The fastest way to find competitors' Facebook ads is through the Meta Ad Library. It is a free, public database at facebook.com/ads/library that shows every active ad running across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and the Audience Network. You search by brand name or keyword, apply filters for country, platform, and media type, and instantly see what any competitor is running right now. No account or login is needed.
The Ad Library is a strong starting point, but it has limits. It does not show performance data, scaling signals, or landing page insights, and ads disappear once they stop running. That is where third-party ad research tools come in.
Platforms like GetHookd, AdSpy, and BigSpy go further by tracking which ads competitors are actively scaling, scoring performance based on real ad behavior, and letting you turn winning concepts into new creatives with AI.
Below, we break down exactly how to use both the free Ad Library and paid tools to build a research workflow that gives you a real competitive edge.
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GetHookd reveals which ads your competitors are actively scaling—not just running. Spy on their best-performing creatives, landing pages, and traffic strategies, then turn proven concepts into testable campaigns in seconds with AI-powered script generation and creative cloning.
What You Get:The Meta Ad Library is the starting point for any competitor ad research. It is free, requires no login, and shows every active ad across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and the Audience Network.
To get started, go to facebook.com/ads/library. Select your target country from the dropdown menu, choose "All ads" as the category, and type a competitor's brand name or a relevant keyword into the search bar.
Once results load, you can filter them by platform, media type (images, video, or memes), language, and date range. Clicking into any ad shows the full caption, headline, and creative. For ads targeting users in the EU, you will also see age, gender, and location targeting data.
Here is a step-by-step process for running competitor research in the Ad Library:
The Ad Library is useful, but it has clear limitations. It does not show performance metrics like click-through rates, cost per click, conversion rates, or ad spend. You cannot see which ads are generating the best return on ad spend (ROAS) or which are being actively scaled versus those running at low volume.
Inactive ads also disappear from the library once they stop running, so you lose access to historical creative research unless you saved it yourself. There are no built-in tools for organizing, tagging, or categorizing what you find. And because the library shows all active ads equally, there is no way to distinguish a high-budget winner from a low-priority test.
These gaps make it difficult to turn raw ad data into an actionable strategy on its own.
Several third-party platforms fill the gaps left by the Meta Ad Library. These tools offer performance signals, saved ad libraries, landing page tracking, and in some cases, AI-powered creative production. Here is a look at the main options.
At GetHookd, we built our platform specifically for media buyers, e-commerce brands, and agencies who need to move from research to execution fast. Our searchable library includes over 65 million ads across Meta, with filters for niche, format, and performance signals. The Brand Spy feature shows which ads competitors are actively scaling and which have gone quiet, along with their top-performing hooks and the landing pages driving traffic.
What sets GetHookd apart from a standard spy tool is its built-in creative workflow. Once you find an ad worth replicating, you can transcribe the video to pull hooks and CTAs, generate new scripts with our AI copywriter, or clone static ad images into dozens of variations with different colors, avatars, and formats. Saved ads stay in your library permanently, even after campaigns go offline on Meta.
AdSpy maintains a large database of Facebook and Instagram ads with advanced filtering by keyword, URL, page name, comments, engagement metrics, and demographics. The filtering options are broad, though the platform lacks AI-powered creative tools and the interface can feel dated compared to more modern alternatives.
However, the interface can feel dated, and the platform lacks AI-powered creative tools. You will need separate software to act on the insights you find. Pricing is $149/month, with no free trial.
BigSpy covers Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and other networks in one searchable ad database. Users can search by keyword, advertiser, or niche, then filter by country, language, gender, or performance signals.
The free tier limits daily searches and downloads, and the cross-platform coverage is wide, though the volume of results can make it harder to isolate high-quality signals without strong filtering habits. And there are no AI tools to act on what you find.
Finding competitor ads is only half the equation. The real value comes from translating what you find into campaigns that perform. Here are practical ways to do that.
The Meta Ad Library tells you what competitors are running. GetHookd tells you what they are scaling, and helps you act on it. Our Brand Spy feature tracks competitor ad accounts to surface their highest-performing creatives, top hooks, and the landing pages receiving traffic. Performance scoring is based on real ad behavior patterns across our database of 65M+ analyzed ads, giving you signals grounded in actual results rather than surface-level engagement.
Once you spot a winning ad, our AI tools close the gap between insight and execution. Transcribe competitor videos to extract hooks and CTAs, generate new scripts tailored to your product, or clone static ads into fresh variations. No switching between platforms, no manual scripting, no guesswork.
Start your GetHookd free trial today!
Yes. The Meta Ad Library at facebook.com/ads/library is completely free and open to the public. You can search any brand's active ads across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and the Audience Network without creating an account or logging in.
No. The Meta Ad Library does not display metrics like click-through rates, conversions, or spend. However, ads running for several weeks with multiple creative versions are typically strong performers. For performance signals, a third-party tool is needed.
A weekly review is a good baseline for most advertisers. If you run high-volume campaigns or operate in a fast-moving niche like ecommerce or dropshipping, checking two to three times per week helps you catch new creative angles and seasonal shifts early.
No. Most ad research platforms, including the Meta Ad Library, are designed for non-technical users. You search by brand name or keyword, apply filters, and browse results visually. No coding, APIs, or developer workflows are required.
GetHookd combines competitor research with built-in AI creative tools in a single platform. Our Brand Spy shows which ads competitors are actively scaling, and our AI script generator and image cloning tools let you turn those insights into launch-ready ads without switching platforms. With 65M+ ads analyzed and a 4.8-star G2 rating, GetHookd is built for teams that need to move from research to results fast.
*Note: Pricing and/or product availability mentioned in this post are subject to change. Please check our website for current pricing and stock information before making a purchase.
