Picture this: you've spent hours carefully crafting what is sure to be a winning ad campaign. You've got your targeting dialed in and you've worked hard to generate conversion-optimized copy paired with an awesome ad creative. You hit "publish" and refresh your dashboard quickly to see if you've already gotten any purchases.
But wait - your ads are now "in review". What exactly does this mean? And how long does Facebook ad review take? This is a frustrating waiting period as you're super eager to start generating results.
In this short article, you'll learn all about how long Facebook ads review takes. While you should get an answer within 24 hours, certain factors may influence longer waiting periods. You'll learn how to get your ads approved quickly and what to do if they're stuck in review for an extended period. Let's start with a general overview of the Facebook ads review process.
What Does "Ads In Review" Mean?
When your Facebook ads are "in review" it simply means they have been submitted to Facebook's review department. At this point, they are being carefully examined to determine if they adhere to the advertising policies Facebook has laid out. This is done to protect users from harmful advertising practices. Oftentimes when someone wonders why their Facebook ad is not delivering, it is due to the review phase.
While much of the review is handled by AI, flagged ads are sent to actual humans for further review. This can lead to frustration for advertisers, as a computer flags their ads and rejects them for seemingly no reason. This is just the reality of advertising on Facebook - sometimes, the AI gets it wrong and you'll have to resubmit for further investigation. More on that later.
While your ads are being reviewed by Facebook, they will look for violations in all areas of your campaign. That includes the obvious parts of a Facebook ad such as the images/videos and text. But, it also includes things you may not have realized could lead to policy violations - such as targeting or the link destination of your ad. We'll go over all the things you need to keep in mind when submitting ads for review later on. To summarize, here is a quick look into the Facebook ad review phase:
- You create your ads and submit them for approval
- They are reviewed by Facebook AI (and manually by humans if necessary)
- They are either rejected or approved (if approved, the ads begin running immediately)
Why It Matters How Long The Facebook Ad Review Process Takes
Now that you know what the ads review process is, why does it matter how long it takes? After all, there isn't much that you can do to speed things up. Nonetheless, knowing how long ads typically take to either get approved or rejected is important. If they are stuck in review for longer than the average time frame, you'll know something is wrong with your ads.
By knowing how long the Facebook ad review process typically takes, you can submit your ads for approval with an understanding of how long you'll have to wait. If things are taking a bit longer than usual, you can take steps to resubmit the ads, reach out to customer support, etc.
It's also important to understand how long the process takes in case you're running ads on a set timeframe. Say you have a big sale or a new product launch going live 2 days from now. You need to be sure you're factoring in the review phase when considering when you need your ads built.
With all that said, let's get into the main topic at hand today: how long does it take for Facebook to review your ads?
So, How Long Does Facebook Ad Review Take?
So, how long does Facebook ad review take? The answer is not one size fits all. Some ads are approved seemingly instantaneously. However, don't be surprised if you encounter situations where your ads are stuck pending review. With all that said, Facebook states that most ads are reviewed within 24 hours. They do state that some cases require longer waiting periods. In fact, we've seen people claim that their ads have been stuck in review for up to a week sometimes. We'll share some tips on how to fix your ads waiting in review for too long later on.
It is important to state that you're not necessarily in the clear after getting your Facebook ads approved. Facebook states that they can routinely come back in and review live ads as they run. We've seen all too many cases of winning ads being shut off out of nowhere because Facebook flags them after the fact as a violation. However, sometimes the flagging of a live ad is actually the fault of the advertiser - here are some ways to prevent sending your ads back into the review process.
How To Avoid Sending Live Ads Back Into Review
Anytime you make significant changes to a campaign, ad set, or ad, it will put the machine back into the learning phase. It will also trigger a new review. Some changes that may put your ad back into pending review include:
- Targeting
- Ad Creative
- Optimization
- Billing event
Our advice? If you want to keep your ads running while still making changes, consider creating a duplicate ad, ad set, or campaign. Then, make changes to the duplicate. This will allow you to split test your changes as well. It's also worth noting that you can safely change your ad's bid amount, budget, or ad set schedule without flagging another review process.
What To Do If Your Facebook Ads Are Stuck In Review
If you've waited at least 24-48 hours and you notice your Facebook ad stuck in the review process still, there are a few options you have. You can continue patiently waiting while Facebook takes their sweet time (not our approach - and probably not yours either). Or, you can duplicate the ads that are stuck in review and resubmit them. Whichever version of your ad gets approved first is the version you can run with. Sometimes it's just a matter of getting your ads back in the queue.
Another tactic we've seen some advertisers report success with is reaching out to Facebook support. You can contact support and explain your problem - your ads have been stuck in the ad approval process for over 2-3 days now and you need help. Oftentimes, you'll get your ads either approved or rejected right on the spot - and you'll get an answer as to why they were rejected if that's the case.
Tips To Speed Up The Facebook Ad Review Process
Earlier in this article, we stated that there is really nothing you can do to speed up this process - patience is a virtue, after all! With that said, there are a few things you can do to 1) get your ads reviewed faster and 2) get them approved at a higher rate of success. Here are a few things to keep in mind when crafting your campaigns:
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Submit Ads For Approval During Business Hours: While Facebook ads can get approved overnight or on weekends by AI, you may end up stuck in review longer. We recommend submitting your ads while humans are present to get things worked out faster. That means between the hours of 8 am - 8 pm Monday through Friday.
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Be Sure Your Ads Adhere To Facebooks Policies: This is an obvious one if you're looking to avoid getting your Facebook ad rejected - be sure you're following the rules advertisers have to play by. But beyond just getting your ad successfully approved, following the guidelines gets you out of the review phase faster. By consistently avoiding ad rejections, you'll be creating a clean track record. This helps you win more reviews over time, too.
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Be Aware Of Peak Seasons: This isn't really a tip to help you speed up the review phase. However, it's important to note that the 24-hour expectation may be delayed a bit during peak seasons - like BFCM. As an advertiser, it is your responsibility to be aware of these seasonality fluctuations and submit ads earlier than you need them.
What To Do If Your Facebook Ads Get Rejected
There is no worse feeling than working hard on an ad, waiting patiently, and finding that you've violated some sort of ad policies - and your ad has been rejected. What now? First things first - determine why your ad was rejected. It could be as simple as an issue with ad accounts or billing - or maybe it was too much text in your creative. Here are all the reasons Facebook will reject ads:
- Too much text in an image (more than 20% of the image area)
- Age-restricted material or unsafe content (common if you advertise alcohol, tobacco, drugs, weapons, etc.)
- You mention Facebook or use the Facebook logo incorrectly in the ad creative/copy
- You violate the policies of a special ad category on Facebook
The good news is you typically don't have to guess. In your ads manager, you can navigate to reviews and find out exactly why your ad was rejected. There are two courses of action you can take here:
- If you agree with the reason your ad was rejected, make the necessary changes and resubmit the ad for approval.
- If you disagree with the reason your ad was rejected, you can reach out to support for further clarification. Sometimes they'll agree with you and get your ads through. Remember - AI makes mistakes, and people do too. There have been countless instances of ads being rejected for no reason. You can also just resubmit your ads for approval directly from the ad manager dashboard.
How Long Does Facebook Ad Review Take? Final Thoughts
Well, there you have it - all you need to know about how long Facebook ad review takes. You should get your answer within 24 hours, but other factors can affect how long you are stuck waiting. Remember - you can increase your chances of a quick, positive turnaround time by following guidelines and submitting during business hours. Be sure that if you have a deadline coming up, you submit your ads well in advance to account for any delays.
And for more tips like these, join the #1 digital marketing community online: the Utopia. With thousands of the world's most well-trusted and well-respected advertisers inside, you'll get real-world insights into what is working today - and what isn't. Experience the community yourself!