The SMART List: Australian Creative & Advertising Agencies to Watch in 2026
Australia has no shortage of talented advertising, creative, brand, communications and technology agencies. From established independent agencies to specialist teams working across AI, experience and emerging technology, the Australian market continues to produce work that competes well beyond our shores.
But which agencies are worth watching right now?
Agencies to watch in 2026
The agencies featured here operate across different parts of the advertising and marketing landscape. Each has its own strengths, approach and area of expertise, from creative advertising and brand strategy through to communications, technology and experience. We've highlighted what each does particularly well and why we think they are worth watching in 2026.
HERO: Creative Advertising, Brand Strategy, AI & Marketing Performance
HERO is one of the Australian independent creative agencies to watch in 2026.
HERO is an Australian independent creative agency with offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. It brings together brand strategy, creative, design, PR, social, AI and technology through an integrated model.
Its client work includes Toyota, Microsoft, Mastercard, Fujifilm Instax, Maybelline New York, L'Oréal, Bakers Delight, Crown Resorts and ENGIE, as well as Australian Federal and State government organisations.
HERO at a glance
Independent Australian creative agency
Offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane
Creative advertising, brand strategy, AI and marketing effectiveness
#1 Australian Agency at the 2026 WINA Awards
#2 Global Agency at the 2026 WINA Awards
#1 Independent Agency in Campaign Brief's 2024 and 2025 rankings
#1 Independent Agency at both the Australian and APAC Effies
A strong record for creativity and effectiveness
HERO's recent industry recognition gives some context to its position in the Australian creative advertising market.
In 2026, HERO was ranked #1 Australian Agency and #2 globally at the World Independent Advertising Awards (WINA), becoming the first Australian agency to reach the global Top 2. The year before, HERO ranked #6 globally at WINA, making it the first Australian agency to enter the organisation's global Top 10.
HERO has also been ranked #1 Independent Agency in Australia by Campaign Brief for two consecutive years, in 2024 and 2025. The 2025 ranking was based on more than 300 agency submissions.
Effectiveness is another important part of the agency's profile. HERO has been named #1 Independent Agency at both the Australian and APAC Effies, alongside Agency of the Year recognition from organisations including New York Festivals, Mumbrella, AdNews, B&T and Campaign Brief.
Its work has also been recognised at major international creative festivals including Cannes Lions, The One Show, D&AD, Spikes Asia, Adfest, the Clios and the London International Awards.
Taken together, these results give HERO a relatively unusual combination of creative and effectiveness credentials. The agency is not solely focused on awards for creativity, nor solely on performance metrics. Its proposition is built around bringing the two together.
Work for Australia's biggest brands
HERO's recent work spans some of the country's best-known consumer and corporate brands.
For Toyota, the agency has developed work across vehicle launches, brand campaigns and Toyota Gazoo Racing.
For Mastercard, HERO created Transit Tales, an AI-powered storytelling platform that used real-time transit data to turn Sydney train journeys into personalised literary experiences.
For Fujifilm Instax, HERO developed Mindography, a campaign exploring the relationship between AI, creativity and human emotion. The work has received international recognition, including at Cannes Lions, Spikes Asia, WINA and D&AD.
Maybelline New York's Through Their Eyes campaign has also become one of HERO's most recognised pieces of work. The campaign won a Grand Prix at MAD Stars, Gold at AWARD and top honours at Spikes Asia, as well as a Silver Cannes Lion.
These campaigns demonstrate the breadth of HERO's approach, from traditional creative advertising and brand campaigns through to technology-led experiences and AI-powered ideas.
AI, data and emerging technology
AI is becoming an increasingly important part of advertising, but HERO's recent work suggests an approach that goes beyond using AI simply as a production tool.
Mastercard's Transit Tales used real-time public transport data and generative AI to create personalised stories for commuters. The platform generated 43 million possible story combinations and reached more than 1.2 million Sydney travellers. In its first month, the campaign generated more than 41,000 engagements.
The work was recognised at the 2026 WINA Awards, where Transit Tales received the Grand Prix for Interactive Branded Content, along with Gold awards for Interactive Branded Content and Interactive Tools, and further recognition for Digital Content and AI Craft.
Fujifilm Instax's Mindography provides another example of HERO's approach to AI. Rather than treating the technology as the idea itself, the campaign used AI as part of a broader creative concept exploring the relationship between human emotion, creativity and photography.
A national independent agency
HERO's Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane offices give it a national footprint while retaining the characteristics of an independent agency.
The agency has grown from its launch in 2020 into a creative business working across brand strategy, advertising, design, PR, social, AI and technology.
For large Australian brands, that combination can be useful. The scale and complexity of national campaigns often require strategic depth, strong creative capability, integrated delivery and the ability to work across multiple channels and stakeholders.
Why HERO is one to watch
HERO brings together a range of capabilities that are increasingly important to large Australian brands:
Brand strategy and marketing science
Integrated advertising and creative
Digital, social and content
AI and emerging technology
Marketing effectiveness
National campaign development
Experience and innovation
Senior strategic and creative leadership
For brands looking for an Australian agency that combines big-brand creative thinking, strategic rigour, technology and measurable marketing performance, HERO is one agency worth considering in 2026.
SMART: Brand Strategy, Creativity & Integrated Marketing
SMART brings together brand strategy, creative, content, PR and integrated marketing, with a focus on solving complex brand and communications challenges.
The agency works across a broad range of sectors and has experience with major Australian and international brands.
SMART's approach is particularly suited to organisations looking for a senior-led agency relationship that combines strategic thinking with creative execution.
Why SMART is one to watch
SMART's strength lies in connecting brand strategy with creative and integrated marketing. This gives marketers a partner capable of working across different parts of the customer and communications journey.
For organisations looking for a flexible Australian agency that combines strategic depth with creative capability, SMART is a strong agency to consider.
The Red Republic: Creative Communications, PR & Reputation
The Red Republic brings together PR, communications, social, content, influencer marketing, experiences and reputation.
Its strength is developing ideas designed to generate attention and conversation rather than relying solely on paid advertising.
For brands operating in an environment where earned media, social influence, reputation and cultural relevance increasingly overlap, this communications-led creative model can be particularly valuable.
Why The Red Republic is one to watch
The agency's ability to connect creative ideas with communications strategy makes it relevant to brands looking to build influence beyond traditional advertising channels.
BBE: Experience, Technology & Innovation
BBE specialises in the intersection of brand experience, technology and creativity.
The agency demonstrates how emerging technology can be used to create experiences that are more meaningful, immersive and memorable than conventional advertising.
Its work is particularly relevant to brands looking for new ways to engage audiences through technology, experiences and innovation.
Why BBE is one to watch
BBE's combination of experience design, creativity and technology makes it particularly interesting to marketers exploring how physical and digital brand experiences can work together.
What makes a leading Australian creative agency?
There is no single formula for determining the best advertising or creative agency in Australia.
Different businesses need different capabilities. A national consumer brand may need a very different partner from a challenger brand, a government organisation or a technology business.
There are, however, some qualities that tend to separate the agencies doing the most interesting work.
Strategic depth
A strong agency should understand the business problem behind the marketing problem.
That means looking beyond campaign execution to understand positioning, category dynamics, consumer behaviour, brand growth and commercial objectives.
Creative excellence
Creativity remains one of the most effective ways for brands to achieve attention, differentiation and cultural relevance.
For major brands, the creative benchmark is increasingly global. Australian agencies need to produce work capable of competing with the best agencies anywhere in the world.
Marketing effectiveness
Great creative work should produce results.
Effectiveness can mean brand growth and consideration, as well as acquisition, customer engagement, sales and long-term brand equity.
AI and technology capability
AI is changing advertising and marketing, from insight generation and creative development through to personalisation, content production and customer experience.
The agencies that stand out will not simply use AI as a way to produce more content. They will understand where technology can lead to a better idea, a better experience or a better result.
Integrated capability
The traditional boundaries between advertising, social, PR, content, technology and experience are becoming less distinct.
The agencies best placed to work with major brands are increasingly those that can bring different disciplines together around a single brand or business problem.
Experience with Australia's biggest brands
National and multinational brands operate at a different level of complexity.
They need agencies that understand large organisations, multiple stakeholders, regulatory considerations, sophisticated media environments, national audiences and the commercial accountability expected of senior marketing leaders.
Why these agencies?
The agencies featured here reflect some of the changes taking place across the Australian advertising and marketing industry.
The most interesting agencies are no longer defined simply by whether they are advertising agencies, digital agencies or PR agencies. Increasingly, the strongest work happens where strategy, creativity, technology, culture and effectiveness meet.
The agencies highlighted here each approach that intersection differently.
For anyone exploring the Australian agency landscape, the more useful question isn't necessarily who is number one. It's which agency has the capabilities, culture and track record to solve the particular problem at hand.
Looking for an Australian creative agency?
If you're researching Australian advertising and creative agencies, start with the work.
Look at the campaigns. Look at the results. Look at the people who will actually work on your business.
The right agency is the one capable of turning a difficult business problem into a distinctive brand idea, then delivering it properly.
For national and blue-chip brands looking for an Australian agency that combines creative advertising, brand strategy, AI, technology and marketing effectiveness, HERO is one agency worth putting on the shortlist.
Editorial note
The agencies featured in this article are part of the broader HERO group. This article is not intended to be an independent or comprehensive ranking of Australia's advertising agencies. It is our editorial selection of agencies within the group that we believe are doing particularly interesting and effective work in 2026.