How Do You Compare Attribution Settings?

Meta’s compare attribution settings view shows the same ads’ reported conversions under several windows side by side, so you can see how much each counting rule changes the total. It fits when you want to know what your numbers depend on, or before you change an ad set’s setting. Meta says you can compare windows regardless of the one a campaign optimized for.

What does the comparison show?

You pick several attribution settings and Meta reports your conversions under each one. Meta lists four you can compare: 1-day view, 1-day click, 7-day click and 28-day click. You can compare them regardless of the setting you optimized for.

How do you compare settings in Ads Manager?

1. Go to Ads Manager and click the Columns: Performance dropdown menu.
2. Select Performance, the default, then scroll down to Compare attribution settings.
3. Select the settings you want to see.
4. Choose whether to count all conversions or only the first conversion, then click Apply.

Meta says that if you select one of its attribution settings you must choose a conversion count. The count is not supported for SKAdNetwork. You need administrator, advertiser or analyst access to the ad account. You can export an Ads Manager table to keep a copy.

How do you compare them in Ads Reporting?

1. Open Ads Reporting and click Customize.
2. Use the options beside the search bar and choose Select attribution settings.
3. Pick the settings, then click Apply.

Meta notes that collapsing the sidebar hides the comparison, so reopen it if the columns vanish. You can save, export or schedule the report.

Which campaigns show fewer windows?

Not every campaign type offers all four. Meta lists these exceptions:

• iOS 14 and later app campaigns with a traffic or engagement objective, using Meta’s attribution: post-install events show 1-day click and 7-day click. 1-day view and 28-day click are not supported.
• iOS 14 and later app campaigns with the app promotion objective, using Meta’s attribution: install events show 1-day click, 7-day click and 28-day click, without 1-day view. Post-install events show 1-day click and 7-day click only.
• SKAdNetwork: view-through and click-through results appear side by side, with a postback choice for iOS 16.1 and later using SKAdNetwork 4.0.

What if one campaign uses several settings?

Meta calls this multiple attribution settings: a web or app conversion campaign with more than one ad set, where the ad sets use different attribution settings for the same optimized event. Meta says the campaign’s results are then added together across the settings, such as 1-day view, 1-day click and 7-day click.

To see which ad set uses which setting, add the Attribution setting column. In Ads Manager, open the Columns dropdown, choose Customize columns if Performance is not selected, search for attribution setting and apply it, then click into the campaign.

How should you read the comparison?

The Meta pages cited here do not say how to interpret gaps between windows, so the first and last points are our reading. The second and third come from Meta.

• Gaps are counting rules. The columns show the same ads counted under different rules. A larger number under a longer or view-based window means that rule credits more conversions to the ads. It does not mean the ads did better.
• 28-day click can be partial. If a campaign has been live for less than 28 days, Meta says the 28-day click figure covers only the days it has run.
• Other tools count differently. Meta says Ads Manager uses last-touch attribution and reports on the date of the impression. Commerce Manager reports on the date of the conversion, and its tagged content report uses a 28-day click and 1-day view window you cannot change. The same sale can therefore show different counts in two places.
• Pick one standing measure. Choose the window you use for decisions and note it, so next month’s numbers are comparable with this month’s.

On our reading, a comparison of windows cannot tell you whether the reported conversions would have happened without the ads, and the Meta pages cited here do not say it can. The holdout test page linked below covers the controlled option.

FAQ

Does comparing attribution settings change how my ads are delivered?

Meta’s pages do not say the comparison changes delivery. They describe it as comparing your ads’ reported conversions over different attribution settings, and say you can do it regardless of the setting you optimized for. The attribution setting itself is chosen at the ad set level, under optimization and delivery, when you create the campaign.

Why does 28-day click look low on a new campaign?

Meta says the 28-day click view is partial when a campaign has been live for fewer than 28 days. It only covers the days the campaign has run, so wait for a full 28 days before reading it as a complete figure.

Can I save or schedule a comparison?

In Ads Reporting, yes. Meta says you can save, export or schedule reports that include the comparison. In Ads Manager, you can export the table.