How to download ads from Facebook and Instagram: methods and tools
Thousands of advertising posts appear daily on Facebook and Instagram. For entrepreneurs, marketers, and UGC creators, it's important to have the ability to download ads from Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram) to:
- analyze competitors and their advertising strategies;
- collect creative collections for inspiration or learning;
- share examples with designers and team members;
- save needed ads to archive or for reporting.
However, the standard Facebook interface doesn't allow downloading ads directly from the feed. Because of this, users search for methods and services that allow downloading ads from social networks in good quality.
Adheart – Meta Ads Spy Tool to uncover your competitors' top-performing ads and trending products
Important: we recommend using downloaded creatives only for analytics, market research, and inspiration. Direct copying of ads without permission may violate copyright.
Can you save ads directly from Facebook?
If you saw a great ad on Facebook or Instagram and wanted to download it, unfortunately, you can't do this directly. The apps themselves don't have a "download ad" button — you can only view it in the feed. Therefore, you have to use other methods.
Meta also has Meta Ads Library (Meta Ad Library). This is an official tool where you can find any ad that's currently running on Facebook and Instagram. There you'll see images, videos, and ad texts.
But there's one nuance: in Meta Ads Library you can only view ads, but downloading them in good quality without additional tools is impossible.
Some try to solve this with screenshots or screen recording, but here there are problems too:
- images or videos become blurry;
- sometimes important elements get cropped;
- you don't get complete information about the ad.
Therefore, if you need to save ads in original quality and work with them professionally — you'll have to use other tools.
Popular ways to download Facebook Ads
There are several options for saving ads you've seen on Facebook or Instagram. Each method has its pros and cons.
Manual way (screenshot or screen recording)
The simplest option is to take a screenshot or turn on screen recording.
Services for screenshots and screen recording:
- Lightshot (Win/Mac) — minimalistic tool for quick screenshots + simple editing.
- Flameshot (Win/Mac/Linux) — convenient editing tools right after screenshot. Also has Chrome extension to screenshot entire pages, visible parts or selected areas + save to PDF/JPG/PNG.
- CleanShot X (Mac) — premium option with cloud, annotations, GIFs and super convenient UX.
- Loom (Web/Win/Mac) — screen + camera video recording, convenient for quick explanations and sending to colleagues. Also has Loom for Chrome — screen + camera recording.
- Screencastify (Chrome) — simple extension for recording and sharing.
- RecordCast (Web) — online recording without software, basic editing in browser.
- GoFullPage — makes full page screenshots, even if it's very long (scrolls and assembles into single file).
- Nimbus Screenshot & Screen Video Recorder — multifunctional: screenshots, video, annotations, editing.
- Awesome Screenshot — quick screenshots and basic editing; can immediately share links.
- Giphy Capture (via Chrome Apps) — can record small screen pieces in GIF format.
- Gif Recorder (extension) — lightweight option for creating GIFs directly in browser.
Pros: free, fast, no need to install professional programs for long.
Cons: image or video quality significantly deteriorates, have to crop the picture, and saving large amounts of ads this way is very inconvenient.
Browser extensions and third-party tools
Some users install special browser extensions or third-party services that allow "extracting" ads from Facebook. They work automatically: you open a page with ads — and get the ability to download them.
Browser extensions that allow downloading ads from Facebook and Instagram:
- Ad Library Helper
- Swipekit – Ad Library Downloader
- AdsLibrary.ai – Save Ads from Multiple Platforms
- Denote – Save Ads from FB, IG & TikTok
- Foreplay – Chrome Extension for saving ads, allows saving ads from Facebook and TikTok Ad Libraries, Instagram.
- MagicBrief – Extension + Swipe File — allows saving ads from Facebook, Instagram, TikTok in own library.
- Adsflo – Save FB & Instagram Ads
- Adlude – Save Winning Facebook Creatives
Pros: convenient, can download ads directly from browser.
Cons: often ads are saved in poor quality, no ability to download many creatives at once, sometimes there's risk of account blocking for using such tools.
Telegram bots
Another popular way to download needed creatives or content from social networks is using Telegram bots. They work as simply as possible: just paste a link to a post, ad, or story — and the bot sends the file in appropriate format.
Telegram bots that allow downloading ads and content from Facebook and Instagram:
- @FBSaveBot — saving posts and videos from Facebook in good quality;
- @InstaSaveGramBot — allows downloading photos, videos, Reels and stories from Instagram;
- @SaveAsBot — universal downloader (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter);
- @InstaDownloaderBot — simple bot for quick Instagram content downloading;
- @GetFBVideoBot — convenient for downloading video ads and posts from Facebook;
- @SocialMediaSaverBot — multi-tool: supports Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube.
Pros:
- simple to use — just drop a link in chat with bot;
- can save photos, videos, reels, stories and ad posts;
- speed — result in seconds directly in Telegram.
Cons:
- video/image quality sometimes lower than original;
- often no ability to mass download creatives;
- risk that bot stops working;
- some bots show ads or require subscription.
Meta Ads Spy services
For those who do marketing professionally, there are special Meta Ads Spy services. They are created specifically for monitoring ads on Facebook and Instagram. With such tools, you can not only find any ad by keywords, brand, or page, but also download it in original quality.
Who most often uses professional spy tools:
- arbitrageurs and media buyers — save time searching for working funnels and check what creatives competitors are actually running;
- targetologists and agencies — get ready examples for client presentations and quickly find inspiration for new campaigns;
- e-commerce and dropshippers — can track trending ads and popular products to launch their own effective campaigns.
Spy-tools for downloading Meta ads:
- AdSpy. Large Facebook/Instagram ads database with advanced search and filters. Suitable for those who want historical data and deep analytics.
- PowerAdSpy. Allows seeing ads in feed through extension + search by niche, formats, engagement. Convenient for quick creative "catching".
- BigSpy. Cross-platform spy (Meta, TikTok, YouTube). Has millions of creatives and mass downloading. Good for analyzing different channels.
- SocialPeta. Ad intelligence with focus on mobile and playable ads. Has trend and category analytics. For growth teams and UA marketers.
- Minea. Popular among e-commerce and dropshippers. Helps find winning products and creatives for stores.
- Adheart. Spy service with Meta focus, fast database updates, format filters and team collections. For arbitrageurs and targetologists.
Pros: high quality, convenient search, mass downloading capability.
Cons: most such services are paid, but for professional work this is the most convenient option.
How to download ads from Adheart spy tool
Adheart is a professional Meta Ads Spy Tool that updates its database of ad creatives from Facebook and Instagram every minute. Thanks to this, you always see the most current ads in any niche.
Adheart offers advanced search with dozens of filters:
- by keywords in ad text;
- by specific pages or brands;
- by country or region of display;
- by format (video, image, carousel, etc.).
This allows quickly filtering out unnecessary content and finding exactly those creatives that interest you.
When you find the needed ad, you can download it in original quality — both images and videos. No screenshots or loss of clarity: you get exactly the file that the advertiser used on Facebook or Instagram.
You can also create your own creative collections: save ads by topics, verticals, or client projects. Collections are easy to share with colleagues, designers, or even clients — even if they don't have an Adheart account.
Try Adheart's free demo access and see how much more convenient it is to work with ads in a professional tool.
Adheart – Meta Ads Spy Tool to uncover your competitors' top-performing ads and trending products
Final thoughts
There are several ways to save ads from Facebook or Instagram: you can take screenshots, use third-party extensions, or choose professional tools. But if you need real quality and convenience when working with large amounts of creatives, the best option is professional Ad Intelligence services and Meta Ads Spy Tools.