How to create a Snapchat ads campaign
This guide walks through building a first campaign in Snapchat Ads Manager, from choosing an objective to publishing your ad for review.
Snapchat campaigns have three levels. The campaign sets the objective and optional spend caps. The ad set holds the performance goal, bidding, budget, schedule, targeting, and placements. The ad holds the creative, brand name, headline, and call to action.
Snapchat consolidated its objectives into five: Awareness & Engagement, Traffic, Leads, App Promotion, and Sales. The specific action you want, such as purchases, is chosen later as the ad set’s performance goal.
Open the create flow
Log in to Ads Manager at ads.snapchat.com, open the menu in the top-left corner, and select Create Ads. The campaign structure appears in a panel on the left, where you can track your progress and clone, edit, or add ad sets and ads as you go.
Choose your objective
Pick the objective that matches the business result you want. Sales is for getting people to buy, Leads for collecting contact information, Traffic for sending people to a website or app, App Promotion for installs and app engagement, and Awareness & Engagement for reach and interest. The objective determines which ad formats are available.
Set campaign details
Name the campaign and set its status to active or paused. You can set start and end times or let it run indefinitely. Optional daily and lifetime spend caps limit how much the whole campaign can spend. Leave the split test option off for a first campaign. If asked, state whether the campaign involves housing, employment, or credit advertising.
Choose the performance goal and bid strategy
In the ad set, pick a performance goal from the dropdown. For a store using Sales, that is usually purchases tracked by your Snap Pixel. Then choose a bid strategy. Auto-Bidding lets Snapchat set bids to get the most results from your budget. Target Cost aims to keep your average cost per action at or below an amount you set. Max Bid caps each bid.
Set the ad set budget, schedule, and tracking
Choose a daily or lifetime ad set budget. Snapchat’s minimum daily budget is $5. Set start and end dates if they differ from the campaign. Under tracking, toggle on the Snap Pixel and select your pixel ID so conversions are attributed to this ad set.
Define locations, audience, and placements
Select the locations to include or exclude, then set age, gender, and language under demographics. You can add predefined and custom audiences, device targeting, and a frequency cap. Snapchat requires ad sets to reach at least 1,000 people. For placements, Snapchat recommends Smart Placement for scale and notes that removing placements may reduce reach.
TipWatch the audience estimate in the top right, which updates as you change targeting and budget.
Create the ad
Name the ad and choose a format, such as a single image or video. Under Ad Creatives, select Set Up Media to upload a file or pick from your Creative Library, and crop it if needed. Enter your brand name and headline. Choose whether to link your brand name to your Public Profile, then add your call to action and website URL.
Review and publish
On the review screen, check the campaign, ad set, and ad details, and click Show targeting details to confirm the audience. Use Edit Campaign, Edit Ad Set, or Edit Ad to fix anything. Add a payment method if the account doesn’t have one yet, then click Publish Campaign.
Wait for ad review
Every ad must be approved before delivery. Snapchat says the majority of ads are reviewed within 8 hours, though some take longer, so submit before your planned start date. Check status in the Ads section of Manage Ads. Editing an approved ad or ad set may send it back to review.
Before you move on
- The objective matches the result you want
- Performance goal and Snap Pixel selected for conversion campaigns
- Each ad set budget meets the $5 daily minimum
- Location and age targeting are correct
- Brand name, headline, and URL checked for errors
- The campaign shows as published and in review
Official resources
- Campaign creation guide
- Build your ad sets
- Create an ad
- Updates to Ads Manager objectives
- What is ad review?
Ad platforms update their tools often. This guide was last reviewed against the official documentation above in October 2026. If your screen looks different, the official help pages have the latest steps.
At a glance
- Level
- Beginner
- Time
- About 45 minutes
- What you need
- An active Snapchat ad account with a payment method
- Your Public Profile set up
- A vertical image or video ad
- Your landing page URL
- The Snap Pixel installed, if you plan to optimize for website conversions
Rather have it done for you?
Active Digital Marketing builds and manages Snapchat ad accounts for businesses doing $25,000+ a month in revenue.
Apply to work with usOr get an ad account auditWhere DIY setups go wrong
The most common problems with self-built Snapchat Ads setups, and what they cost.
Optimizing for swipes when you want sales
If the performance goal is a swipe or page view, Snapchat looks for people likely to take that action, not necessarily to buy. Match the goal to the result you'll judge the campaign on.
Launching a Sales campaign before the pixel works
Without a firing pixel, Snapchat has no purchase data to optimize toward and your reports won't show sales. Install and verify the Snap Pixel first.
Making targeting edits late in a flight
Snapchat notes that targeting edits can cause a brief pause in delivery and advises avoiding them in the last 12 hours of an ad set's run.
Using creative that ignores the format
Snapchat ads are full-screen and vertical. Cropped horizontal video, or text placed where the brand name and headline appear, makes the ad harder to read.
Narrowing placements without a reason
Snapchat recommends Smart Placement for scale and says removing placements may reduce reach. Restrict placements only when you have a clear reason.
What this guide doesn't cover
A published campaign is where the real work begins. On Snapchat, results depend on testing creative made for the app, choosing the right performance goals and bids as data builds, and knowing when collection or dynamic product ads fit better than a single video.
Active Digital Marketing manages Snapchat for established brands as part of a wider paid media program, with Snap Pixel and Conversions API tracking underneath. If you want that handled by people who do it every day, ADM can help.
- Creative testing for full-screen vertical formats
- Collection and dynamic product ads from your catalog
- Bid strategy and Target Cost tuning
- Custom and lookalike audience strategy
- AR Lenses and other brand formats
- Reporting reconciled with your store or CRM
Common questions
What objectives does Snapchat Ads Manager offer?
Five: Awareness & Engagement, Traffic, Leads, App Promotion, and Sales. The specific action you optimize for is set in the ad set as the performance goal.
How long does Snapchat ad review take?
Snapchat says the majority of ads are reviewed within 8 hours, though some take longer. Submit ads ahead of your planned start date.
What is the smallest audience Snapchat allows?
Snapchat requires an ad set to reach at least 1,000 people.
Do I need a Public Profile to create ads?
Yes. Snapchat requires a Public Profile for advertising, and your ad can link its brand name to that profile.
Keep learning
How to Create a Snapchat Ads Account
Set up Snapchat Ads Manager: business account, the required Public Profile, ad account settings, payment method, and team roles, step by step.
Read the guideHow to Set a Snapchat Ads Budget
Snapchat budgets explained: daily vs lifetime ad set budgets, the $5 minimum, campaign spend caps, bid strategies, and how to edit budgets safely.
Read the guideHow to Install the Snap Pixel
Install the Snap Pixel with Shopify or base code, add the Conversions API, and verify events with Snap Pixel Helper and Events Manager test events.
Read the guideHow to Create a Meta Ads Campaign
Build your first Facebook and Instagram campaign in Ads Manager: objective, Advantage+ settings, audience, placements, the ad itself, and launch.
Read the guideHow to Create a Google Ads Campaign
Build your first Google Ads Search campaign: objective, networks, locations, AI Max, keywords, responsive search ads, budget, and publishing.
Read the guideHow to Create a TikTok Ads Campaign
Build your first TikTok campaign: pick an objective, choose manual or Smart+, set targeting and placements, upload your ad, and submit it for review.
Read the guideRather have it built right the first time?
If your business does $25,000+ a month in revenue, apply and Mitch will review your accounts personally. Earlier than that? An ad account audit gives you a senior-level fix list you can work through yourself.