What is a dataset in Meta Events Manager?
A dataset is a single view in Meta Events Manager that holds event data from your website, mobile app, physical stores and business chats together. It has one dataset ID, which you can use the way you would use a pixel ID, for example to set up the Meta Pixel or the Conversions API.
Events Manager used to file your data by integration: a pixel ID for the website, an app ID for the app, an offline ID for store sales. A dataset puts those streams under one roof. You see a customer’s actions in one place, whatever channel they came through, and manage one set of settings. Meta says it is introducing this view gradually, so it applies only if your account has the new dataset experience.
Why did Meta move to datasets?
Meta gives two reasons:
- One view of activity. A single dataset ID can stand for your website, app, offline and messaging events, so you monitor events and manage settings together.
- Fewer integrations to maintain. Website, app, offline and messaging data used to need separate APIs. If you create a dataset and link your app, the Conversions API can carry all four, so you manage one API integration.
Which integrations can send events to a dataset?
| Integration | Event types |
|---|---|
| Meta Pixel | Website |
| Conversions API | Website, app, offline and messaging |
| Facebook SDK for iOS or Android | App |
| Mobile measurement partners | App |
| App Events API | App |
| CSV file upload | Offline |
To bring app events in, you first link your mobile app ID to the dataset. You can relink it later.
Is your dataset ID the same as your pixel ID?
It depends on how the dataset was made. Your dataset ID stays the same as your existing pixel ID when a pixel is linked, for example when your pixel was converted to a dataset automatically, or when you created the dataset from an app and chose Create from a pixel ID. You get a new ID when no pixel is linked: when your app was converted automatically, when you chose Create new, or when you created a dataset for offline events.
How do you create a dataset?
Before you start, you need full control of the business portfolio, and the app or pixel you plan to link must be in it. To create a dataset for offline events:
- Go to Meta Events Manager.
- Select the green plus sign, then choose Connect data sources.
- Select Offline and click Connect.
- Enter a unique dataset name that you’ll recognise when creating ads or audiences, then click OK.
To create one from an existing app, open Data sources, select the app, click Settings, find the Linking section and click Link.
Does creating a dataset affect your campaigns?
Meta says creating a dataset should have no impact on campaign optimization or reporting in Ads Manager. The exception to watch: if you later relink your mobile app ID to a different dataset ID, your app event totals and app ad performance may change.
FAQ
Do I need a new dataset if I already have a pixel?
Not necessarily. If Meta has converted your pixel into a dataset, or you created one from your pixel ID, the dataset ID is the same number as your pixel ID. You can keep using that ID wherever you used the pixel ID, including in your pixel and Conversions API setup.
Where do offline sales events go now?
Into a dataset. Meta’s help pages state that the Offline Conversions API “will be discontinued in May 2025” and recommend uploading events to datasets instead and converting that integration to a Conversions API integration. You can send them through the Conversions API or upload a CSV file. Meta notes that offline event data can’t be deleted or updated after upload.
Who can create a dataset in Events Manager?
Someone with full control of the business portfolio. Meta’s steps also require that the mobile app, pixel or Facebook Page you want to link already sits in that business portfolio. If you don’t have full control, Meta says to ask someone who does to give it to you.
Sources
- About datasets in Meta Events Manager (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
- How to create a dataset in Meta Events Manager (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
- About Conversions API (Meta, checked 2 Oct 2026)
- Upload offline event data (Meta, checked 2 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.