Facebook Ad Library: How to See Your Competitors' Meta Ads

By Thisura, founder of Run1Ads · 2026-10-28

Quick answer

The Facebook Ad Library, now called the Meta Ad Library, is a free public tool at facebook.com/ads/library where you can see every ad a competitor is currently running on Facebook, Instagram and Meta's other apps. Pick a country, choose "All ads", type the competitor's Page name, and filter to active ads. You will see the creative, the copy and the date each ad started running. You will not see spend, clicks or sales for normal shopping ads in most countries, so treat what you find as ideas to test, not proof of what works.

What is the Meta Ad Library?

Meta's help center describes the Ad Library as "a place where you can search for ads that are running across Meta Products." It is built for transparency, so you do not need an ad account, and JumpFly notes you do not even need to be logged in to Facebook.

Meta's help center draws a clear line between two kinds of ads:

• All ads: you can search ads that are currently active.
• Ads about issues, elections or politics: you can also search inactive ads, and Meta shows who paid, a range of spend and reach by demographics. Meta keeps these for 7 years.

Most e-commerce ads fall in the first group. That is the main limit store owners run into.

How do I search the Facebook Ad Library for a competitor?

1. Go to facebook.com/ads/library.
2. Choose the country your competitor sells in. Their US ads and UK ads can differ.
3. Set the ad category to "All ads".
4. Type the competitor's brand name and pick their Facebook Page from the drop down, rather than running a keyword search. This shows ads from that Page only.
5. Use the filters to narrow the list. JumpFly lists status, active or inactive, platform, media type and run dates.
6. Set the platform filter to Instagram if that is where your buyers are, or leave all platforms on.
7. Click "Save search" so you can come back each week.

A Facebook Ad Library search is free, and the same tool covers Instagram ads, so there is no separate Instagram ads library to check. If you do not know your competitors yet, a keyword search for your product type shows who else is advertising it.

What can you see in the Meta Ad Library, and what can't you?

What you can see for a normal shopping ad:

• The image or video, the main text, headline and call to action button.
• The date the ad started running.
• Which Meta apps it runs on.
• Whether it is active right now.

What you cannot see in most countries:

• How much the advertiser spent.
• Impressions, clicks, purchases or ROAS.
• Who the ad is targeted at.

The EU difference. Meta gives more detail for ads that reach people in the European Union. Meta's Ad Library API documentation says these ads stay in the library while active and are archived for one year after their last impression. It also lists estimated reach in the EU, with breakdowns by age, gender and location. If your competitor sells in Europe, set the country to an EU market to see more history and a rough sense of reach. Spend is still not shown for ordinary commercial ads.

Meta's help center also notes that ads can be removed from the library in limited cases, such as serious Community Standards violations or a valid government request.

Do long running ads mean an ad is winning?

They are a hint, not proof. Most stores turn off ads that lose money, so an ad that has been active for many weeks is more likely to be paying its way than one launched yesterday. That makes the start date the most useful clue in the library.

There are good reasons to doubt it, though:

• You cannot see spend. A long running ad could be on a tiny budget.
• Some brands leave ads on by mistake or keep a brand video running all year.
• The ad might work for their offer, price and audience, not yours.
• The library does not show results, so you cannot tell a winner from an ad nobody has reviewed.

A stronger signal is when a competitor keeps launching new versions of the same idea: the same hook with new faces, or the same offer in new formats. Repetition suggests they are getting results from that angle.

How do I turn what I see into tests for my own ads?

Copying a competitor's ad rarely works. Borrow the idea, then test it with your own product.

1. List their angles. For each long running ad, write one line: the hook, the offer and the format. For example, "price comparison, free shipping, short video".
2. Spot gaps. If every competitor shows discounts, an angle about quality or reviews could stand out.
3. Pick two or three ideas and make your own version of each, with your product, photos and proof.
4. Test them together in one campaign so Meta can compare them on equal terms, rather than in many small ad sets.
5. Give each test about a week and judge by purchases and ROAS, not likes.
6. Check the library again weekly. New ads from a competitor often mean a new offer or a new product launch.

This is creative testing grounded in what the market is already running, which is cheaper than guessing from scratch.

How do I know if a competitor's ads are taking my sales?

The Ad Library cannot tell you that on its own. Your own numbers can.

1. Note the date a competitor launches a big new offer or a wave of new ads.
2. In Ads Manager, check your CPM, click through rate and purchases for the week before and after.
3. In your store, pull orders and sessions from Meta for the same days.
4. Work out ROAS from real orders: store revenue from the period divided by Meta spend.
5. If your CPM rises and your store orders fall while your own ads did not change, a competitor push is a likely cause. If store orders hold, the change may be noise.

Key facts

• The Meta Ad Library is free at facebook.com/ads/library and works without an ad account.
• For all ads, Meta lets you search ads that are currently active.
• Ads about issues, elections or politics show spend ranges and reach, and Meta keeps them for 7 years.
• Ads that reach people in the EU are archived for one year after their last impression, according to Meta's API documentation, with estimated EU reach by age, gender and location.
• Spend, clicks and sales are not shown for ordinary commercial ads.

FAQ

Is the Facebook Ad Library free?

Yes. Anyone can use it at facebook.com/ads/library without paying or running ads. Meta also offers an Ad Library API for researchers.

Can I see how much a competitor spends on Meta ads?

Not for normal shopping ads in most countries. Meta shows spend ranges only for ads about social issues, elections or politics. For EU delivered ads you get estimated reach, but still not spend.

Can I see a competitor's old ads?

Usually only their active ads, unless the ads reached people in the EU, where Meta archives them for one year after the last impression. That is why saving a search and checking weekly helps.

Is there a tool that watches competitors' Meta ads for me?

Run1Ads is a live Meta ads consultant for e-commerce brands. It watches competitors' public Meta ads and tells you what changed, and it reads your own ad account through the official Marketing API, read only, checking your ads, Pixel and store every hour to tell you the one fix that matters today with exact steps and what it could be worth in dollars. It advises only and never changes your ads unless you ask.

Related reading

• How Marketing Agencies Research Competitors Before Planning Content
• How Many Creatives Does Meta's Andromeda Algorithm Need?
• How to Make UGC Ads That Convert in 2026 (Full Playbook)

Run1Ads is a live Meta ads consultant for e-commerce brands. It checks your ads, Pixel and store every hour and tells you the one fix that matters today. See the live demo or start free, no card needed.