When do infinite scroll ads become an MFA signal?
Part of MFA avoidance
The short answer
Infinite scroll loads more content as the reader nears the bottom of the page, and each new block can carry new ad slots, so one visit can produce many impressions. It is an ordinary design for feeds and news. It becomes an MFA signal when unrelated articles load without end, slots never thin out, and visitors arrive through bought traffic.
Key takeaways
- Google describes infinite scroll as intuitive but notes it can cause scrolling fatigue because the size of the result set is unclear.
- Each auto loaded article can define new ad slots, and a URL change on each one is counted as a new page view by Google Analytics.
- The signal is not the scroll itself but what loads: unrelated stories, constant slot counts and no end point, combined with bought visits.
- Long sessions on one page can show the same campaign to one reader several times, so frequency needs watching on scroll heavy sites.
How does infinite scroll affect ad impressions?
Google's guide to pagination and incremental page loading (opens in a new tab), last updated in December 2025, names three patterns: pagination, load more buttons, and infinite scroll, "where a user can scroll to the end of the page to cause more content to be loaded." On a publisher site the third pattern can take two forms: a feed that keeps adding stories, or an article that is followed by the next article, and the next, without a click.
Definition
- Auto loading next article
- A page design in which reaching the end of one article loads another below it, and may change the address in the browser bar, so a reader can scroll through several articles in one visit without clicking a link.
Every new block of content is a chance to add ad slots. Google's publisher tag documents this with an infinite content sample (opens in a new tab) whose stated purpose is to "dynamically generate new ad content" as content is added. The sample also warns that "Making multiple SRA requests in parallel may result in competitive ads being displayed on the same page," which matters to buyers who expect competitive separation.
| Pattern | What loads as the reader scrolls | Effect on ad opportunities |
|---|---|---|
| Load more button | A further set of items after a click | New slots only when the reader asks for more |
| Infinite feed | More story cards, added automatically | Slots between cards keep appearing as long as the reader scrolls |
| Auto loading next article | A full new article below the current one | A new set of article slots each time, sometimes with a new page URL |
| Endless recommendation feed | Rows of sponsored and own site headlines after the article | Paid link units that never end, beside or between display slots |
When is infinite scroll a normal design choice?
Infinite scroll suits content that people browse rather than search: a news front, a photo feed, a sports live page. Google's guide calls the pattern intuitive and notes that partial loading improves experience because "the initial page load is faster than loading all results at once." It also names the cost: infinite scroll "can lead to 'scrolling fatigue' because of unclear result size."
A scroll page can load ads only when they are about to be seen. Google's ad best practices for the publisher tag (opens in a new tab) say "fetching and rendering should be deferred until the slots are close to entering the viewport," and the tag reference (opens in a new tab) gives lazy loading settings such as fetchMarginPercent, "The minimum distance from the current viewport a slot must be before we fetch the ad." Lazy loading reduces requests for ads nobody reaches, which works in the buyer's favor.
| What to look at | Ordinary design | Impression engine |
|---|---|---|
| What loads next | Related stories from the same section, or the next item in a feed the reader chose | Unrelated articles, or the same few templates in rotation |
| Ad spacing | Slots thin out or stop after a few articles | The same slot count repeats on every article, without end |
| When ads load | Lazily, as slots approach the screen | All at once or well ahead of the reader |
| Way out | A footer, a section page or a clear end of the feed | No footer is ever reached |
| How readers arrive | Search, the homepage, newsletters and the site's sections | Sponsored links and recommendation units on other sites |
When does auto loading content become an MFA signal?
The trade groups' 2023 definition, reprinted by the ANA (opens in a new tab), describes MFA sites through traits such as a high ad-to-content ratio, rapidly auto-refreshing placements and a high percentage of paid traffic, shown in some combination. Infinite scroll is not on the list, but it can deliver the same outcome as a slideshow or a refreshing slot: more auctions per bought visit, at no extra content cost. The slideshow guide covers the click version of the pattern and the ad refresh guide covers slots that reload in place.
Two further clues sharpen the call. First, the ad-to-content ratio can rise as the reader scrolls, if each loaded article is shorter than the last while the slots stay the same. Second, a reader who scrolls back up and then down may trigger new requests for slots already passed, which looks like refresh without being declared as refresh. Neither clue needs special tools; both need a reviewer to scroll for several minutes.
How can a buyer test a site's scroll behavior?
A five minute scroll test on one article
- Open an article on a phone and start a timer. Scroll at reading pace for five minutes without clicking anything.
- Count article transitions. Each time a new headline appears, note its topic and whether it relates to the first article.
- Watch the address bar. Note whether the URL changes with each new article and whether Back steps through them one by one.
- Count slots per article. On the first, third and fifth article, count the ad slots that load and note any that change while in view.
- Scroll back up. Note whether slots you already passed load new ads when they return to the screen.
- Look for an end. Record whether a footer, a section link or an end of feed message ever appears.
Scroll findings to save for each reviewed site
- The number of articles that loaded in five minutes, with their topics.
- Whether each auto loaded article changed the page URL.
- Slot counts on the first, third and fifth article.
- Whether passed slots requested new ads on the way back up.
- Whether the page ever reached a footer or a clear end.
- Screenshots of the first and last screens of the test.
The URL point matters for later checks. Google's 2014 infinite scroll recommendations (opens in a new tab) asked publishers to pair the feed with component pages that each carry a full URL and to use pushState, so each loaded article can be addressed on its own. Those addresses are what a buyer later sees in a served URL report.
How do infinite scroll impressions affect frequency?
A long scroll session gives one reader many slot requests on one domain, so the same campaign can win several of them within minutes. A campaign frequency cap limits how often one person sees the ads over a period, but it cannot tell a reader who returned on five days from one who scrolled through five articles in one sitting. The frequency capping guide explains how caps are set and where they leak.
| Data | What a long scroll session looks like |
|---|---|
| Publisher analytics, if shared | High page views per session, since Google Analytics sends a page view when the browser history state changes |
| Served URL report | Many article URLs per domain with similar, small impression counts |
| Frequency report | Several impressions per reader within one short window on one domain |
| Viewability report | Rates can stay high, since lazily loaded slots enter the screen as the reader scrolls |
The analytics row comes from Google's enhanced measurement documentation (opens in a new tab): page views are sent when "the browser history state is changed by the active site." A publisher reporting deep sessions may be reporting auto loaded articles. The same page also defines a scroll event as "the first time a user reaches the bottom of each page," which an endless page may never record. Ask what share of page views came from auto loaded articles before treating session depth as engagement.
What does a scroll review look like on a real brief?
Fictional example
A watch retailer's plan in West Virginia
An unnamed Charleston retailer of wristwatches and watch repair services asks its agency for an English display plan in Charleston, Morgantown and Huntington, beside local news, style and gift guide content. Several candidate news sites use auto loading articles, so the planner runs the scroll test on each.
A Morgantown news site loads the next local story below each article, from the same section. Slots drop from four on the first story to one on the third, and a footer appears after the fifth. The planner keeps the site and notes the pattern for frequency planning.
A lifestyle site loads unrelated articles for the full five minutes with four slots each, earlier slots request new ads on the way back up, and no footer appears. Its homepage links are sparse, and the planner finds the site promoted in sponsored link units elsewhere. The planner records the test and sends the site for exclusion with the evidence.
How does PlacementGraph check scroll and refresh behavior?
Frequently asked questions
Is infinite scroll the same as ad refresh?
No. Refresh requests a new ad for a slot that is already on the screen. Infinite scroll adds new slots as new content loads. Both raise impressions per visit, and a scroll page can do both, so a review should record new slots and reloading slots separately.
Does infinite scroll hurt viewability?
Not when ads load lazily, because slots request ads only as they near the screen. Viewability falls when a page requests ads far ahead of the reader or keeps slots the reader scrolled past. A high viewability rate on a scroll page still says nothing about whether the content was worth reading.
Can search engines see content behind infinite scroll?
Not always. Google's guide says its crawlers do not click buttons and generally do not trigger JavaScript functions, so content loaded only by scrolling may go unseen. That is one reason Google recommends a separate URL for each page of content, which also helps buyers trace served URLs.
Should a buyer exclude sites that use auto loading articles?
Not as a rule. Some news publishers use the design for related stories. Run the scroll test, and exclude only when unrelated articles, constant slot loads and bought traffic appear together. For borderline sites, watch frequency on that domain in the first week of the flight.
Sources
- Pagination, incremental page loading, and their impact on Google Search (last updated December 10, 2025) (opens in a new tab)Google Search Central
- Infinite scroll search-friendly recommendations (February 13, 2014) (opens in a new tab)Google Search Central Blog
- Infinite content sample (opens in a new tab)Google Publisher Tag, Google for Developers
- Ad best practices (opens in a new tab)Google Publisher Tag, Google for Developers
- Google Publisher Tag reference (opens in a new tab)Google for Developers
- Enhanced event measurement (opens in a new tab)Google Analytics Help
- Leading Trade Groups Define Made For Advertising Websites (opens in a new tab)ANA (Association of National Advertisers), September 26, 2023
Researched and written by PlacementGraph Research. Read how we research, source and update these pages. Corrections: diana@placementgraph.com.