Where Is Meta Ads Library? What Changed and Why You Can’t Find It Anymore

If you used to analyze competitors’ ads directly from their Facebook Pages and now feel like that option has disappeared, you’re not imagining things. Meta Ads Library (formerly Facebook Ad Library) is still active, but the way users access it has changed significantly. Interface updates, regional rollouts, and Meta’s shift toward centralized transparency tools have made the old navigation path unreliable and, in many cases, invisible.

This has created confusion for marketers, agencies, and business owners who relied on Page Transparency as their primary entry point. To understand what happened, it helps to look at both the interface changes and Meta’s stated position on how Ad Library should be accessed.

Why the Page Transparency Shortcut Disappeared

For years, Facebook Pages included a visible path to Ads Library through About → Page Transparency → Go to Ad Library. With the rollout of New Pages Experience, this shortcut became inconsistent. Some Pages still show it, while others do not.

Meta has gradually shifted how Page information is displayed depending on Page type, region, and account version. As part of this transition, Page Transparency sections are no longer guaranteed to appear in the same location or at all. This is not a bug; it is the result of Meta standardizing its interface while simultaneously running multiple layout versions across different user groups.

In Meta’s own documentation on transparency tools, the company explains that Ads Library is designed as a centralized public database rather than a Page-based feature. Their position is that Ads Library is meant to be accessed as a standalone tool, not embedded inside each Page’s interface. In Meta’s words, the Ads Library exists “to provide transparency into advertising across Meta technologies in one searchable experience.” This reflects a strategic decision: rather than tying ad visibility to Page layouts, Meta wants all ad transparency to live in one global system.

In practice, this means Page-level shortcuts are optional UI elements, not permanent features. When they disappear, it does not mean ads are gone, it only means the shortcut was removed.

The Official Way Meta Wants You to Access Ads Library

The most reliable and intended access point is the standalone tool: https://www.facebook.com/ads/library

Meta presents Ads Library as a public, searchable archive where anyone can view active ads across Facebook and Instagram. This is the primary product, not the Page shortcut.

From a functional standpoint, Ads Library works independently of Facebook Pages. When you search for a Page name inside the tool, it queries Meta’s advertising system directly rather than relying on Page UI elements. This is why it continues to work even when Page Transparency links disappear.

Meta’s transparency center explains that Ads Library exists to provide “a single destination where people can see ads running across Meta platforms.” This language is important: Meta does not describe Ads Library as a feature of Pages, but as a system-level transparency tool. That is the architectural reason the shortcut can vanish without breaking the tool itself.

This also explains why Ads Library requires country selection. Ads are stored and displayed based on the market they are targeting, not the Page’s physical location. If the wrong country is selected, Ads Library may show no results even when ads are running. This is one of the most common reasons users assume a business is not advertising.

What You Can Actually Learn From Meta Ads Library

Meta Ads Library is designed to answer one specific question: What is this advertiser currently showing to the public? It allows users to view active creative assets, including images, videos, copy, and formats. It also shows when an ad started running and on which Meta platforms it appears.

However, Meta is explicit about what the tool does not reveal. It does not show budgets, targeting parameters, or performance metrics. This is consistent with Meta’s stated goal of transparency without exposing competitive or personal data. Ads Library reveals creative strategy, not media strategy.

For marketers and analysts, this still makes the tool extremely valuable. It allows competitive research, message analysis, funnel observation, and creative benchmarking. What it does not allow is budget estimation or campaign reconstruction. This boundary is intentional and aligns with Meta’s policy language about protecting advertiser and user data.

Conclusion: Meta Didn’t Remove Ads Library, They Removed the Shortcut

Meta Ads Library is not gone. It has not been deprecated. It has not been replaced. What changed is the visibility of the shortcut inside Facebook Pages. Meta now treats Ads Library as a centralized transparency tool rather than a Page-level feature, which is why access through Page Transparency is inconsistent or missing entirely.

The practical takeaway is simple: the authoritative way to access Meta Ads Library is through the direct tool at facebook.com/ads/library. Page-based access may appear, but it is no longer reliable or universal.

Meta’s own framing makes this clear. Ads Library is meant to be a single, global entry point for ad transparency. The Page interface is no longer part of that promise. In other words, the tool still exists. Only the door moved.