Flexible Ads Format for Meta: How to Use the Dynamic Creative Ads Replacement
If you’ve been running Meta ads for a while, you probably remember Dynamic Creative Ads. They made creative testing easier by automatically mixing images, videos, headlines, and text to see what worked best. But for campaigns focused on sales and app promotion, Dynamic Creative is no longer available. That’s where Flexible Ads come in.
Flexible Ads take the idea of automated creative testing further. They adapt your ads to the right audience and placement while giving you more control over your creative setup. Here’s how to make the most of them.
What Were Dynamic Creative Ads?
Dynamic Creative Ads, launched in 2017, allowed advertisers to upload multiple creative elements:
- Up to 10 images or videos
- 5 headlines
- 5 text options
- 5 calls to action
Meta would automatically mix and match these elements to find the best-performing combinations.
It was great for testing, but it had some limits:
- You couldn’t see which exact combinations performed best.
- Reporting only showed individual element performance, not full ads.
- It worked at the ad set level, which could make campaign management messy.
Flexible Ads improve on all of this.
What Is Meta Flexible Ad Format?
Flexible Ads let you upload multiple creative assets at the ad level, not the ad set level. Meta’s algorithm then decides whether to show your ad as a single image, video, or carousel based on the predicted performance for each audience and placement.
Here’s what makes them different:
- Upload up to 10 images or videos in one ad
- Meta can automatically create carousel ads from your assets
- More control over creative grouping
- Smarter automation for better ad delivery
Flexible Ads build on the idea of Dynamic Creative Ads but focus more on conversion campaigns. The format automatically matches your ad to the audience and placement where it is most likely to succeed.
How to Use Flexible Ads in Meta Ads Manager
Flexible Ads are Meta’s upgraded approach to creative testing. They let you upload multiple images and videos, and Meta automatically decides the best way to show your ad to each viewer. If you’ve used Dynamic Creative Ads before, Flexible Ads feel familiar but smarter and more flexible.
Here’s how to set one up step by step.
1. Start Your Campaign
- Open Meta Ads Manager and click + Create.
- Choose your ad objective: Traffic, Engagement, App Promotion, or Sales.
- Click Continue. You may notice a Campaign Score on the right, which predicts how optimized your campaign is. You can review recommendations while building your campaign.
If you selected App Promotion or Sales, you might see a notification about starting with an Advantage+ campaign setup. Click Don’t show again or OK.
For Sales campaigns, toggle off Advantage+ Catalogue Ads, then click Next. Skip this if you chose App Promotion.
2. Set Conversion Locations
Depending on your objective, select where conversions will happen:
- Traffic: Website
- Engagement: Website or Messages
- Sales: Website, App, or Messages
- App Promotion: No selection needed
Complete the ad creation steps until you reach the Ad Setup section.
3. Select Flexible Format
At the Ad Setup stage, select Manual Upload as your creative source. Then, under Ad Format, choose Flexible. This tells Meta to handle creative testing and delivery automatically.
A quick note: Flexible Ads are not available if you select Advantage+ Catalogue Ads, so make sure that option is turned off.
4. Upload Creative Assets
Flexible Ads let you include up to 10 images or videos in a single ad. This makes testing multiple creative variations much simpler and avoids the need to create separate ads for each idea.
- In the Ad Creative section, click Add Media and pick Add Images or Add Videos.
- You can upload new media or select from existing assets.
- When done, click Continue.
To keep your campaign organized, you can split your assets into up to three creative groups. Each group can include different images, videos, text, and destinations. This lets you control which elements appear together, helping maintain consistent messaging and preventing combinations you don’t want.
5. Add Text and Links (Optional)
- Enter your primary text, headlines, and descriptions to give context to your ad.
- Under Destination, add your website URL, deep link, or deferred deep link.
6. Preview Your Ad (Optional)
Before publishing, it’s a good idea to check how your ad will appear. Use Ad Preview to see placements like Feeds, Stories, and Reels. For a deeper look, Advanced Preview shows how your ad adapts to different formats and placements.
7. Publish Your Ad
Complete the remaining ad setup steps and click Publish when ready.
Your Flexible Ad is now live, automatically testing combinations of images, videos, and text to find what works best for each audience.
Best Practices for Flexible Ads
Flexible Ads make creative testing easier, but a few simple strategies can help you get the most from them. These tips will help your ads perform better and save you time.
Upload High-Quality Assets
Quality matters. Use images that are at least 1080×1080 pixels and videos that are short, engaging, and easy to watch without sound. Captions on videos can make a big difference since many people scroll with the sound off. Stick to square (1:1) or vertical (9:16) formats to fit most placements.
Use Creative Groups
Organize your visuals into up to three creative groups. This gives you control over which images or videos appear together. You can group assets by theme, messaging, or style to keep your ads consistent and professional-looking.
Provide Different Text Options
Give Meta several headlines, primary texts, and descriptions to test different messaging angles. This allows the algorithm to match the right copy with the right audience. Think of it as a small experiment within each ad.
Monitor Performance
Flexible Ads handle most of the testing automatically, but it’s still important to check results regularly. Look at which images, videos, and text combinations perform best. Over time, this insight will help you refine your creatives for even better results.
Why Flexible Ads Work
Flexible Ads make creative testing easier and give your campaigns more room to perform. Meta decides the best format for each viewer, whether it’s a single image, video, or carousel. This means less guesswork, fewer ads to manage, and better results with less effort.
- Smarter Delivery: You don’t need to create multiple formats for different placements. Flexible Ads automatically show the format most likely to perform, even if you aren’t sure which creative will work best.
- More Control: You can still group images and videos with different text combinations. This keeps your messaging fresh, prevents ad fatigue, and helps your campaigns stay consistent.
- Test and Learn: The best results come from experimenting. Upload a mix of images and videos, try different text options, and track performance. Over time, you’ll discover which combinations resonate with your audience and improve future campaigns.
Tracking your ads is just as simple as creating them. Metricool lets you see impressions, clicks, and conversions in one dashboard. Compare campaigns side by side, visualize trends, and spot which creative combinations perform best. You can export reports, monitor ad spend, and get actionable insights without spending hours in Ads Manager.
