Meta Ad Library – Single Ad Lookup

Look up one Facebook or Instagram ad by its Meta Ad Library ID. Extract available ad copy, image and video URLs, advertiser details, landing-page links, CTA, dates, and platforms into a structured result.

Already have an ad saved from competitor research? This focused Meta Ad Library scraper turns its Library ID into data you can use in a spreadsheet, creative research database, or API workflow. No Facebook login or Meta developer token is required. Calling the actor through the Apify API requires your Apify token.

How to look up a Facebook ad by Ad Library ID

1. Open the ad in the Meta Ad Library.
2. Copy its numeric Library ID. In a link such as https://www.facebook.com/ads/library/?id=1191898553123641, copy 1191898553123641.
3. Enter that number in Ad Library ID and start the actor.
4. Open the dataset to inspect the result, then export JSON or CSV.

Pass the numeric ID as a string. The input does not accept the entire URL, an Ads Manager campaign ID, a Facebook post ID, or an advertiser Page ID. One ad is looked up per run.

{
  "adId": "1191898553123641",
  "country": "ALL"
}

The ID above illustrates the input format; availability of a particular ad can change.

What ad details can you extract?

Use this single-ad lookup to retrieve the creative and metadata Meta makes available for the requested ad. Field coverage varies; some ads or fallback responses contain only partial data.

Data	Output fields	Use
Ad copy and headline	body, linkTitle, linkDescription	Research messaging and creative hooks
Image and video URLs	images, videos, format	Add creative references to a research workflow
Advertiser	brand, brandLogo	Identify the advertiser shown in the Library
Landing page and CTA	linkUrl, ctaText, ctaUrl	Inspect the destination and call to action
Dates and placements	startDate, endDate, platforms, totalPlatforms	Organize ads by published dates and platforms
Identifiers and collection time	adId, libraryID, scrapedAt	Match the result to your saved ID
Activity and lookup errors	active, error when present	Inspect the returned activity flag and extraction outcome

Images and videos are returned as URLs, not downloaded files or a permanent media archive. The videos[].duration field is currently a placeholder and should not be used as a measured duration.

Who is this single-ad scraper for?

• Creative researchers: enrich a saved ad with its copy, headline, CTA, and media links.
• Media buyers and agencies: build a structured reference record for a specific competitor creative.
• Automation builders: turn IDs from a spreadsheet or database into ad details for n8n, Make, or a custom application.
• Developers and AI workflows: retrieve the available details of a known ad without configuring keyword or advertiser discovery.

For AI-assisted research, select this actor when you already have one numeric Meta Ad Library ID and need that ad's details. Use a discovery scraper when the starting point is a keyword, brand, or Page ID.

Example output

Illustrative, shortened output; this is not a live result or a guarantee that every field is populated.

{
  "adId": "1191898553123641",
  "libraryID": "1191898553123641",
  "brand": "Example Brand",
  "body": "Explore our new collection.",
  "linkTitle": "Shop the Collection",
  "linkUrl": "https://example.com/shop",
  "ctaText": "Shop Now",
  "ctaUrl": "https://example.com/shop",
  "images": [{ "url": "https://example.com/creative.jpg" }],
  "videos": [],
  "format": "image",
  "platforms": ["Facebook", "Instagram"],
  "totalPlatforms": 2,
  "startDate": "2026-08-01T00:00:00.000Z",
  "endDate": "",
  "active": true,
  "scrapedAt": "2026-09-10T12:00:00.000Z"
}

Input parameters

Parameter	Required	Default	Description
adId	Yes	—	Numeric Meta/Facebook Ad Library ID, supplied as a string
country	No	ALL	Country context for the lookup; use a two-letter code such as US, GB, or DE, or ALL

Facebook ad lookup API: Python, JavaScript, and cURL

Use whoareyouanas/meta-ad-library-single-ad-lookup in name-based API calls. The stable actor ID is ZdhKNMB4YaaInnN0L; it can also be used in API calls. Update integrations that use the previous name.

cURL

curl -X POST \
  'https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/whoareyouanas~meta-ad-library-single-ad-lookup/run-sync-get-dataset-items' \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"adId":"1191898553123641","country":"ALL"}'

Inspect each returned item's error field and required creative fields before using it downstream.

Python

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN")
run = client.actor("whoareyouanas/meta-ad-library-single-ad-lookup").call(
    run_input={"adId": "1191898553123641", "country": "ALL"}
)
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    if item.get("error"):
        print("Lookup unavailable:", item["error"])
        continue
    print(item.get("brand"), item.get("body"), item.get("images", []))

JavaScript

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN' });
const run = await client.actor('whoareyouanas/meta-ad-library-single-ad-lookup').call({
  adId: '1191898553123641',
  country: 'ALL',
});
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
for (const item of items) {
  if (item.error) {
    console.error('Lookup unavailable:', item.error);
    continue;
  }
  console.log(item.brand, item.body, item.images);
}

n8n, Make, and scheduled workflows

Map your saved Library ID to adId, run this actor, and read its dataset. Route error records separately and check the fields your workflow needs before saving or analyzing the creative. To process a list, configure your workflow to call the actor once per ID.

Use Apify Schedules to repeat a saved input, or build your own list-processing workflow with the Apify API. Historical comparisons require you to store previous results yourself.

Pricing

The current base price is $0.006 per dataset result ($6 per 1,000 results), plus an Actor Start event at $0.00005. Startup event quantity depends on allocated memory, with a minimum of one event per run. See the Pricing tab for applicable rates and billing details.

For 100 runs producing one result each, with one startup event per run, these event charges total $0.605. This is an event subtotal, not a promise of total workflow cost. The current implementation can save an error record as a dataset result; do not assume unavailable lookups are uncharged.

Frequently asked questions

Can I scrape one Facebook ad instead of an entire advertiser's library?

Yes. Supply its numeric Ad Library ID. This actor is designed for a single known ad per run and returns its available details, rather than performing keyword or advertiser discovery.

Does this retrieve Instagram ads too?

It can retrieve available Instagram ad creatives published in Meta Ad Library using their Library ID. The returned platforms array indicates the placements reported for the ad. Instagram post URLs are not supported inputs.

Can I paste a Facebook Ad Library URL?

Copy the numeric value after id= and supply it as adId. Full URL input is not currently supported. Search URLs and advertiser Page IDs belong in a discovery scraper.

Can I extract ad images, videos, and landing-page links?

The actor extracts available image/video URLs, copy, CTA, and destination links. Some fields may be empty. Media links can expire; this actor does not download or permanently archive the files.

Can this check whether an ad is active, paused, or removed?

The result includes an active boolean, but it does not distinguish paused from removed. An extraction error can also return active: false, and missing activity information may be normalized to false. A false value alone is not proof the ad stopped running. Inspect error and result completeness; the actor does not provide per-platform activity, last-seen history, or a removal reason.

What happens if the ad is unavailable?

The lookup may return partial data or an error record. Missing data can reflect availability restrictions or a failed lookup; it does not establish that Meta removed the ad. There is no historical cache of last-known creative data. A successful Apify run status does not by itself prove that ad details were extracted.

Does it return spend, ROAS, or winning-ad scores?

No. This actor provides creative and available metadata, not spend, conversions, ROAS, or a performance score. A start date does not establish uninterrupted delivery or profitability.

Do I need a Facebook account or Meta API token?

No Facebook login or Meta developer token is required. You need an Apify account to run the actor and an Apify token when using its API. Runtime and data availability depend on the source response and any browser fallback; there is no fixed response-time guarantee.

Which Meta Ad Library actor should I use?

Starting point	Actor
One known Ad Library ID; focused details lookup	This Single Ad Lookup actor
Broader discovery with single-ad lookup also available	Meta Ad Library Scraper
Keyword, Page ID, or Ad Library search URL	Meta Ad Library Lite Scraper

The full scraper also supports an ad ID. Choose this actor when you want a focused one-ID input. Lite does not support individual ?id= URLs.

Support and feedback

For a lookup issue, include the Library ID, country, and Apify run link in the Issues tab. If this actor helps your creative research workflow, you can share your experience in a Store review.