First-look

First-look is a priority right that lets chosen buyers bid on an impression before it is offered to the wider auction, usually at or above a floor the publisher sets for them.

The term covers several set-ups. Google Ad Manager uses it for a specific transaction type: First Look transactions are auction-based deals for specific inventory with specific buyers, who bid against a floor the publisher configures with rules. For billing and revenue share, Google counts them as Open Auction transactions (Google Ad Manager Help, accessed 9 November 2026). The same page separates them from Preferred Deals, which are fixed-price, pre-auction deals negotiated with specific buyers.

For a buyer, first look means access to inventory before competitors, without a commitment to buy. For a publisher, it rewards a valued partner but can cost money: if the floor is set too low, the first-look buyer wins impressions that others would have paid more for. Publishers therefore review first-look floors against open-auction clearing prices.

Example: A publisher gives a large agency first look at its business section with a $9 floor. On most impressions the agency bids $9 to $11 and wins. When it passes, the impression goes to the open auction, where the median clearing price that month is $6.40.

Related terms: preferred deal, last-look, PMP, floor price, open auction, programmatic guaranteed.

Authoritative source: Google Ad Manager Help, "Transaction types", entry "First Look" (accessed 9 November 2026).

Read the full guide: Programmatic guaranteed vs PMP vs preferred deal vs open auction.