Should You Run Ads on Threads in 2026?

You are probably running ads on Threads already. Since April 2025 the Threads feed is one more placement in Ads Manager, switched on by default in new campaigns. So the real decision is whether to leave it on, not whether to start. For most stores the answer is to leave it on and let results decide. Turn it off for a named reason, such as weak cost per purchase or a brand-suitability concern, and not out of habit.

Can I run ads on Threads today?

Yes, if you are an eligible advertiser in a market where the placement is live. Meta began testing image ads in the Threads home feed with a small group of advertisers on 24 January 2025. On 24 April 2025 it expanded ads on Threads to all eligible advertisers globally, together with access to the inventory filter. Meta also said the ads would launch in selected markets and roll out to more territories over time, so availability can vary by location (Meta newsroom, Threads ads announcement). The same announcement says Threads has more than 300 million monthly active users, a 2025 figure that Meta has not restated on its ad help pages.

Threads ads appear in the Threads feed when people use the Threads mobile app (About ad placements across Meta technologies).

How do Threads ads get into my campaigns?

Through the placement settings of an ordinary Meta campaign. There is no separate Threads ads tool. Meta says the Threads feed placement is on by default for new campaigns using Advantage+ placements or manual placements. You can opt out through manual placements (Meta newsroom). Meta lists Threads among the platforms that Advantage+ placements can deliver to, alongside Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Audience Network (About Advantage+ placements).

That means your existing creative runs on Threads unless you stop it. Meta pitched this as extending a campaign to Threads by ticking a box, with no custom creative required. Still check how your ads render there before you rely on it: how do I know if my creative is ready for every placement?

What can and can’t you do with Threads ads?

The placement is newer than Facebook or Instagram feed, and some features have not arrived. What Meta’s own pages say today:

On Threads, creators can post organic branded content with the “Paid partnership with” label, but you cannot boost it or turn it into a partnership ad. If creator-led ads carry your account, run them on Facebook and Instagram.

Should I keep Threads on or exclude it?

Keep it on unless you have a reason that holds up. Meta’s numbers favour broad placements. In budget-controlled experiments on 147,000 campaigns (30 Aug to 7 Sep 2025), ad sets using Advantage+ placements delivered an 11.7% lower cost per action on average than ad sets using manual placements (About Advantage+ placements). Meta also says adding placements does not increase the cost of your ad (About ad placements). Those are Meta’s figures for all placements together, not a Threads-only result, and there is no reliable public benchmark for Threads cost per purchase. Your own breakdown is the only number that counts.

Reasons that do justify excluding Threads:

• Its cost per purchase stays worse than your other placements after several weeks and a meaningful number of purchases.
• Your brand-suitability rules need more than the inventory filter gives. Try the filter first: moderate and limited inventory exclude more sensitive content, at the cost of lower reach and possibly higher prices (Use inventory filter).
• Your creative depends on a feature Threads lacks, such as a partnership ad.

For the wider question of when automated placement and budget choices help and when they burn money, see when does Advantage+ help and when does it waste budget?

How do I check whether Threads is earning its spend?

Read the placement breakdown rather than building a Threads-only campaign:

1. Open Ads Manager and click Campaigns, Ad sets or Ads.
2. Click Breakdown, choose By delivery, then Placement.
3. Find the Threads feed row and note its spend, purchases and cost per purchase.
4. Compare it with your account’s other placements over the same dates, using at least a few weeks of data.
5. Repeat monthly, because a small placement’s numbers move a lot on few purchases.

The steps follow View ad results by platform, device and placement. Meta labels these breakdown values as estimated. If Threads carries only a small share of spend, a handful of purchases either way can swing its cost per purchase, so wait for volume before you act.

How do I turn off ads on Threads?

Exclude the placement at the ad set level. Meta’s steps for a Sales, Leads or App promotion campaign (Choose ad placements in Meta Ads Manager):

1. Open the ad set in Ads Manager and go to the Placements section.
2. Click Show more settings.
3. Hover over Placement controls, click Edit and untick Threads feed.
4. Decide whether to tick Allow limited spend to excluded placements, which lets up to 5% of the budget reach each excluded placement when that is likely to help.
5. Publish the change.

Excluding a placement turns the Advantage+ label off for that ad set. For Awareness, Traffic and Engagement campaigns, Meta’s path is Placements, Edit, Manual placements, then untick the placement. For what the Advantage+ default changed more broadly, see what is Meta Advantage+ and how do I set it up in 2026? Pacing and spend across placements are covered in how Facebook ad delivery and budget pacing work.

FAQ

Can I run video ads on Threads?

Yes. Meta lists the Threads feed among the supported placements for single video ads, alongside Facebook and Instagram feeds, Stories and Reels. The first Threads ads in the January 2025 test were image ads only. Video placements depend on your objective, so check that Threads feed is ticked in the ad set’s placements.

Are Threads ads cheaper than Instagram or Facebook ads?

There is no reliable public number for Threads cost per purchase, and Meta publishes none. Measure it yourself with the placement breakdown in Ads Manager. Compare cost per purchase, not CPM, because a placement with cheap impressions can still sell less per dollar than your feed placements.

Can I run creator partnership ads on Threads?

No. Meta says Threads supports only organic branded content with the “Paid partnership with” label. It does not support partnership ads or boosting branded content. Run creator-led partnership ads on Facebook and Instagram, where both are available, and use Threads for your own brand’s ads.

Will excluding Threads hurt my other placements?

Not directly, but it narrows where delivery can find results. Meta’s own experiment found manual placement setups delivered a higher cost per action on average than Advantage+ placements. If you exclude Threads, consider allowing limited spend to excluded placements, so up to 5% of the budget can still test it.

Sources

Sources: Meta newsroom, Threads ads announcement, 24 Jan 2025, updated 24 Apr 2025; Meta Business Help Center, About ad placements across Meta technologies, About Advantage+ placements, Choose ad placements in Meta Ads Manager, Supported objectives and placements for video ads, Eligibility requirements for partnership ads and branded content, About branded content on Facebook, Instagram and Threads, Use inventory filter and View ad results by platform, device and placement (checked 2 Oct 2026).