Ad spy tools compared
Verdict on ad spy tools
Pay for an ad spy tool when you need stopped ads, since Meta’s free library drops most from search. Foreplay states the longest memory, on Workflow at $175 a month, prices checked . But Meta publishes no spend on ordinary ads, so a long run is a clue to what sells and never proof.
For a swipe file that keeps ads after they stop: 
Foreplay
Spyder’s page says tracked ads stay forever; the pricing page lists up to 3 years of history. On Workflow and up.
For dropshipping product research: 
Minea
22 of 71 sources say they use it to find products already selling; 6 say products surface after they peak.
For making the ad after you find it: 
Creatify
AI Ad Spy reads a brand’s Meta ads free with no sign-up; Ad Clone rebuilds one for your product, first video free with a watermark.
For TikTok ads and the stores behind them: 
PiPiAds
Searches TikTok ads plus Facebook data; opening one ad’s details costs 20 credits.
For searching Facebook ads by comment or affiliate offer: 
AdSpy
One plan, no free tier; search covers ad comments, landing pages and affiliate IDs.
| Tool | Monthly from (USD) | What it does | Official site |
|---|---|---|---|
 AdSpy | $149 | Searchable database of Facebook and Instagram ads, filterable by text, URL, comments, affiliate offer and demographics. | Visit AdSpy |
 Atria | $159 | Ad library plus own-account creative analytics, with an AI strategist that writes concepts, scripts, copy and images. | Visit Atria |
 Creatify | $15 | Avatar and product video ads from a URL or script, with batch variants, an ad launcher and a competitor ad tracker. | Visit Creatify |
 Foreplay | $59 | Ad swipe file and research tool: save ads from ad libraries, search an ad database, track competitors, write briefs. | Visit Foreplay |
 Madgicx | $45 | Meta ads platform with creative insights, AI tagging, an AI ad generator, automation agents and cross-channel reporting. | Visit Madgicx |
 Minea | $49 | Dropshipping research tool: searchable Meta ads, product and shop listings, brand tracking and AI ad analysis. | Visit Minea |
 PiPiAds | $49 | TikTok ad spy tool with Facebook ad data, ad trackers and AI tools, aimed at dropshippers and e-commerce sellers. | Visit PiPiAds |
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Prices checked 7 Nov 2026.
What do the free ad libraries already show?
Five public libraries show ads for free across Meta, Google, TikTok and LinkedIn, and each leaves a gap. Paid tools close some of those gaps, but none shows spend on ordinary ads.
| Library | What it reads | After an ad stops | Its gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meta Ad Library | Facebook, Instagram and Meta’s other apps | Commercial ads leave search; ads shown in the EU stay a year | No spend on ordinary ads |
| Google Ads Transparency Center | Search, Display, Gmail and YouTube | A date filter; Google’s help page gives no retention period | You search by advertiser or website, so you must know the name |
| TikTok Top Ads | Ads their advertisers chose to authorise | A time-frame filter | A chosen set, never a rival’s whole account |
| TikTok Commercial Content Library | Ads shown in the EU | Available for one year after last shown | EU data only in this phase |
| LinkedIn Ad Library | Ads that ran after 1 June 2023 | Kept for one year after the last impression | Targeting and impressions for EU ads only |
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Ad Library
Meta Ad Library is a comprehensive, searchable database for ads transparency. People can use the Ad Library to get more information about the ads they see across Meta technologies.
People can search for all active ads running across products from Meta. For ads about social issues, elections or politics, Meta provides additional information, including spend, reach and funding entities. These ads are visible whether they’re active or inactive and are stored in the Ad Library for 7 years.
Meta’s fields and API limits are on how to use the Meta Ad Library.
Who keeps an ad after it stops?
Foreplay states the longest memory. Its Spyder page says tracked ads stay “forever”, while its pricing page lists competitor ad history “Up to 3 Years”. The others show a status or a last-seen date at most, with no storage period stated.
Two things justify a fee: storage of stopped ads, and search across brands you have not named yet.
| Tool | Monthly from | What it reads | Stopped ads | What it adds to Meta’s library |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foreplay | $59 a month | Saves from Meta, TikTok and LinkedIn libraries | Spyder, from $175 a month: “saves all tracked ads forever” from the day tracking starts; the pricing page says up to 3 years | Boards, transcripts, briefs and, on Workflow, an emailed rival summary |
| Creatify AI Ad Spy | Free to read, no sign-up | Meta Ad Library | A bar from start to stop for each ad; no storage period stated | The longest-running three and a blueprint to work from |
| Creatify Competitor Ad Tracker | $55 a month | Platforms not stated; 3 brands per brand space on Pro | No storage period on the pricing page | Tracking inside the tool that makes the ad |
| Atria | Free plan, then $159 a month | Its own ad library, sorted by Meta and TikTok categories | Shows active or inactive status | Sort by longest running, AI insights from Plus |
| Minea | Free Lite, then $49 a month | Meta on the plan cards; its pages disagree on TikTok | No storage period stated | Product and shop listings |
| PiPiAds | $49 a month | TikTok ads plus Facebook data | No storage period on the pricing page | The stores behind each ad |
| AdSpy | $149 a month | Facebook and Instagram | A filter for when an ad was last seen | Search inside comments, by affiliate ID and offer ID |
| Madgicx | $45 a month, rising with ad spend | Meta ads | Folders you save yourself | The library beside reporting and an ad generator |
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Foreplay’s promise runs “from the moment you start tracking a brand”, and its page does not say how far back a new brand’s ads go. So add your main competitors on day one. Keep your own copy of any ad you cannot lose, since the 3-year line sits beside the “forever” one.
The tools, one by one
Foreplay: memory for a swipe file
Foreplay is a shared folder for ads you want to keep, known as a swipe file. Its Chrome extension saves ads from the Meta, TikTok and LinkedIn libraries, and Spyder tracks whole brands on Workflow and up.
Reviewers back the memory claim: 14 of 37 say saved boards outlive the original ad (G2, G2). Eight of 37 call the price steep for small accounts (G2, G2).
Basic costs $59 a month, and the pricing page shows no Spyder on it, checked . The Spyder page says “Across all plans, you can scrape 2 brands for free”, which that table does not show.
- Best for
- Creative strategists and small teams who need a searchable swipe file and competitor tracking at a flat price, with no ad-spend tiers.
- Skip it if
- you look up a rival now and then: the free libraries and Creatify’s AI Ad Spy cover that. The pricing page shows no tracker on Basic.
Creatify: a free read, then the ad itself
Creatify makes video ads, and its spy tool leads straight into that. On the AI Ad Spy page you name a brand or paste a site or Ad Library link. You then see that brand’s Facebook and Instagram ads on a timeline, its three longest runners and a breakdown of angles, formats and offers.
No sign-up is needed. The data comes from the Meta Ad Library, so this is a faster read of a free source. It covers one brand at a time and Meta alone.
Ad Clone rebuilds a found ad’s hook and pacing for your product. Its page says the Free plan’s 10 credits are “enough for your first cloned video ad”, and “Free exports carry a watermark”.
The pricing page lists Ad Clone from Pro upwards. It also lists a Competitor Ad Tracker at 3 brands per brand space on Pro, 6 on Max and 10 on Business. Pro is $55 a month, checked .
Credit use is the catch. Creatify’s credit article calls Ad Clone’s use variable, and 15 of 61 sources say credits run out faster than the pricing suggests (Reddit, Trustpilot).
- Best for
- Reading one brand’s Meta ads for free, then rebuilding the strongest ad for your product in the same tool.
- Skip it if
- you want to browse ads from brands you cannot name, or read TikTok and Google: AI Ad Spy works brand by brand on Meta. Foreplay or AdSpy search across brands.
Atria: a library beside your own reports
Atria pairs an ad library with reports on your own accounts. Its pricing page lists sorting by longest-running ads and an active or inactive status on each. Core is $159 a month and follows 50 brands, checked .
Users rate the research side highest (3 of 13 sources: Reddit, YouTube).
Five of 13 report charges after cancelling or inside the trial (Trustpilot, Trustpilot).
- Best for
- Teams that want competitor research, their own creative reporting and AI concept and copy drafts in one tool, with MCP access for AI assistants.
- Skip it if
- you only need a swipe file: Core’s price also buys reports on your own ads, and Foreplay Basic costs less.
Minea: products first, ads second
Minea is built for dropshippers, who sell products they never stock. Twenty-two of 71 sources say they use it to find products already selling (Trustpilot, Trustpilot). Six of 71 say those products surface after they peak (Reddit, Reddit).
Its pages disagree on coverage. The pricing page marks TikTok and Pinterest ads “coming soon”, while its ad spy page says it covers both. Starter is $49 a month, checked .
- Best for
- Dropshippers and small e-commerce sellers hunting products and the ads that sell them, mostly on Meta.
- Skip it if
- you run brand creative: product and shop listings serve shop owners, and Foreplay’s boards suit a creative team.
PiPiAds: TikTok by the credit
PiPiAds searches TikTok ads and the stores behind them, plus Facebook ads. Basic is $49 a month per 30 days for 30,000 credits (pricing), checked . A search result costs 1 credit and an ad’s details 20, so Basic covers about 1,500 detail views if you do nothing else.
- Best for
- Dropshippers and TikTok-first sellers who want to search and track TikTok ads and the stores behind them, from $49 for 30 days.
- Skip it if
- you want a refund safety net: its pricing FAQ says it issues none, and unused credits reset each month.
AdSpy: search by what commenters say
AdSpy is a database of Facebook and Instagram ads with unusual search fields. You can search ad comments, affiliate IDs and offer IDs, then filter by when an ad was last seen. Its homepage claims 213.9 million+ ads. The one plan, $149 a month, is called “an introductory offer” with no end date, checked .
- Best for
- Affiliate marketers and media buyers researching Facebook and Instagram ads by text, landing page, comment keywords or affiliate offer ID.
- Skip it if
- you advertise on TikTok or YouTube: AdSpy covers Facebook and Instagram alone and offers no trial.
Madgicx: a library inside an ad account tool
Madgicx adds an ad library to its Meta reporting and ad generator. Its main plan starts at $45 a month and rises with your declared ad spend (pricing). The library page also shows an early-bird $29 a month for AI generations plus the library, with a countdown and no later price stated. Both read .
Billing is the risk to weigh: 26 of 72 sources report refused or slow refunds (Trustpilot, Reddit).
- Best for
- Meta-heavy e-commerce advertisers who want creative tagging, reporting across Meta, Google, TikTok, Shopify and Klaviyo, and automation in one account.
- Skip it if
- research is all you need: the library comes bundled with reporting and automation you would pay for and leave unused.
Which tool reads TikTok, YouTube or native ads?
PiPiAds reads TikTok, BigSpy adds YouTube and AdPlexity Native reads native networks, while TikTok’s and Google’s own libraries are free.
- TikTok: PiPiAds is the specialist here, and TikTok’s own Top Ads is free. Foreplay saves ads from TikTok’s library.
- YouTube: Google’s Ads Transparency Center is free and covers it. BigSpy adds YouTube and Google Ads from its Growth plan at $119, billed yearly.
- Native ads, the paid links under news articles: AdPlexity Native reads Taboola, Outbrain, MGID and 30+ networks for $249 a month.
What may you do with an ad you find?
You may study an ad, but some spy tools’ terms bar you from reusing what they show. PiPiAds’ service agreement (3.2) keeps material found through the tool to “monitoring and learning purposes only”. Minea’s conditions, in French, bar copying or republishing its material.
Creatify draws its line inside Ad Clone. Its page says the tool keeps hook style, pacing and CTA flow, and “never the reference’s brand, people or exact lines”.
The practical split between structure you can borrow and footage you cannot is on how to see competitor ads.
Questions buyers ask about ad spy tools
Can an ad spy tool show a competitor’s ad spend?
No tool here reads real spend on ordinary ads. Creatify’s AI Ad Spy says so outright: “The library shows no spend”. Meta’s library page lists spend and reach for ads about social issues, elections or politics.
Is there a free ad spy tool?
Yes. Meta’s, Google’s, TikTok’s and LinkedIn’s libraries are free, and Creatify’s AI Ad Spy adds a timeline and longest-running view with no sign-up. Atria’s free plan and Minea’s Lite add paid-tool features within limits.
What is a good Facebook Ad Library alternative?
For a quick read of one brand, Creatify’s AI Ad Spy is free. To keep ads after they stop, Foreplay’s Spyder stores tracked brands. To search by comment or affiliate ID, AdSpy does what the library cannot.
Do reporting tools like Motion spy on competitors too?
Yes, as a side feature. Motion’s homepage describes an AI agent that tracks ads launched by competitors. Superads’ homepage lets you follow any brand and see every ad it runs. Both are priced as reporting tools, covered on creative testing tools.
More pages for Creatify users, sorted by job, in the Creatify hub
Sources
- Meta Transparency Center: Meta Ad Library tools, updated 24 August 2023; all active ads searchable, ads with an impression in the EU archived for one year after the last impression. Checked
- Facebook Help Center: What is the Meta Ad Library and how do I search it?, active ads searchable for all ads; inactive ads searchable for ads about issues, elections or politics. Checked
- Google Ads Help: Ads transparency, the Ads Transparency Center covers Search, Display, Gmail and YouTube; search by advertiser or website name; filter by date and targeted location. Checked
- TikTok Business Help Center: About Top Ads, every ad in Top Ads is authorised by its advertiser inside TikTok Ads Manager. Checked
- TikTok for Developers: Commercial Content API, ad data stays available until one year after the ad was last shown; EU data only in this phase. Checked
- LinkedIn Help: LinkedIn’s Ad Library, ads that ran after 1 June 2023; kept for one year after the last impression; search by company, payer, keyword, country and date. Checked
- Foreplay: Foreplay Spyder, tracked ads saved forever from the moment tracking starts; live and inactive ads; lifespan timeline; emailed competitor summary; says 2 brands free across all plans; does not say how far back a new brand goes. Checked
- Foreplay: Foreplay pricing, no Spyder shown on Basic; Workflow and Agency brand counts;
Competitor Ad History (Up to 3 Years)
; 7-day trial and 14-day money-back line. Checked - Foreplay: Foreplay homepage, Chrome extension saves ads from the Meta, TikTok and LinkedIn ad libraries;
Save ads from anywhere, forever
. Checked - Creatify: Creatify AI Ad Spy, Facebook and Instagram ads from the Meta Ad Library; no sign-up to read; timeline from start to stop; longest-running three; blueprint of angles, formats and offers; no spend shown. Checked
- Creatify: Creatify pricing, Competitor Ad Tracker at 3, 6 and 10 brands per brand space on Pro, Max and Business; Ad Clone on the Pro and Max cards. Checked
- Creatify: Creatify Ad Clone, keeps hook style, pacing and CTA flow;
never the reference’s brand, people or exact lines
; 10 free credits cover a first cloned video, watermarked. Checked - Creatify help centre: Credit usage, billing and validity, updated 19 August 2026; Agent, Ad Flow and Ad Clone use a variable number of credits. Checked
- Atria: Atria pricing, active and inactive ad status; sort by longest running; follow 50 brands on Core, AI insights from Plus. Checked
- Minea: Minea pricing, Snapchat, Pinterest and TikTok ads marked
coming soon
; plan limits. Checked - Minea: Minea ad spy page, says Minea covers Facebook, TikTok and Pinterest ads. Checked
- Ecom Data Solutions: Minea conditions générales, in French; bars copying or republishing material from the tool. Checked
- PiPiAds: PiPiAds pricing, credits per search result and per ad detail; credits reset monthly; no refunds. Checked
- PiPiAds: PiPiAds service agreement, section 3.2, material found through the tool is for
monitoring and learning purposes only
. Checked - AdSpy: AdSpy homepage, the one plan, called an introductory offer; 213.9 million+ ads; search by comments, affiliate ID and offer ID; filters for last seen and longest running. Checked
- Madgicx: Madgicx Ad Library, search, save and brief Meta ads; an early-bird limited-time offer of AI generations plus the library, with a countdown and no later price stated. Checked
- Madgicx: Madgicx pricing, price set by declared monthly ad spend. Checked
- BigSpy: BigSpy pricing, free plan on Facebook creatives with 10 searches a day; TikTok, YouTube and Google Ads from Growth. Checked
- AdPlexity: AdPlexity pricing, AdPlexity Native covers Taboola, Outbrain, MGID and 30+ networks as a standalone product. Checked
- Motion: Motion homepage, AI agent that tracks ads launched by competitors. Checked
- Superads: Superads homepage, follow any brand, see every ad it runs and save top ads into shared reports. Checked
Alexandre S.
Alexandre S. is a creative ad strategist and copywriter with ten years' experience in digital marketing across multiple channels.
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