Meta has launched an important update to the Ad Library for all EU users. This expansion finally makes it possible to analyze competitors in far greater detail — without needing access to their ad accounts. Brands can now see not only which ads are running, but also who those ads are targeting.
What’s new?
Where the Ad Library previously offered a basic overview of active campaigns, the update now reveals:
- Demographic targeting: insights into gender, age groups, and audience distribution.
- Reach per age category: instantly see how many people each segment has reached.
- Audience distribution per ad: useful for identifying which variations perform better.
- EU-specific transparency under the Digital Services Act (DSA).
These additions make the tool significantly more powerful for marketers. You can finally assess why certain campaigns perform well and how competitors shape their targeting strategies.
Why this matters for advertisers
This extra layer of transparency helps you:
- Understand competitor strategies: see which audiences they prioritize and how that shifts over time.
- Benchmark your own campaigns more effectively: compare your targeting setup to others in your market.
- Spot audience opportunities: for example, if a competitor focuses heavily on 25–34 but barely reaches 45+, that could be a direct growth opportunity.
- Analyze creatives more accurately: you can now see which audience is being served which type of ad.
In short: you gain a much more complete view of the market, without expensive external tools.
How does this support strategic growth?
This update aligns with a broader industry trend: platforms are becoming more transparent due to regulation and user expectations.
For marketers, this means:
- less guesswork,
- more data-driven decision-making,
- and a fairer evaluation of what truly works in your industry.
Our specialists already see advertisers adjusting their setups faster, because they better understand where to refine their targeting.
Especially on Meta — where AI-assisted targeting is becoming increasingly dominant — insight into audience distribution is essential to maintain control over performance.
What you can do right now
Here are a few immediate steps:
- Review 5–10 key competitors in the Meta Ad Library.
- Identify differences in audience segmentation — which groups do they focus on?
- Adapt your own campaign setups accordingly, for example by testing new creatives for audience groups where you are currently underrepresented.
- Monitor shifts monthly, especially in competitive markets where strategies change quickly.
