Advertiser method. Meta does not publish this as a rule. The mechanics below come from Meta’s documentation; the method itself is common advertiser practice, and results vary.
How do I target a local area with Meta ads?
Meta documents three routes: a city, pin or postcode in the ad set's Locations, a store set with a radius around your stores, or a Page ad that promotes your business locally. Which one fits depends on whether you have store pages and what you want people to do. That choice is advertiser practice, not a Meta rule.
Target a local area when people can only act on your offer near a place, such as a shop, a clinic or a delivery zone. It fits poorly when you serve customers anywhere, since a local area then limits who can see the ad. Meta documents three routes, and this page compares them: a location in the ad set, a store set, and a Page ad for local promotion.
Which routes does Meta document for a local area?
| Route | What it targets | Where it starts |
|---|---|---|
| Locations in the ad set | A city with an adjustable radius, a dropped pin, or postcodes | Ad set, Audience, Locations |
| Store set | People within a set radius of one or more of your stores in one country | Ad set, with the store locations toggle on, then Locations |
| Page ad, “promote your business locally” | People near your business or a specific city | Ads created from your Facebook Page |
The Page-ads page gives only the goal of that ad type, so it shows no targeting settings. Another Meta page, About advertising from your Page, says there are two ways to advertise from your Page in Ad Center, boost post and event, so check that the local promotion type is offered to you. Choosing between the three is advertiser practice, not a Meta rule.
How does a radius around a city or pin work?
When you enter a location or drop a pin, Meta chooses a default radius, and you adjust it with a slider. Minimum and maximum radius vary by location type. Your reach includes every other location inside the radius, and a radius does not extend into other countries, even if the map shows it crossing a border. For a city you can instead choose “current city only”.
Radius is not possible with postcodes, states, regions or countries, because the area is then the whole place.
The trade-off is practice: a small radius keeps ads close to the place but leaves out people just outside it.
Who counts as being in the area?
Meta shows ads to people who spend time in your locations, such as people living there or recently there. Meta’s location page adds people who go there often, which is wider than residents.
Meta also warns that complete accuracy is not guaranteed. You might see some impressions, messages or leads from outside your location settings.
For a city or region, Meta may check “Reach more people likely to respond to your ads” by default. It then finds more people interested in traveling to those places or making purchases there. Meta says to uncheck the box if you only want your selected city or region.
Whether to uncheck it is advertiser practice: leaving it on may fit if visitors are customers, and unchecking fits better if only people nearby can use the offer.
When might a store set fit better than a drawn radius?
Meta says a store set lets you reach people within a set radius of your physical stores to encourage foot traffic. With 3 stores, Meta’s example is running ads to people within a set radius of each one. Stores in one set must be in the same country.
Meta lists the radius options: automatic radius, which Meta sets from population density, or a fixed radius in miles or kilometers. Meta’s steps start from the Awareness objective and need store pages and store locations with business hours added first.
Store location features also let the ad show local details such as an address, phone number or opening hours, with “Call now” or “Get directions” as the call to action. Meta says optimization for ad delivery is daily unique reach when you use store locations.
Meta also says that feature may not be available to you, and that store pages are only available to managed Facebook clients.
Meta’s Locations steps do not mention store pages and list no such requirement. Choosing a store set instead is practice for businesses with several stores that want store details inside the ad.
How can you decide for your own account?
- Write down where your customers must be to use the offer.
- Check whether store pages and store locations are available in your Ads Manager.
- If they are not, start with Locations in the ad set and choose a city, pin or postcodes.
- Decide whether visitors count, then set “Reach more people likely to respond” to match.
- Compare results by location in your own reporting, and expect some delivery outside the area.
FAQ
Can I target a local area without store pages?
Yes. Meta’s Locations setting in the ad set audience takes cities, regions and postcodes, with an adjustable radius for a city or pin. A store set is different: Meta says it is only available when you have an existing store set, which needs store pages.
Why do people outside my area see my local ad?
Meta says its technology uses a variety of signals, so complete accuracy cannot be guaranteed. People may also see an ad organically, and Meta may show preview ads to people connected to your business.
Can a radius cross into another country?
No. Meta says the radius does not extend into other countries, even when the visual map goes beyond a border. If your area spans a border, Meta says you need to include each country separately.
Sources
- Use location targeting (Meta, checked 3 Oct 2026)
- About location targeting in Meta Ads Manager (Meta, checked 3 Oct 2026)
- Use store set location targeting in Meta Ads Manager (Meta, checked 3 Oct 2026)
- Create an ad with store location features in Meta Ads Manager (Meta, checked 3 Oct 2026)
- About advertising from your Facebook Page (Meta, checked 3 Oct 2026)
- About advertising from your Page (Meta, checked 3 Oct 2026)
Drafted with AI and checked claim by claim against the pages linked under Sources. Found a mistake? Tell us via the corrections policy.