Use case
Meta ad creative: make many different ads, and Meta finds the audience
Meta now uses your ads to find the right people, so it asks for many ads with different messages. Cutroom turns short phone videos of you talking into vertical ads for Reels and Stories.
In short
- Meta says the best way to find the right audience is now many ads with different messages, not narrow targeting.
- Most ads do not win. Motion's analysis of 550,000+ Meta ads found that only 5 to 8% become winners.
- The quickest way to get different ads is to film a few short videos, each with its own message.
- Reels ads are 9:16, and Meta asks you to keep the top 14% and the bottom 35% free of text.
- Cutroom makes one 9:16 ad from one phone video for 110 credits, so twelve ads cost 1,320 credits.
- Share of ads that become winners, per Motion
- 5–8%
- Meta's shape for Reels ads
- 9:16
- Meta's shape for Facebook Feed video ads
- 4:5
Why Meta ad creative matters more now
Meta's ad system decides who sees your ad, and it uses the ad itself to do that. So the ad is now your main way to reach the right people.
- In April 2025, Meta wrote that the focus has moved from narrow targeting to creative diversification.
- Creative diversification means making many ads with different themes, messages and visuals, so each one can reach a different group.
- Meta's own example is an advertiser who went from 3 or 4 new ads a week to almost 50.
- Meta is not asking for more polished ads. It is asking for more ads with different messages, and phone videos count.
How many Meta ads to test
Only 5 to 8% of ads become winners, according to Motion's analysis of 550,000+ Meta ads. That is about 1 in 13 to 1 in 20.
- With 6 different ads, the chance that at least one becomes a winner is about 26 to 39%.
- With 12 different ads, that chance is about 46 to 63%.
- So a dozen or more different ads a month gives Meta a real chance to find one that works.
Chance of at least one winner
Worked out from Motion's 5 to 8% win rate, counting each ad as a separate chance.
| Different ads | If 5% of ads win | If 8% of ads win |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | 26% | 39% |
| 12 | 46% | 63% |
| 24 | 71% | 86% |
Different ads: 6
- If 5% of ads win
- 26%
- If 8% of ads win
- 39%
Different ads: 12
- If 5% of ads win
- 46%
- If 8% of ads win
- 63%
Different ads: 24
- If 5% of ads win
- 71%
- If 8% of ads win
- 86%
This is the whole editor
Highlight a phrase and a clip lands on those exact words. No timeline, no keyframes, no layers.
Meta video ad specs
These numbers come from Meta's ads guide, read on 21 September 2026. Reels and Facebook Feed ask for different shapes.
Meta video ad specs by placement
Source: Meta Ads Guide for Instagram and Facebook Reels, Facebook Feed and Instagram Feed.
| Spec | Reels | Facebook Feed | Instagram Feed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recommended shape | 9:16 | 4:5 | 9:16 |
| Recommended size | 1440 x 2560 pixels | 1440 x 1800 pixels | 1080 x 1920 pixels |
| Largest file | 4 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| Longest video | 15 minutes on Instagram Reels | 241 minutes | 60 minutes |
| Keep free of text | Top 14%, bottom 35%, 6% on each side | Not set in the guide | Not set in the guide |
| A Cutroom export (9:16) | Matches | Not the recommended 4:5 | Matches |
Spec: Recommended shape
- Reels
- 9:16
- Facebook Feed
- 4:5
- Instagram Feed
- 9:16
Spec: Recommended size
- Reels
- 1440 x 2560 pixels
- Facebook Feed
- 1440 x 1800 pixels
- Instagram Feed
- 1080 x 1920 pixels
Spec: Largest file
- Reels
- 4 GB
- Facebook Feed
- 4 GB
- Instagram Feed
- 4 GB
Spec: Longest video
- Reels
- 15 minutes on Instagram Reels
- Facebook Feed
- 241 minutes
- Instagram Feed
- 60 minutes
Spec: Keep free of text
- Reels
- Top 14%, bottom 35%, 6% on each side
- Facebook Feed
- Not set in the guide
- Instagram Feed
- Not set in the guide
Spec: A Cutroom export (9:16)
- Reels
- Matches
- Facebook Feed
- Not the recommended 4:5
- Instagram Feed
- Matches
How to make different Meta ads with Cutroom
Each message gets its own short phone video, and Cutroom turns each video into one ad.
- Pick three or four reasons to buy, such as the price, a customer's story or how it works, and film one short video about each.
- Cutroom adds captions, b-roll and a headline for the opening seconds. A 30-second ad costs 110 credits.
- A quicker second step is new first lines for a message that already works. You film the same message again with each new opening.
- Cutroom keeps the lines you say, so each opening needs its own recording and its own edit.
- Your product clips go in your library once. You place them by highlighting the words that name the product.
- The captions are part of the picture, in one of 40 styles, so the ad makes sense with the sound off.
A few messages into a few different ads
Pick three or four messages
Such as the price, a customer's story or how it works
Film each one
A short phone video, up to 3 minutes
Upload each video
110 credits for a 30-second ad
Export
A 9:16 MP4 for Reels and Stories
What it costs
A 30-second ad costs 110 credits: 100 for the edit and 10 for the export. Twelve ads cost 1,320 credits, which fits in one month of Basic.
Cutroom plans and 30-second ads per month
| Plan | Price | Credits | 30-second ads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0, no card | Your first video, made within 7 days | 1, with a Cutroom mark |
| Lite | $19.99 a month | 1,250 | About 11, no mark |
| Basic | $39.99 a month | 2,500 | About 22, plus avatars and generated music |
| Premium | $79.99 a month | 5,000 | About 45 |
| Top-up | $39.99 once | 2,500 | About 22 more |
Plan: Free
- Price
- $0, no card
- Credits
- Your first video, made within 7 days
- 30-second ads
- 1, with a Cutroom mark
Plan: Lite
- Price
- $19.99 a month
- Credits
- 1,250
- 30-second ads
- About 11, no mark
Plan: Basic
- Price
- $39.99 a month
- Credits
- 2,500
- 30-second ads
- About 22, plus avatars and generated music
Plan: Premium
- Price
- $79.99 a month
- Credits
- 5,000
- 30-second ads
- About 45
Plan: Top-up
- Price
- $39.99 once
- Credits
- 2,500
- 30-second ads
- About 22 more
What Cutroom does not do
Cutroom edits the video. Everything else about the ad happens in Meta Ads Manager.
- Cutroom does not run, target or pay for your ads. You upload the MP4 in Meta Ads Manager.
- Cutroom only exports 9:16, so it does not make the 4:5 version Meta recommends for Facebook Feed, or square videos.
- Cutroom makes no image ads, carousels or catalogue ads.
- Cutroom needs a person talking on camera. If nobody will, the avatar add-on makes a presenter from a photo and a voice-over, for 350 credits a minute on Basic and up.
Questions people ask
- What is Meta ad creative?
- It is what people see in your ad: the video or image, the text and the headline. Meta now uses it to decide who sees the ad, so having many different ads matters more than it used to.
- How many Meta ad creatives should I test?
- More than most accounts run. Only 5 to 8% of ads become winners, per Motion's analysis of 550,000+ Meta ads. With 12 different ads, the chance of at least one winner is about 46 to 63%. Twelve Cutroom ads cost 1,320 credits.
- What size is a Meta video ad?
- It depends on where it runs. Reels ads are 9:16 at 1440 x 2560 pixels, and Facebook Feed video ads are 4:5 at 1440 x 1800. Files can be up to 4 GB. On Reels, keep the top 14%, the bottom 35% and 6% on each side free of text.
- What should change between versions of a Meta ad?
- The message and the look, not only the first line. Meta asks for ads with different themes, messages and visuals, so each one can reach a different group. A new first line is the quickest change, but a different message is what Meta's guidance asks for.
- How much does a Meta video ad cost to make with Cutroom?
- 110 credits for a 30-second ad. Basic is $39.99 a month for 2,500 credits, about 22 ads. Your first video is free, with no card, and you have 7 days to make it.
- Can Cutroom make 4:5 or square Meta ads?
- No. Every export is a 9:16 MP4, which fits Reels and Stories. The 4:5 video Meta recommends for Facebook Feed, and square videos, need another editor.
Film a few short videos, each with a different message, and make a Meta ad from each. Your first video is free.