TLDR
According to our independent testing, Phantombuster is the top choice for a Facebook ads library scraper in 2023.
Facebook is widely popular for its ability to connect people and businesses, and one of its key features is the Facebook ads feature. This feature allows users to target a specific audience to promote their products or services. One of the benefits of Facebook ads is that they are transparent, meaning that there is a centralized library where users can view all ads that have been shown on Facebook, as well as any relevant information. This library is known as the Facebook ad library and it serves as a hub for everything related to Facebook ads.
However, while the Facebook ad library is useful for brands looking to market to their audience on Facebook, it can be difficult to filter and download the ads that you need. Facebook does not make it easy for users to extract data from the library, as it is meant to be used online only. This means that extracting data manually from hundreds or even thousands of ads can be time-consuming, inefficient, and prone to errors.
One solution to this problem is to use a Facebook ads scraper. A Facebook ads scraper allows users to easily extract data from the Facebook ad library, making it easier to analyze and study ads that are currently performing well or not. In this way, you can foster successful Facebook ads campaigns.
In conclusion, if you’re looking to extract data from Facebook ads library, using a Facebook ads scraper is a smart choice. In this article, we review the best Facebook ads scrapers in the industry and also discuss how to create your own Facebook ads scraper.
Best Facebook Ads Scraper 2023
- Phantombuster – Winner!
- Bright Data
- Apify
- Octoparse
- ParseHub
- WebHarvy
1. Phantombuster
Phantombuster is a highly recommended choice for a Facebook ads scraper. One of the main reasons for this is its affordable pricing, starting at just $30 a month. Additionally, Phantombuster’s platform supports both desktop and cloud-based scraping, making it accessible for a wide range of users.
One of the standout features of Phantombuster is its code-free automation, making it easy for anyone to use. They also offer data extraction services which make it easier to extract data from the Facebook ad library.
In addition to its capabilities for scraping Facebook ads, Phantombuster also provides support for scraping a wide range of other websites. This makes it a versatile tool for anyone looking to extract data from multiple sources.
Phantombuster is well-known for its Facebook ad library scraping capabilities, allowing users to scrape ads published by a Facebook page. This can be useful for keeping track of what your competitors are doing, giving you the ability to use this information to your advantage.
In addition to its web scraping capabilities, Phantombuster also offers a browser extension for its clients. This extension is compatible with both Firefox and Chrome and allows users to easily connect to Facebook, making the scraping process even more convenient. This way you can use the web scraper in a more user-friendly way.
2. Bright Data
Bright Data is a reputable choice for a Facebook ad scraper, and they claim to be the world’s number one web data platform. They offer a variety of services, including ready-made data sets and a robust data collection infrastructure to help you gather the information you need from the internet. With Bright Data’s help, you can easily extract the data you need from Facebook Ad Library and make your decision based on the data collected.
In addition to providing Facebook ad scraping services, Bright Data also offers its clients a way to stay safe and secure while implementing their online activity through the use of proxies. This means that you don’t have to worry about finding a separate proxy service, as everything can be done under one roof.
Bright Data is also known for its exceptional customer support and is considered a reliable and flexible option in the industry. With Bright Data, you can extract the data you need from Facebook ad library and protect your online activity all at the same time.
3. Apify
Apify is a reputable Facebook ads scraper, with pricing starting at $49 a month. The platform is cloud-based, so there’s no need to download anything to your desktop. Apify makes scraping Facebook ads extremely easy, all you need to do is make sure you use a proxy to stay anonymous while scraping.
One of the major advantages of using Apify is that it is user-friendly, even for those who are not familiar with coding. The Facebook ads scraper is already built, and it can be run locally or on the Apify platform.
Apify offers support for extracting various details related to ad campaigns, including the end date, advertiser, and more. They also offer filtering based on country, advertiser, and specific keywords, so that you can extract relevant data from Facebook Ad Library.
4. Octoparse
The next Facebook ad scraper on our list is slightly more expensive, starting at $75 a month. However, they do offer a free trial for 14 days, which has its limitations.
The platform is compatible with both desktop and cloud-based scraping.
This Facebook ad scraper is popular among people who are not well-versed in coding, as it features a visual scraping tool.
This tool allows users to easily identify their area of interest and automatically identify similar elements. With just a few clicks, you can scrape Facebook ads, and even convert the data into a structured spreadsheet for easy reviewing.
5. ParseHub
Parsehub offers an easy-to-use Facebook ad scraper with a pricing plan that they claim is free, but with paid options.
They also claim to offer a free trial, but advanced features come at an additional cost. The platform is compatible with both cloud-based and desktop scraping.
Parsehub is a great option for those who don’t have a budget for a scraper. They offer a free web scraper with basic features, but if you want to access their advanced features, you’ll need to pay for them.
Despite being a free option, Parsehub is still considered one of the best in the industry, which means that they do not compromise on quality.
6. WebHarvy
WebHarvy is an ideal choice for a Facebook ad scraper as it is a browser extension, eliminating the need to download anything.
Compatible with Firefox and Chrome, it offers a great option for scraping the Facebook ad library.
The generic web scraper provided by WebHarvy can be used to scrape any website, and it also comes with a built-in scheduler for scheduling scraping tasks.
An Overview of Facebook Ads Scraping
The concept of a Facebook ad scraper is using a computer bot, known as a web scraper, to automatically obtain Facebook ads out of the Facebook ad library. This approach is pretty straightforward, the web scraper is going to go to the page, so that it can use the search tool to find a specific ad, after which it is going to extract the ad, and save it.
One thing that you’re going to appreciate about this approach is that because a bot manages everything, in a way that is automated, it is extremely fast and efficient, which means that you can scrape hundreds of ads in a really short amount of time. It is also the right approach for collecting Facebook ads, because there is no API for free that can be used as an alternative.
One thing that is important to be aware of is that Facebook doesn’t condone people using web scrapers on the network.
This means that if they catch you using web scraper then they’re going to block you. And if you are currently active on your profile, then it could get restricted. As a result, you will need to be subtle about how you scrape Facebook ads, so that they don’t work out that it is you that is scraping the ads.
There are ways that web scrapers can approach this method and remain completely anonymous, and there’s no reason why you can’t adopt this approach as well.
The positive thing about scraping on Facebook is that despite the fact that Facebook doesn’t condone it, it is seen as legal.
How to Scrape Facebook Ads Library Using Selenium and Python
In this section, we will provide information for those with prior coding skills. If you don’t know how to code, you can move on to the next section and choose from our list of web scrapers to scrape the Facebook ad library without writing code.
We were describing use cases for Facebook Marketing API in the last article.
Developing a Facebook ad scraper using coding is not difficult, as long as your web scraper can do everything automatically and has features to prevent being blocked.
The easiest programming language to use for a Facebook ad scraper is Python. To scrape normal Facebook content, JavaScript does not need to be enabled, but it is required to access the Facebook ad library. Selenium is the right protocol for this task, as it is designed to automate web browsers and can be used to scrape data from websites with JavaScript features.
To avoid being blocked, specific measures need to be implemented. Facebook uses IP tracking to detect when multiple requests are made and will block IP addresses with red flags.
There are many options available to protect yourself while scraping the Facebook ad library. If you plan on sending many requests, we recommend setting random delays between requests.
Scrape Facebook Ads with this Sample Code
Below, we’re going to share with you a code for being able to scrape Facebook ads out of the Facebook ad library.
import time
from selenium import webdriver
class FBAdsScraper:
def __init__(self, country, keyword):
self.country = country
self.keyword = keyword
self.ads = []
self.driver = webdriver.Safari()
def scrape_ads(self):
self.driver.get("https://web.facebook.com/ads/library/?active_status=all&ad_type=all&country={}&q={}".format(self.country,
self.keyword))
self.driver.implicitly_wait(10)
ads = self.driver.find_element_by_class_name("_9cb_").find_elements_by_tag_name("div")
for ad in ads[:2]:
title = ad.find_element_by_class_name("dgpf1xc5").text
status = ad.find_elements_by_class_name("qku1pbnj")[0].text
end_date = ad.find_elements_by_class_name("qku1pbnj")[1].text
ad_details = {"title": title,
"status": status,
"end_date": end_date,
}
self.ads.append(ad_details)
self.driver.close()
print(self.ads)
x = FBAdsScraper("US", " web scraping")
x.scrape_ads()
The code is going to use Selenium web driver for your personal facebook ads library scraper.