Quick answer: Open your ad set in Ads Manager, scroll to Placements, select Manual Placements, then check only the surfaces you want. Your ad runs nowhere else.
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What Are Manual Placements?
A placement is the location where your ad appears. Per Meta's Ads Guide, you choose between Automatic Placements and Manual Placements at the ad set level. Each option shapes where your budget goes and who sees your creative.
Definition and how they differ from automatic placements
Automatic Placements let Meta's algorithm decide where to show your ads. It spreads budget across all eligible surfaces and concentrates spend wherever results are cheapest. Manual Placements hand that control to you. You pick the specific channels and surfaces. Nothing else runs.
Why manual placements matter for your strategy
Different placements have different formats, audiences, and costs. A Stories ad needs vertical 9:16 video. A Feed ad performs best at 1:1 or 4:5 ratio. Choosing placements manually means your creative fits the context it lands in.
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Available Placements in Facebook Ads
Meta's placement inventory spans four main platforms. Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and Audience Network.
Feed placements (Facebook Feed, Instagram Feed)
Feed placements put your ad in the main scrolling feed. Facebook Feed and Instagram Feed are the most widely used surfaces. They support images, videos, carousels, and collection formats.
Story placements (Facebook Stories, Instagram Stories, Messenger Stories)
Stories run full-screen between a user's organic Stories content. Facebook Stories, Instagram Stories, and Messenger Stories each reach distinct moments in a session. Vertical 9:16 format is required for all three.
Reels and video placements
Instagram Reels and Facebook Reels show ads between short-form video content. In-stream video placements appear inside longer-form videos on Facebook. Format requirements vary by surface, so check your aspect ratio before enabling these.
Search results and Messenger sponsored messages
Facebook Search Results place your ad inside the search tab. Per Meta's documentation, Messenger Sponsored Messages appear in a user's Messenger inbox and operate under their own format and policy rules. Treat them as a separate creative consideration.
Audience Network
Audience Network extends reach beyond Meta-owned properties. Your ad appears in third-party apps and mobile websites. It adds volume but offers less precision than Facebook or Instagram surfaces.
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When to Use Manual Placements
Manual placements work best in specific situations. They are not a default strategy for every campaign.
Creative format requirements
If your creative only exists in one format, exclude placements that would crop or distort it. A landscape video running in a Stories placement is a poor experience. Manual placements prevent that mismatch.
Testing specific audiences on specific platforms
Restricting to Facebook Feed only isolates your performance data to that surface. You can then compare it to a separate Instagram Feed ad set without mixing signals. Cleaner data leads to smarter decisions.
Controlling budget allocation
Automatic Placements let Meta distribute budget across all eligible surfaces. Manual placements restrict spend to the surfaces you've prioritized based on past performance or creative readiness.
Vertical video and square content strategies
If you've produced vertical video, limit placements to Stories and Reels. It prevents a well-made creative from running somewhere it wasn't designed for. Match the format to the placement.
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How to Set Up Manual Placements in Ads Manager
This takes about two minutes inside Ads Manager.
Creating a new ad set
Open Ads Manager and start a new campaign. Choose your objective. At the ad set level, scroll down to the Placements section. This is where you make the choice between automatic and manual.
Switching from automatic to manual placements
Click Manual Placements. The full list of available placements appears. Note that availability depends on your campaign objective. Some placements are only eligible for certain objective types.
Selecting and deselecting specific placements
Check the placements you want. Uncheck the rest. You can expand each category to choose specific surfaces. For example, you can include Instagram Feed while excluding Instagram Explore.
Saving and launching your campaign
Review your budget, schedule, and audience settings. Then publish. Your ad runs only on the placements you selected, nowhere else.
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Best Practices for Manual Placements
When automatic placements might be better
Meta recommends Automatic Placements for most advertisers. The algorithm finds the lowest cost per result across all eligible surfaces. If you're new to an objective or lack historical placement data, start automatic and gather signal first.
Avoiding over-segmentation of budget
Splitting a small budget across many placements hurts algorithm efficiency. Each placement needs enough spend to gather data and optimize. Fewer placements with adequate budget outperform many placements starved for impressions.
Using asset customization for placement-specific creatives
Asset customization lets you upload different creatives per placement inside a single ad set. Per Meta's documentation, this is a recommended alternative when you want different images or videos on different surfaces without fully committing to manual placements. The algorithm still optimizes delivery while your creatives stay placement-appropriate.
Monitoring performance by placement
Use the Breakdown menu in Ads Manager and select Placement. Compare cost per result, CTR, and reach across surfaces. Cut underperformers. Shift budget toward what works. Placement data is one of the fastest ways to spot wasted spend.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Should I use manual or automatic placements for Facebook ads?
Meta recommends Automatic Placements for most advertisers because the algorithm optimizes delivery across all eligible surfaces to find the lowest cost per result. Use manual placements when you have creative format requirements, want isolated performance data by platform, or have strong historical data pointing to specific surfaces.
What format does Facebook Stories placement require?
Stories placements on Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger require vertical 9:16 video or image creative. Feed placements typically use 1:1 square or 4:5 vertical formats. Mismatching format to placement results in cropping and a poor user experience.
Can I run different creatives on different placements without manual placements?
Yes. Meta's asset customization feature lets you upload different images or videos per placement inside a single ad set. The algorithm still optimizes delivery across all selected placements while using the creative you've assigned to each surface.
What is Audience Network in Meta placements?
Audience Network extends your ad delivery beyond Facebook and Instagram into third-party apps and mobile websites. It increases reach and can lower CPMs, but offers less targeting precision than Meta-owned surfaces. It works best for awareness campaigns with broad audiences.