What Were Partner Categories in Facebook Ad Targeting?

Meta described Partner Categories as “a product that lets third-party data providers offer their targeting directly on Facebook”. Meta announced plans to shut the product down in the week before 4 April 2018, and its December 2018 review says it was shut down. The Meta pages read for this entry give no launch date and no exact end date, so this page gives none either.

What were Partner Categories?

Meta gave two descriptions in 2018. On 4 April its Chief Technology Officer called them “a product that lets third-party data providers offer their targeting directly on Facebook”. On 21 December its Vice President, Ads, called them “targeting options supplemented by information from third-party data providers”.

Both say the same thing: some targeting options drew on data that came from outside Facebook. If an old guide or agency template still lists such options, it describes something Meta says it shut down.

When did Partner Categories end?

Date	Meta page	What it says
4 April 2018	“An Update on Our Plans to Restrict Data Access on Facebook”	“Last week we announced our plans to shut down Partner Categories”
21 December 2018	“Changes We Made to Ads in 2018”	“we shut down Partner Categories”

“Last week” in a post dated 4 April places the announcement in the previous week, but neither page gives the day of that announcement or the last day the product ran. Neither says when it launched. If another site quotes an exact date, treat it as unconfirmed until you find it on a Meta page.

Why did Meta shut them down?

The 4 April post lists the change among nine data-access changes. It opens by saying that two weeks earlier Meta “promised to take a hard look at the information apps can use when you connect them to Facebook as well as other data practices”. The December review files Partner Categories under the heading “Improved oversight of third-party data for targeting”, with the stated aim “To better improve people’s privacy”.

Neither page gives a reason specific to Partner Categories. If a vendor says otherwise, ask which Meta page says so. For the wider story, the related entry on the Cambridge Analytica case sets out the dates.

What did Meta leave for partner data?

The pages read for this entry name no one-for-one replacement. The 2018 posts describe the route that stayed open, which is a Custom Audience:

• From 2 July 2018 you had to say whether customer-file information was “collected directly from people, provided by partners or a combination of the two”.
• Meta’s 22 August 2018 update says advertisers “can independently work with partners off our platform to create Custom Audiences, as long as they have the necessary rights and permissions to do so”.
• The terms it quoted say: “You may not sell or transfer your custom audiences, or authorize any third party to sell or transfer custom audiences”, with an exception for an independent agreement with a partner for licensing marketing information.

Meta’s developer documentation, updated 30 June 2026, adds that users must accept the Custom Audience Terms of Service before using Custom Audiences, and that the API will not create or change a customer-file Custom Audience until they have. If you work with a data partner, you can ask for the license in writing and record the list’s origin at upload.

How does Meta treat removed targeting options?

A developer page, updated 21 May 2026, says Meta may “deprecate certain targeting options and pause delivery for ad sets that target these objects”. Ad sets marked deprecating keep delivering but cannot be duplicated, and edits are rejected unless the terms are removed. Ad sets marked delivery paused have been paused by Meta. The page does not mention Partner Categories. It shows how Meta handles removed options in general, so you can check inherited ad sets for them.

What should you do now?

Search old ad sets and playbooks for data-provider targeting, remove it and rebuild the audience from Meta’s current options or a Custom Audience you can document. Do not quote a shutdown date unless you found it on a Meta page.

FAQ

Can I still buy third-party data audiences through Meta?

Meta’s December 2018 review says it shut down Partner Categories. Its August 2018 update says advertisers can work with partners off its platform to create Custom Audiences, as long as they hold the necessary rights and permissions. Check Meta’s current Custom Audience terms before you try it.

Does a Meta page say when Partner Categories launched?

Not in the pages read for this entry. The 4 April 2018 post describes the product and says its shutdown was announced the week before. The 21 December 2018 review says it was shut down. Treat any launch date or exact end date from elsewhere as unconfirmed.

What happens to an ad set that uses a removed targeting option?

Meta’s developer documentation says it may pause delivery for ad sets that use deprecated options. Ad sets marked deprecating keep delivering, can’t be duplicated and are rejected on edit until the terms are removed. The page does not name Partner Categories, so check your own ad sets.