The success of advertising campaigns often hinges on selecting the optimal number of ads. Running too many or too few variants can negatively impact results or limit continuous campaign optimization. That’s why determining the ideal number of ads is essential. 

What’s the Ideal Number of Ads?

There are no hard and fast rules, as campaign goals can vary widely. The following tips serve as general guidelines to help you make informed decisions.

Small Campaigns: 4–8 Ads

For smaller-budget campaigns targeting a well-defined audience, 4–8 ad variants are usually sufficient. This allows for testing multiple options without diluting the data.

Medium-Sized Campaigns: 8–16 Ads

In medium-sized campaigns, 8–16 ad variants are typically optimal. This range provides enough diversity to cover varying interest points within the target audience, while keeping testing manageable. 

Large Campaigns: 16–30 Ads

For larger-budget campaigns or those aiming at broad audiences, up to 30 ads may be relevant. This offers sufficient room for experimenting with different creative ideas and messages, while keeping analysis and optimization feasible. However, going beyond 30 is generally not recommended.

Additional Key Considerations

Testability: To obtain reliable insights into performance, ensure each variant receives enough impressions. This allows underperforming ads to be paused or replaced in a timely manner. Aim for a minimum of 10,000 visible impressions per creative to enable meaningful comparisons.

Cost-Efficiency: Launching too many ads at the outset can dilute results and drive up costs due to the extensive testing phase. This may result in higher overall campaign expenses.

Transparency: Maintaining a manageable number of ads makes it easier to evaluate the performance of each variant. This simplifies result analysis and enables faster decision-making.

Running Separate Campaigns

If you want to test multiple creative ideas, consider launching separate campaigns for each variant. This approach allows for cleaner comparisons and more precise refinements based on individual performance.