- The signals Instagram says it uses
- What an advertiser gets to choose
- Where each signal comes from, and what you can do about it
- How to see why you're seeing a specific ad
- Teens get a much narrower set of options
- Personalised or less-personalised ads in the European region
- What this means if you run ads yourself
- Frequently asked questions
Instagram shows you ads based on your activity on Instagram (and Facebook, if the accounts are linked), the content you post and engage with, your interests, your activity on other websites and apps, your feedback on ads, and information advertisers share with it, such as your email address. To see the stated reason for any single ad, tap the top right of the ad, then tap Why you're seeing this ad.
That's Instagram Help's own list, as of Nov 2026. What it doesn't make obvious is how much of the choosing happens on the advertiser's side, which is the part a business owner needs to understand.
The signals Instagram says it uses
Instagram Help frames these as examples of information it could use, not a complete formula. In plain words:
- Your activity on Instagram. The people you follow and the posts you like. If your Instagram and Facebook accounts are linked, your Facebook activity can shape your Instagram ads too.
- Your content. What you post, and what you interact with, on Instagram and Facebook.
- Your information and interests. What Facebook knows about your interests, if you have a Facebook account.
- Your activity elsewhere. What you do on third-party websites and apps.
- Your ad feedback. Telling Instagram you're interested, or not interested, in an ad personalises things further.
- Information from advertisers and partners. Details that advertisers, their partners and marketing partners share, such as your email address.
- AI products. Depending on your region, your interactions with AI products can count as well.
Two details in that Help article are worth reading twice. First, activity from websites and apps off Meta technologies is one you can switch off in your ad settings. Second, your settings may not stop Instagram using your information to avoid showing you certain ads. Help's own example: you may not be shown ads for something you've recently bought.
What an advertiser gets to choose
A separate Help article, Why am I seeing ads from an advertiser on Instagram, is where the real detail sits. Advertisers decide who they want to reach, and Help says that choice is what shows up in Why you're seeing this ad. The tools it lists are these:
- Profile information: age, location, gender or other details on your profile. If you haven't selected a gender, Instagram may show ads associated with a gender it infers from your profile and activity.
- Interests and categories: Instagram decides you're into something, such as cooking or fitness, or that you belong to a wider group it calls a category, such as a mobile user. Advertisers can include people with specific interests or categories in their audience. If you want to see the kinds of interests on offer, there's a breakdown of the interest options advertisers pick from.
- Lookalike audiences: people who may be similar to those already interested in the business.
- Custom audiences: people who may already have interacted with the business.
Custom audiences: why an ad follows you after a website visit
This explains most "how did they know?" moments. Instagram Help describes three ways a custom audience gets built. The first is business tools such as the Meta pixel or the Facebook SDK, which a business adds to its website or app so it can send Meta information about what people do there, such as making a purchase or opening the app. The second is a customer list: you hand over your email address when you buy in a shop or join a rewards programme, the business uploads that list, and Meta matches it to people on its platforms. The third is offline activity, such as a purchase in a shop, if the business chooses to share it.
There's a small detail here that clears up a lot of confusion. If you see a company you've never dealt with using a list for an advertiser, Help says it's likely the advertiser is working with an advertising agency, and the agency uploaded its own list. Help also says Instagram can tell businesses whether their customers engaged with their ads.
Lookalike audiences
A lookalike audience starts from the people already interested in a business, such as people who've followed its profile or visited its website. Instagram then matches things like their interests or demographics, for example their city, to find other people it thinks might be interested too.
Where each signal comes from, and what you can do about it
| What an ad can be based on | Where it comes from | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Your Instagram activity | People you follow, posts, stories and reels you like, ads you've clicked or given feedback on | Hide ads you're not interested in and give feedback on the ads you see |
| Facebook information | Your Facebook interests and the content you create or interact with, if you have a Facebook profile | Review and adjust your ad topic preferences |
| Activity from other businesses | Website, app and in-store activity that businesses send through business tools | Use the Activity from other businesses setting to choose whether it's used for ads |
| Customer lists | An email address you gave a business, uploaded and matched | Check Why you're seeing this ad on the ad itself |
| Location | Connection information such as your device's IP address, plus information from you and others | Turn location services on or off |
| Search terms | A keyword you type into the search bar | Know it can shape the ads in your search results |
| Ad feedback | Marking an ad as interesting or not interesting | Use it: Help says it personalises your ads further |
How to see why you're seeing a specific ad
As of Nov 2026, Instagram Help gives three steps:
- Tap the top right of the ad.
- Tap Why you're seeing this ad.
- If it's available, tap next to a reason to see more information about it.
Treat what you see there as part of the story, not all of it. Help says these explanations come from machine learning models that mirror the models used to deliver ads, and that they don't represent every factor behind an ad.
Help also says Instagram doesn't share information that personally identifies you, such as your name or email address, with advertisers unless you give permission.
Teens get a much narrower set of options
Instagram has extra rules for ads shown to teens, which Help defines as people under 18 globally and under 20 in Thailand. Advertisers can't choose interests, behaviours, gender or activity on other apps and websites when showing ads to teens. They can include teens in an audience only by age and location.
Some topics are off the table altogether. Help says Meta's Advertising Standards bar ads about restricted topics, such as alcohol, financial products and weight loss products and services, from being shown to under 18s, and the age is higher in certain countries. Adults, by contrast, can be reached through interests, partner information and websites they've visited.
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Personalised or less-personalised ads in the European region
This choice only exists in the European region, and only if you use Meta's products free of charge with ads. Personalised ads draw on your activity on Meta products, how you engage with ads, the content you view, topics Instagram thinks you like and your profile information. Less-personalised ads use a much shorter list: how you engage with ads, your age, the gender you provide, your location, your device or browser, and the content you're viewing in that session.
Help's example makes the difference clear. Someone scrolls in the morning and sees ads based on what she's viewing then. In the afternoon, her ads are based on what she's viewing in the afternoon, not on the morning's browsing. With less-personalised ads your browsing may also be paused by ad breaks, some ad preferences stop being available, and, the catch for anyone running a business account, Help says your ability to advertise and monetise with ads will be limited.
To switch on a computer, as of Nov 2026:
- Click More in the bottom left, then click Settings.
- Click Meta Account in the left menu.
- Click Ad preferences, then Ad experience below Manage info.
- Choose personalised or less-personalised ads.
- Click Confirm.
What this means if you run ads yourself
Everything above is the mirror image of the targeting screen you see when you set up and run your own Instagram ads. The audience you build is what your customers see described in Why you're seeing this ad. If you've uploaded a customer list, a past customer may see that reason on your ad. If you've used the Meta pixel, a visitor may see that your ad is linked to their activity on your website.
When a customer asks why they keep seeing your ad, the honest answer is the three-step route above: tap the top right of the ad and read the reason. If they want fewer ads altogether, point them to a guide on stopping or hiding ads on Instagram rather than trying to explain the settings yourself.
My verdict: I'd start by opening Why you're seeing this ad on a few of the ads in your own feed, so you can see how Instagram explains targeting before you set any. Then I'd lean on custom and lookalike audiences built from people who already know you, because Help makes clear they're the advertiser's strongest levers. Skip interest targeting as your only plan if teens are part of your market, because for them it's age and location only.
Frequently asked questions
Can I see exactly why Instagram showed me an ad?
Partly. Tap the top right of the ad, then Why you're seeing this ad. Instagram Help says the explanation comes from models that mirror its ad delivery models and doesn't show every factor behind the ad.
Why do I see ads from a company I've never heard of?
It may be a lookalike audience, built from people similar to a business's existing followers or website visitors. If a different company appears to be using a list, Instagram Help says the advertiser is likely working with an advertising agency.
Can advertisers target teenagers by interest on Instagram?
No. Instagram Help says advertisers can include teens in an audience only by age and location, not by interests, behaviours, gender or activity on other apps and websites.
Who can choose less-personalised ads on Instagram?
As of Nov 2026, Instagram Help says the choice between personalised and less-personalised ads is only available in the European region, for people who use Meta's products free of charge with ads.
