Dolby Laboratories advertising spend, FY2025

Dolby Laboratories (DLB) reported $51M of advertising expense for the fiscal year ended Sep 26, 2025. That is 3.8% of revenue of $1.3B. Down 11.0% from FY2024.

Ad spend, FY2025
$51M
year ended Sep 26, 2025
Change vs prior year
-11.0%
vs FY2024
Share of revenue
3.8%
of $1.3B revenue
Rank by ad spend
#453
of 458 companies

Key facts

  • Ad spend is 1.1x its FY2015 level ($46.2M), slower than revenue (1.4x).
  • The highest year on file is FY2020 at $61.1M; FY2025 is 17% below it.
  • Largest increase +64.4% in FY2013; largest cut -14.5% in FY2021.
  • Ad spend has fallen 2 years in a row.
  • Ad spend is 3.8% of revenue, down from 5.3% in FY2020.
  • Dolby Laboratories spends more on advertising than 1% of the 458 US-listed companies tracked. Its ad-to-revenue ratio is below the median of 4.6%.

Ad spend by fiscal year

$0 $20M $40M $60M $80M FY2009 (ended 2009-09-25): $9.7M FY2010 (ended 2010-09-24): $14.6M 2010 FY2011 (ended 2011-09-30): $13.6M FY2012 (ended 2012-09-28): $20M FY2013 (ended 2013-09-27): $32.8M 2013 FY2014 (ended 2014-09-26): $37.9M FY2015 (ended 2015-09-25): $46.2M FY2016 (ended 2016-09-30): $44.2M 2016 FY2017 (ended 2017-09-29): $47.4M FY2018 (ended 2018-09-28): $49.5M FY2019 (ended 2019-09-27): $49.1M 2019 FY2020 (ended 2020-09-25): $61.1M FY2021 (ended 2021-09-24): $52.3M FY2022 (ended 2022-09-30): $51.4M 2022 FY2023 (ended 2023-09-29): $59.8M FY2024 (ended 2024-09-27): $57.3M FY2025 (ended 2025-09-26): $51M 2025 $51M

Ad spend as % of revenue

0% 2% 4% 6% FY2009 (ended 2009-09-25): 1.3% FY2010 (ended 2010-09-24): 1.6% 2010 FY2011 (ended 2011-09-30): 1.4% FY2012 (ended 2012-09-28): 2.1% FY2013 (ended 2013-09-27): 3.6% 2013 FY2014 (ended 2014-09-26): 3.9% FY2015 (ended 2015-09-25): 4.8% FY2016 (ended 2016-09-30): 4.3% 2016 FY2017 (ended 2017-09-29): 4.4% FY2018 (ended 2018-09-28): 4.7% FY2019 (ended 2019-09-27): 4.0% 2019 FY2020 (ended 2020-09-25): 5.3% FY2021 (ended 2021-09-24): 4.1% FY2022 (ended 2022-09-30): 4.1% 2022 FY2023 (ended 2023-09-29): 4.6% FY2024 (ended 2024-09-27): 4.5% FY2025 (ended 2025-09-26): 3.8% 2025 3.8%

History

Download CSV
Fiscal year Period end Ad spend YoY Revenue Ad / revenue Tag Filing
FY2025 Sep 26, 2025 $51M -11.0% $1.3B 3.8% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 18, 2025
FY2024 Sep 27, 2024 $57.3M -4.2% $1.3B 4.5% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 18, 2025
FY2023 Sep 29, 2023 $59.8M +16.3% $1.3B 4.6% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 18, 2025
FY2022 Sep 30, 2022 $51.4M -1.6% $1.3B 4.1% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 19, 2024
FY2021 Sep 24, 2021 $52.3M -14.5% $1.3B 4.1% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 17, 2023
FY2020 Sep 25, 2020 $61.1M +24.4% $1.2B 5.3% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 18, 2022
FY2019 Sep 27, 2019 $49.1M -0.8% $1.2B 4.0% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 17, 2021
FY2018 Sep 28, 2018 $49.5M +4.5% $1.1B 4.7% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 16, 2020
FY2017 Sep 29, 2017 $47.4M +7.2% $1.1B 4.4% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 25, 2019
FY2016 Sep 30, 2016 $44.2M -4.3% $1B 4.3% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 15, 2018
FY2015 Sep 25, 2015 $46.2M +21.9% $971M 4.8% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 16, 2017
FY2014 Sep 26, 2014 $37.9M +15.4% $960M 3.9% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 18, 2016
FY2013 Sep 27, 2013 $32.8M +64.4% $910M 3.6% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 24, 2015
FY2012 Sep 28, 2012 $20M +46.8% $933M 2.1% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 18, 2014
FY2011 Sep 30, 2011 $13.6M -6.8% $961M 1.4% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 15, 2013
FY2010 Sep 24, 2010 $14.6M +50.5% $923M 1.6% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 15, 2012
FY2009 Sep 25, 2009 $9.7M n/a $720M 1.3% AdvertisingExpense 10-K Nov 23, 2011

What the figure is

Advertising costs as disclosed in the annual report (XBRL tag AdvertisingExpense).

Compared with similar spenders

The 6 companies closest to Dolby Laboratories in latest-year ad spend.

Rank Company Ad spend Ad / revenue YoY Fiscal year
449 Klaviyo $51.8M 4.2% +12.9% FY2025
450 Exelixis $51.7M 2.2% +18.9% FY2026
451 Lindblad Expeditions $51.7M 6.7% +31.2% FY2025
452 ThredUp $51.1M 16.4% +23.1% FY2025
453 Dolby Laboratories $51M 3.8% -11.0% FY2025
454 OppFi $50.9M 13.4% +3.4% FY2025
455 Biomarin Pharmaceutical $50.5M 1.6% +46.4% FY2025

Full ranking of 458 companies · Biggest cuts #41

Questions

How much does Dolby Laboratories spend on advertising?

Dolby Laboratories spent $51M on advertising in fiscal 2025, the year ended Sep 26, 2025, according to its 10-K filed Nov 18, 2025.

What percentage of revenue does Dolby Laboratories spend on advertising?

3.8% of revenue in fiscal 2025 ($51M of $1.3B). The median across the 458 companies tracked is 4.6%.

Is Dolby Laboratories spending more on advertising?

No. Ad spend fell 11.0% in fiscal 2025 from fiscal 2024. It has fallen 2 years in a row.

How does Dolby Laboratories rank by advertising spend?

#453 of 458 US-listed companies with $50M or more in ad spend, ranked on each company's latest fiscal year.

What does Dolby Laboratories's advertising figure include?

Advertising costs as disclosed in the annual report (XBRL tag AdvertisingExpense).

Source

Filing
10-K for FY2025, filed Nov 18, 2025
Accession number
0001308547-25-000007
Company
Dolby Laboratories, Inc., CIK 1308547, SIC 6794 (Patent Owners & Lessors)
Data
SEC EDGAR XBRL company facts, retrieved Nov 4, 2026. Methodology.
Cite
Dolby Laboratories advertising spend, FY2009-FY2025. Aleksei Trudov, io.trudov.com, from SEC EDGAR XBRL company facts (latest: 10-K filed Nov 18, 2025), retrieved Nov 4, 2026. https://io.trudov.com/company/dolby-laboratories/advertising-spend/
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CSV, all years · CSV, all 458 companies