Differences between boosted posts and ads
This article explains the difference between boosted posts and ads in Meta so you can choose the right option for your campaign goal.
Instagram replaced Impressions with Views, which also affects how promoted data is shown. See Instagram replaces “Impressions” with “Views”: What you need to know.
Choose the right advertising goal
Meta lets you advertise on Facebook and Instagram through either a boosted post or an ad campaign.
If your goal is more engagement on an existing post, a boosted post may be enough. If you need purchases, traffic, leads, or more advanced targeting, use an ad campaign instead.
What is a boosted post?
A boosted post is an existing post with paid budget added to increase visibility. It is the simplest way to promote content on Facebook or Instagram.
Unlike full ads, boosted posts are not created in Meta Ads Manager and do not offer the same level of targeting or customization.
You can boost posts directly from the platform. See the full steps here.
In the analytics section, you can review the performance of boosted posts.
To view results for boosted Instagram posts, you must connect the Meta Ads account in the connections dashboard.
You can also review boosted post results in the Meta Ads campaign list. Boosted posts usually show post in the campaign details and display part of the promoted text.
What are ads?
An ad campaign gives you much more control. You can define locations, segment audiences in detail, choose different creative formats, and attach specific calls to action.
Meta Ads uses a three-level structure: Campaign > Ad Sets > Ads.
In the platform, campaign-level results appear in Meta Ads analytics under the campaign name. If you need ad-level reporting, you can use the Looker Studio connector on supported plans.
What are dark posts?
You can create an ad from an existing post. In that case, it is treated as an advertisement, not as a boosted post.
The content may look similar, but if you change settings such as the call to action or audience targeting, Meta creates a separate unpublished version of the content. That version is commonly called a dark post.
Results from that dark post do not appear in the original organic post. They appear in the Meta Ads campaign list instead.
For Meta’s own explanation, see The difference between boosted posts and Meta ads.