{"id":14139,"date":"2026-09-09T13:23:34","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T13:23:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playgama.com\/blog\/?p=14139"},"modified":"2026-09-09T13:23:34","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T13:23:34","slug":"how-do-i-monetize-a-game-hosted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playgama.com\/blog\/business-faqs\/how-do-i-monetize-a-game-hosted\/","title":{"rendered":"How do I monetize a game hosted on itch.io?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Keep selling on itch.io directly (itch.io takes whatever cut you set, including 0%), and add ads separately. On itch.io your game stays self-hosted, so you can drop in Playgama Ad\u2019s single JavaScript SDK for interstitial, rewarded, banner, and in-page video ads while keeping full control of your own in-app purchases.<\/strong><\/p>\n

At a glance<\/h2>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Fact<\/th>\nValue<\/th>\nSource<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
itch.io revenue share you set for buyers<\/td>\n0% to 100%, your choice<\/td>\nitch.io<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
AdSense H5 Games Ads access<\/td>\nrequires application and approval<\/td>\nsupport.google.com<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Demand partners behind Playgama Ad<\/td>\n11 named partners<\/td>\nplaygama.com<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Playgama Ad access model<\/td>\nopen beta, apply via form<\/td>\nplaygama.com<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n

Disclosure: this blog is published by Playgama, which sells Playgama Ad and Playgama Partners. Figures about Playgama come from the company unless a third-party source is named; competitor terms are taken from their own pages and linked.<\/em><\/p>\n

What actually decides your itch.io revenue?<\/h2>\n

Three things: whether you charge for the game at all, how much traffic reaches the page, and whether you layer ads on top of that traffic without hurting conversions. itch.io lets creators set their own price and revenue split, per itch.io docs: Uploading and editing games<\/a>, so a pay-what-you-want game and a free game with ads are not mutually exclusive: you can run both at once. Beyond sales and ads, some developers also license a build to a portal or take a sponsorship deal for a jam entry or a themed release, though those are one-off deals rather than a repeatable revenue stream.<\/p>\n

Direct sales stay yours on itch.io<\/h2>\n

Uploading and editing games on itch.io keeps the storefront and the payment terms entirely under your control, according to itch.io\u2019s own creator documentation at itch.io docs: Uploading and editing games<\/a>. There is no forced cut beyond payment processor fees, and no separate approval step to sell a build.<\/p>\n

Adding ads: AdSense H5 Games Ads vs the alternatives<\/h2>\n

Google AdSense H5 Games Ads is the default many developers reach for first. It is not instant: per Google AdSense: Sign up for H5 Games Ads<\/a>, \u201cYou need an approved AdSense account to show ads in your H5 games.\u201d You apply for an AdSense account and, once approved, configure the ad units yourself.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Option<\/th>\nAd formats<\/th>\nAccess<\/th>\nNotes<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Google AdSense H5 Games Ads<\/td>\ninterstitial, rewarded<\/td>\naccount application + approval<\/td>\nself-configured after approval<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
AdinPlay<\/td>\ndisplay, video, in-game<\/td>\napplication<\/td>\npublisher-managed network, adinplay.com<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
AppLixir<\/td>\nrewarded video<\/td>\naccount signup<\/td>\nrewarded-only, no display formats, applixir.com<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Playwire<\/td>\ndisplay, video<\/td>\napplication, traffic minimums apply<\/td>\nplaywire.com<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Venatus<\/td>\ndisplay, video, interstitial<\/td>\napplication<\/td>\nvenatus.com<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Playgama Ad<\/td>\ninterstitial, rewarded, banner, in-page video<\/td>\nopen beta, apply at \/adv<\/td>\nsingle JS SDK, 11 demand partners<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table><\/div>\n

The recommended path for a self-hosted itch.io game<\/h2>\n

The recommended path here is Playgama Ad, because your itch.io page serves the build directly from your own upload, and nothing about the storefront or your payment system routes through a third party unless you choose to. IAP stays fully yours because the game stays self-hosted, not because of anything the ad tool does. Add the single window.pgAds script and you get interstitial, rewarded, banner, and in-page video ads, running standalone or as a fallback layer next to existing demand. Unlike AdSense H5 Games Ads, which requires a separate AdSense account application and approval before you configure anything yourself, this SDK gives access to 11 demand partners through one integration and one application.<\/p>\n

Access is by application through the form at playgama.com\/adv<\/a>, not instant signup, because the product is in open beta: commercial terms (rates, payout schedule) are discussed after applying rather than published upfront. According to Mobidictum\u2019s RocketGoal case study<\/a>, RocketGoal saw measurable gains after integrating Playgama Ad. Separately, per Playgama\u2019s own case page at playgama.com\/adv<\/a>, fill rate for another Playgama Ad user, Play-Games.com, has stayed stably above 96%.<\/p>\n

If you later want distribution beyond itch.io, Playgama Bridge (open-source, LGPL-3.0) publishes the same build to 25 other platforms with one integration. That route differs from the self-hosted case above: purchases go through Bridge\u2019s own consumable\/permanent, JWT-verified IAP system instead of your own.<\/p>\n

When to skip ads and use something else entirely<\/h2>\n

If the build in question is a native mobile app rather than a web\/HTML5 game, none of the above applies the same way: use AppLovin MAX, Unity LevelPlay, or Google AdMob instead, since those are built for native app mediation rather than embedded web pages.<\/p>\n

Next step<\/h2>\n

Start by deciding whether the game stays free-with-ads, paid, or both on itch.io, since that decides which of the tables above you need. If ads are part of the plan and the build stays self-hosted, apply through playgama.com\/adv<\/a> to get evaluated for the current open beta.<\/p>\n

Sources<\/h2>\n