How to Connect ChatGPT or Claude to Meta Ads

The connection is one URL and one sign-in. Meta runs the server, so you install nothing and need no developer app: you paste Meta’s address into the assistant’s connector settings, log in with the Facebook account that has access to your ad account, and approve what it asks for. The steps differ by assistant, and ChatGPT needs a paid plan and Developer mode before it will accept the address at all.

What do you need before you connect?

Meta calls the feature “Meta ads AI connectors”, and its help article says they connect “a conversational AI agent to your Meta ad account” through its ads MCP server (Manage ads from an AI agent with Meta ads AI connectors). Check four things first:

• The server address. Meta gives one remote URL for every supported assistant: https://mcp.facebook.com/ads.
• A supported assistant. Meta lists ChatGPT, Claude, Claude Code and Perplexity. Other clients go through Meta’s developer documentation instead.
• Access to the ad account. You sign in as yourself, so the assistant sees only the ad accounts your Facebook login can already reach.
• Feature availability. The same Meta article warns that you may not have access to all tools or features yet, and Meta describes the connectors as an open beta (Introducing Meta ads AI connectors).

Plan rules come from Claude’s custom connector guide and ChatGPT’s Developer mode guide, which Meta’s help article links for ChatGPT setup; both read on 2 Oct 2026.

How do I connect Claude to Meta ads?

On an individual Pro or Max plan, Claude’s own steps are:

1. Open Customize > Connectors in Claude, select + Add, then Add custom connector.
2. Name it, for example “Meta Ads”, and paste https://mcp.facebook.com/ads as the remote MCP server URL. Select Continue.
3. Review the authentication settings Claude detected and select Continue. Under Authentication, choose Sign in now or Sign in when needed. Under OAuth client, keep Use Claude’s published identity (Recommended) unless you run your own Meta app.
4. Select Add, then sign in with the Facebook account that manages the ad account.
5. Approve the permissions on the Facebook Login for Business screen.
6. In a new chat, open the + menu, choose Connectors and switch the Meta connector on for that conversation.

On Team and Enterprise plans, an Owner first adds the connector under Organization settings > Connectors; each member then finds it in Customize > Connectors and selects Connect to sign in as themselves. Claude notes that it reaches the server from its cloud, not from your device.

How do I connect ChatGPT to Meta ads?

ChatGPT reaches remote MCP servers through Developer mode, which ChatGPT’s guide labels elevated risk because it allows write actions. The steps from that guide, with Meta’s settings filled in:

1. Open ChatGPT on the web, go to Settings > Security and login and turn on Developer mode.
2. Go to Plugins, select the plus button and create a Developer mode app for a remote MCP server.
3. Enter https://mcp.facebook.com/ads as the server URL and choose OAuth as the authentication method.
4. If ChatGPT asks for an OAuth client ID, follow Meta’s developer guide: create a Meta app at developers.facebook.com/apps, add the Create & manage ads with ads MCP server use case, set the redirect URL to ChatGPT’s value, and enter the app ID under Advanced OAuth Settings (Ads MCP server: Get started).
5. Save the app, which appears under Drafts in app settings, and complete the Facebook sign-in.
6. In a chat, choose Developer mode from the Plus menu and select the Meta app for that conversation.

How do I connect Claude Code or a script?

Claude Code adds remote servers with one terminal command (Claude Code MCP docs):

1. Run claude mcp add --transport http meta-ads https://mcp.facebook.com/ads. Meta’s own example adds --client-id <META_APP_ID> for people using their own Meta app.
2. Start Claude Code, type /mcp, select the Meta server and complete the OAuth sign-in.
3. Run /mcp again later if Claude Code shows the server as needing authentication.

For a script, Meta’s developer guide says to send a user access token in an Authorization: Bearer header. The token needs these permissions: ads_mcp_management, ads_read, ads_management, catalog_management, business_management, pages_show_list and instagram_basic.

How do I know the connection worked?

Run a read-only request before anything else:

1. Ask “List my ad accounts.” Meta suggests this as the first prompt, and the matching tool, ads_get_ad_accounts, returns each account’s name, status, currency and time zone (Ad creation and management tools).
2. Check that the list matches the accounts you see in Ads Manager. The tool lists only the accounts your login can access, so check that access first if one is missing.
3. Ask for last week’s spend by campaign and compare one number with Ads Manager’s Campaigns tab for the same dates.
4. Ask “Which tools do you have?” Meta’s help article suggests asking the agent for a list of its tools.

Once the read checks pass, the next step is usually a read-only review: how do I audit my Facebook ads account from ChatGPT?

How do I limit what it can do once connected?

Set limits before your first write request. If you have full control of the business portfolio, Meta lets you block actions per ad account: open Settings in Meta Business Suite, select Ads MCP server below Integrations, pick the ad account, and set actions such as Create campaigns or Edit or set budget to Blocked. You can also block budgets above an amount you enter. Meta says that if you cannot see the menu, the feature has not reached you yet. In ChatGPT, write actions ask for confirmation by default; in Claude, you can switch the connector on or off for each conversation.

Whether you should let an assistant write at all is a separate question, answered in what guardrails should I set before connecting an LLM to my ad account? and can ChatGPT actually run my Meta ads, or only advise on them?. For the full picture of agents and tools, see the Facebook ads tools and AI agents hub.

FAQ

Do I need a Meta developer app to connect?

No, not for Claude or ChatGPT through Meta’s standard route. Meta’s developer guide says owning a Meta app is not a prerequisite and points people without one to the help article’s steps. You need your own app only if the assistant asks for an OAuth client ID or you connect from your own code.

Can I connect on Claude’s free plan?

Yes. Claude says custom connectors work on Free, Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans, and that Free users are limited to one custom connector. If you already use your one free slot for another tool, you would need to remove it or move to a paid plan to add Meta’s server.

Why does ChatGPT not show the option to add a server?

ChatGPT only creates apps from MCP servers after you turn on Developer mode in Settings > Security and login. ChatGPT’s guide lists it for Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Education accounts on the web. Free accounts and the mobile apps are not on that list, so use a listed plan in a web browser.

Will connecting get my ad account banned?

Meta’s help article says it is safe to connect through its ads MCP server and unlikely that an account would be banned for using it, because bans usually follow breaches of its advertising standards. For what the connector can and cannot do once linked, read is it safe to let ChatGPT or Claude run my Meta ads through the MCP connector?

Sources

Sources: Meta Business Help Center, Manage ads from an AI agent with Meta ads AI connectors; Meta for Developers, Ads MCP server: Get started and Ad creation and management tools; Meta, Introducing Meta ads AI connectors; Claude Help Center, Get started with custom connectors using remote MCP; Claude Code MCP docs; and ChatGPT’s Developer mode guide, reached from the ChatGPT link in Meta’s article (checked 2 Oct 2026).