Beyond its searchable interface, the Meta Ad Library publishes downloadable ad-spend reports and offers an API for bulk access to political and social-issue advertising data. This makes it possible to move from browsing individual ads to analysing spending and targeting at scale.
What's included
- Advertiser and funding-entity identifiers.
- Spend ranges and impression estimates.
- Targeting / audience summaries and the date ranges ads ran.
Typical uses
- Building spend timelines for advertisers around key dates.
- Comparing advertisers within a region.
- Feeding a structured investigation dataset, as in the investigating political ads workflow.
Notes and limitations
Access is subject to API terms, and coverage varies by country. Definitions of "political" differ from other platforms, so document caveats whenever you publish figures. For methodology, see the investigating political advertising guide; for the Google equivalent, see the Google political ads report.
Access
Download reports or apply for API access at the official source.
Frequently asked questions
What data is in the Meta Ad Library dataset?
For political and social-issue ads it includes advertiser and funding-entity identifiers, spend ranges, impression estimates, targeting and audience summaries, and the dates ads ran — available through downloadable reports and the Ad Library API.
Is the Meta ad data complete and comparable across countries?
No. Coverage and the definition of "political" vary by country, and enforcement is imperfect. Document these caveats and avoid comparing figures across platforms without noting their different definitions.