Short answer: The Meta Ad Library is a free public search of the ads running on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Meta’s Audience Network. Anyone can open it at facebook.com/ads/library, pick a country and search a page name or a keyword. For most ads you see only what’s active right now. Ads about social issues, elections or politics show more, and the library keeps them for seven years, active or not.
What the Ad Library shows
| What you can see | Any active ad | Ads about social issues, elections or politics |
|---|---|---|
| The ad, its text and media | Yes | Yes |
| When it started and where it ran | Yes | Yes |
| Ads that stopped running | No | Yes, for seven years |
| Who paid for it | No | Yes, in the disclaimer |
| How much was spent | No | A range |
| Age, gender and location of viewers | No | Yes |
Ads run from Facebook Pages, so the Ad Library groups search results by page. The library also includes active and public branded content marked as a paid partnership on Facebook and Instagram.
From the Facebook Help Center, “What is the Meta Ad Library and how do I search it?” From the Meta Business Help Center, “About the Meta Ad Library”. Read November 3, 2026.
What a page’s ads tell you
When you open a page’s active ads, you see their media and text. Each ad shows the date it first appeared and icons for the apps it ran on. See ad details can include information from the page’s About section.
The page view also tells you when the page was created and whether it changed its name. That’s a quick way to check who is behind an ad.
How to search the Ad Library
- Go to facebook.com/ads/library.
- Select the country you want to look at.
- In the ad category menu, select All ads.
- Type a page name or a keyword in the search bar.
- Filter the results by platform, such as Instagram, or by the period when the ads had impressions.
- Read the top of each ad for its start date and apps, and open See ad details for more.
- To keep an ad, select Options and then Copy ad link.
Our guides on how to run Facebook ads and on ad targeting cover what you can do with what you find.
What it shows for our own page
At 1:33 AM on November 3 we searched our own Facebook page in the Ad Library, for the United States and all ads, filtered to active ads. It showed “No ads match your search criteria”.
That matches our two Meta ad accounts, which had no active ads that night. A business that says it runs ads but shows nothing has paused them, runs them from another page or runs them in another country.
Before you study a competitor’s ads
- You chose the country where the ads run.
- The ad category is set to All ads.
- You searched the page name, not only a keyword.
- You filtered by the platform you care about.
- You saved the ads you want with Copy ad link.
- You remember that only active ads show, except political ones.
RememberThe Ad Library shows what a page is running right now, on which apps and since when. Spend, reach and past ads appear only for ads about social issues, elections or politics.
If you want us to look at your competitors’ ads and plan yours, see our Meta Ads service.
Quick answers about the Meta Ad Library
Do I need a Facebook account to use the Ad Library?
No. Meta says anyone can view and search the Ad Library. You do need to be logged in to Facebook and agree to the Terms of Service to download Ad Library searches.
Can I see how much a competitor spends on ads?
Only for ads about social issues, elections or politics. For those, the Ad Library shows a range for the amount spent and for impressions, not the exact numbers. For other ads it shows the ad itself, not its budget.
Can I see ads a page ran in the past?
For most ads, no: you can search the ads that are active right now. Ads about social issues, elections or politics stay in the library, active or inactive, for seven years.
Does the Ad Library show Instagram ads too?
Yes. You can filter a page’s active ads by platform: Facebook, Instagram, Messenger or Meta’s Audience Network. That way you can see only the ads a competitor runs on Instagram.
Why can’t I see the image of some ads?
If an ad includes certain age-restricted content, such as alcohol or gambling, Meta doesn’t show the ad creative to people who are underage or not logged into Facebook.
Sources
Read on November 3, 2026. Facebook Help Center: What is the Meta Ad Library and how do I search it? Meta Business Help Center: About the Meta Ad Library. Our own case: our page in the Ad Library and our two ad accounts, on November 3, 2026.