Should I kill this Facebook ad?

Meta shows you ROAS. It does not show you what ROAS you actually need to break even, or what this ad is costing you per day. Give us five numbers. You get a verdict, your breakeven gap, and a 30-day projection.

Step 1 of 6

How much you have spent on this ad so far. Find it in Meta Ads Manager under Amount Spent.

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How we judge a Facebook ad

Five inputs. One verdict. The decision lives in three numbers Meta will not show you: your breakeven ROAS, your dollar contribution per day, and what those numbers project over the next 30 days if nothing changes. Here is the framework we apply to your numbers.

Kill it

ROAS is less than half of your breakeven ROAS, or ROAS is zero after 100 dollars of spend across 3 or more days.

  • Your ROAS is less than half of breakeven. Every day this runs is a measurable loss. Kill it today.
  • Zero return after that spend is a dead ad. Kill it now and put the budget into a creative or audience that has a pulse.

Marginal

ROAS sits between half of breakeven and breakeven. The ad is losing money on every order, but not catastrophically.

  • You are losing money on every order, but not catastrophically. Pause it, look at the creative or audience, and decide if a tweak fixes it before you fund another week.

Hold the spend

ROAS sits between breakeven and 50 percent above breakeven. The ad is paying for itself or contributing modestly, but it is not yet a clear scaler.

  • You are right at breakeven. The ad is paying for itself and that is it. Hold the spend at this level and wait for clearer direction of strength or weakness before you scale or kill.
  • It is profitable but not exciting. Hold the budget here. Do not scale until you see clearer headroom on ROAS or a creative that lifts it.

Scale it

ROAS is at least 50 percent above your breakeven ROAS.

  • You are well above breakeven. This is what to scale. Increase the budget by 20 to 30 percent and check it again in 3 to 4 days.

Wait, not enough data yet

Either fewer than 3 days have passed, or spend is below 100 dollars (or impressions below 1,000). Day-to-day variance is too high to read.

  • Three days is not enough time for an ad to tell you anything. Hold the spend, give it the rest of the week, and check back.
  • You haven't spent enough yet for the numbers to mean something. Wait until you have at least $100 of spend and a thousand impressions, then judge.

Two reads Meta does not show you

Meta Ads Manager shows your ROAS. It does not know your gross margin, so it cannot show you any of the three reads that actually drive a kill or scale decision. We surface all three.

Breakeven ROAS
1 divided by your gross margin. At a 50 percent margin, you need a 2.0x ROAS to break even. Below that, every order is losing money.
Where you sit vs breakeven
Your current ROAS as a percent above or below breakeven. A 1.6x ROAS at 50 percent margin is 20 percent below breakeven. Sharper read than the raw number.
30-day projection
Your daily contribution times 30, projected forward. Tells you what you will lose, or net, over the next 30 days if you let the ad run unchanged.

Common questions

When should I kill a Facebook ad?

Kill it if your ROAS is less than half of your breakeven ROAS, or if your ROAS is zero after at least 100 dollars of spend over 3 or more days. Hold the spend if you are right at breakeven. Scale only when ROAS is 50 percent or more above breakeven.

What is breakeven ROAS for a Shopify ad?

Breakeven ROAS is 1 divided by your gross margin. At a 50 percent margin you need a ROAS of 2.0x to break even. At a 33 percent margin you need 3.0x. Below your breakeven, every order is losing money.

How long should I let a Facebook ad run before judging it?

At least 3 days, with at least 100 dollars of spend, ideally 1,000 or more impressions. Before that, day-to-day variance is too high for the ROAS reading to mean anything.

Is a 2x ROAS good on Facebook ads?

It depends on your gross margin. At 50 percent margin, 2x is exactly breakeven. At 33 percent margin, 2x is 33 percent below breakeven and you should kill the ad. Always compare ROAS to your breakeven, not to a generic threshold.

Why is Meta Ads Manager not enough to decide whether to kill an ad?

Meta shows your ROAS but not your breakeven ROAS, your dollar burn rate per day, or what you will lose over the next 30 days if nothing changes. All three require gross margin, which Meta does not know. Without those reads, you are guessing whether your ROAS is enough.

How do I know if I should scale a Facebook ad?

Scale only if ROAS is at least 50 percent above your breakeven ROAS, after at least 3 days and 100 dollars of spend. Increase budget by 20 to 30 percent and re-check in 3 to 4 days. Scaling at breakeven or just above means you fund a marginal ad with no headroom.

What does it mean if my Facebook ad is bleeding money?

Bleeding hard means your ROAS is less than half of your breakeven ROAS. At a 50 percent margin, that is any ROAS under 1.0x. Every day this runs costs you a measurable amount. Kill it.

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