The IAB In-Store Measurement Framework, Explained

In-store retail media has had a measurement problem since the first screen went up in a grocery aisle. The channel drives real sales — studies consistently show that proximity to purchase is one of the strongest targeting advantages in media — but proving it, in a way that satisfies a CFO or a skeptical CMO, has been genuinely hard.

In December 2025, the IAB released a framework specifically designed to fix that. It's the first industry-wide attempt to standardize how in-store media is measured, audited, and reported. For brands running or planning in-store media, it changes the baseline expectation for what measurement should look like.

Here's what it actually says, without the trade press spin.

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"The IAB's in-store media measurement framework establishes the first industry-wide standards for evaluating physical retail media." — IAB, December 2025

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Why in-store measurement was broken before this

Every retail media network had its own measurement methodology. Impression counting methods varied — some counted potential impressions based on foot traffic estimates, some counted screen-on time, some used camera-based attention measurement. There was no standard definition of what an "impression" even meant in a physical retail environment.

The result: a brand running in-store media at Kroger, Walmart, and Walgreens was receiving three completely different measurement reports, with three different impression definitions, three different attribution methodologies, and no reliable way to compare performance across networks or to benchmark against digital media.

The IAB framework doesn't solve every problem. But it establishes shared definitions that, as networks adopt them, will make cross-network comparison possible for the first time.

The framework's three-tier measurement model

The IAB framework organizes measurement maturity into three tiers. Understanding where a network sits in this model tells you how seriously to take their measurement claims.

1. Tier 1 — Basic: Impression counting using standardized traffic-based methodology. The network can tell you how many shoppers had the opportunity to see the ad. This is a floor, not a ceiling, but it's a consistent floor across networks that adopt the standard.
2. Tier 2 — Intermediate: Adds attention measurement (time-in-view, dwell time near the display) and basic sales correlation at the category or product level. This is where most advanced RMNs currently operate.
3. Tier 3 — Advanced: Full matched-market or test-and-control incrementality measurement at the store level, with statistically significant holdout groups and clean attribution to in-store media specifically. Albertsons Media Collective launched this level of measurement in January 2026 — one of the first networks to do so.

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→ Data & Analytics  —  agencyfiveeighty.com/data-analytics

→ Did the Ad Sell Anything?  —  agencyfiveeighty.com/retail-media-incrementality

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What this means for brands running in-store media now

The immediate practical implication: you now have a standard to hold networks accountable to. Before your next in-store media activation, ask the network where they sit in the IAB's three-tier model. If they can't answer, or if the answer is Tier 1, you're spending money you can't properly measure.

Networks that have adopted the IAB framework will tell you clearly. Networks that haven't will talk around it. The tell is whether they can specify their impression definition — is it opportunity-to-see based on traffic data, attention-based using device sensors, or verified-view based on camera measurement? These are not trick questions. A network with real measurement infrastructure can answer them.

The Albertsons benchmark and what it sets

Albertsons Media Collective's launch of matched-market incrementality for in-store media in January 2026 is worth paying attention to. It's not just a measurement upgrade for one network — it's a proof of concept that Tier 3 measurement is operationally achievable in physical retail at scale.

As other networks see that the bar has been raised, and as brands start demanding comparable rigor, the industry standard will gradually shift upward. The brands that build incrementality measurement into their in-store media planning now will have baseline data that makes those future conversations much easier.

The brands that don't will be starting from zero when their CFO eventually asks why in-store media is in the budget.

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