than 24 years in business and an office on Mercer Island. President Lindsey Lind leads the firm. It ranked 69th on Adweek's 2026 Fastest Growing Agencies list and was named AAF Western Region Media Agency of the Year in 2025.

The agency plans and buys across connected TV, digital, search, social, audio, linear TV, radio, print and out-of-home, from single markets to national campaigns. Clients include Coca-Cola, Seattle Children's, Banner Health, Geisinger, Camping World and Angel of the Winds Casino Resort.

7. Merlino Media Group

Woman-owned · Northeast Seattle · merlinomedia.com

Merlino Media Group is a Seattle media planning and buying firm led by principal Janice Merlino, with Katie Bergerud as vice president and media director. It works for brands directly and as the media partner for creative agencies that do not run their own buying.

The firm covers research, planning and buying across broadcast, print, digital and newer channels. Its client list includes Microsoft, Nordstrom, The North Face, McDonald's and Seattle Children's, along with regional healthcare and nonprofit organisations.

8. Add3

Independent · Seattle · add3.com

Add3 is an independent performance marketing agency founded in Seattle by Brian Rauschenbach and Tim Wisner, now led by CEO Paul Uhlir, with a second office in Portland. It manages more than $150 million in annual media and holds Google Premier Partner and Microsoft Advertising Select Partner status for 2026.

The core services are paid search, paid social, programmatic and retail media, backed by media mix modelling, multi-touch attribution and incrementality testing. Costco, Fred Hutch, Filson, Outdoor Research, PEMCO and Realtor.com are among its clients.

9. New Engen

Fremont · newengen.com

New Engen is a full-funnel digital marketing agency headquartered on North 34th Street in Fremont, with further offices in Rogers, Arkansas, Manhattan Beach and New York. It is led by CEO Justin Hayashi and president Jon White. Adweek ranked it 61st on its 2026 Fastest Growing Agencies list.

Paid social and paid search buying sit alongside creator programmes, affiliate marketing, creative production and measurement, mostly for consumer brands. Clients include Nordstrom, Coca-Cola, OREO, Everlane and Altra.

What to look for in a Seattle advertising agency

Decide first whether you need an agency that makes the work, places it, or does both. Several Seattle shops, including Copacino Fujikado, Hydrogen and PB&, run creative and media under one roof. Vision Media and Merlino Media Group only plan and buy, and Merlino also buys on behalf of other agencies, so a brand can pair a creative shop with a separate media partner.

Ask where the account will be run from. Seattle's largest advertisers often hire agencies whose lead teams sit in New York or Los Angeles, and multi-office agencies such as VML and Mekanism share work between cities. A local office can be the right choice even when the strategy is set elsewhere, provided you know who signs off on what.

Look at the media mix as well as the creative. Seattle's independents increasingly buy connected TV, retail media and paid social alongside broadcast and out-of-home, and the better ones show how they measure results across those channels. It is reasonable to ask for a recent example with the reporting that went with it.

Finally, check how the agency handles versions and approvals. A single campaign can run to dozens of cut-downs, sizes and channel variants, each reviewed by brand, legal and media teams. Agencies with one clear place for the latest files and a tidy record of who approved what tend to ship on schedule.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the best advertising agency in Seattle?

There is no single answer, as the right agency depends on the brief. On 2026 recognition, Copacino Fujikado says it was named Ad Age's 2026 Small Agency of the Year, Vision Media and New Engen both made Adweek's 2026 Fastest Growing Agencies list, and VML Seattle was named one of Washington's Best Workplaces.

What happened to Wunderman Thompson Seattle?

WPP merged Wunderman Thompson with VMLY&R in October 2023 to form VML. The Seattle office now trades as VML Seattle and works from Pioneer Square.

Do the big holding companies have advertising offices in Seattle?

WPP's VML does, in Pioneer Square. The office pages we checked for Ogilvy, McCann and Razorfish list no Seattle office. Many large Seattle advertisers are served from other cities or by in-house teams.

Which Seattle agencies only plan and buy media?

Vision Media on Mercer Island and Merlino Media Group in northeast Seattle are media-only. Add3 and New Engen focus on paid digital media, while Copacino Fujikado, Hydrogen and PB& combine media buying with creative.

What is the difference between an advertising agency and a creative agency?

The terms overlap. This page favours network offices and shops that make and place paid campaigns, while independent, idea-led studios are covered in the best creative agencies in Seattle.

Related lists

Advertising agencies in other cities: New York · Los Angeles · San Francisco · Portland · Chicago

More in Seattle: Creative agencies · Marketing agencies · Branding agencies · Social media agencies · Content studios · Photography studios

Run your agency on Fabric: Fabric for agencies · Fabric for commercials production · Best creative proofing tools