The first organized effort to verify circulation claims came in the United States. In 1914, advertisers, advertising agencies and publishers joined in a voluntary cooperative program, based on a common interest in reliable circulation data, to form the Audit Bureau of Circulations. In the 1920's and 1930's, several other countries established similar organizations. As advertising and publishing became more important in international marketing, bureaus to verify circulation were organized in various countries.

IFABC was founded in 1963. During the 13th International Advertising Association Congress held in Stockholm that year, audit bureau leaders met in a Circulation Conference and set up a Working Committee, which framed IFABC's Bylaws. These were adopted informally by delegates of ten organizations on May 29, 1963.

Every second year, a General Assembly of members is held. Assemblies have been held in New York, Paris, Munich, Copenhagen, London, Chicago, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro, Stockholm, Tokyo, Toronto, Buenos Aires, Lucerne, New Delhi, Berlin, Washington, D.C., Seville, Sydney, and Kuala Lumpur.

The 17 IFABC General Assembly held in Washington, DC, September 23-26, 1996, unanimously agreed to establish a Standards Committee for the development of a common set of minimum measurement and reporting standards for use by its members for World Wide Web traffic verification.

The guiding principle for each IFABC member is selfregulation, based on the conviction that whenever an industry is able to regulate itself with fairness to all concerned, control by government is unnecessary. The IFABC system of published standards, voluntary acceptance of standards by media, impartial circulation audits, and the resulting reliable facts, has proven to be a constructive force in international marketing.