What Are Partnership Ads?
Partnership ads are Meta ads that run with a partner's handle in the header, usually a creator's, while the brand pays for them and controls the targeting, budget and results. They run on Facebook and Instagram, and since September 2026 they can also run in the WhatsApp Status placement.
You may know them by an older name. Meta used to call them branded content ads, and many people still call the practice "whitelisting." Partnership ads are Meta's built-in way to do it, without sharing logins or account access.
The pitch from Meta is simple. The ad shows the creator's account and/or the brand's account in the header, and it uses signals from both accounts for ranking. To the person scrolling, it looks like it came from someone they might already follow, not just a brand.
Partnership Ads vs. Regular Ads vs. Branded Content
These three get mixed up a lot. Here's how they differ.
| Regular ad | Partnership ad | Organic branded content | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whose handle is in the header | The brand's | The creator's, the brand's, or both | The creator's |
| Who pays | The brand | The brand | Nobody (it's a post) |
| Label | Ad | Ad | Paid partnership |
| Who controls targeting and budget | The brand | The brand | Nobody |
| Permission needed from the creator | No | Yes | Yes, separately |
| Results in Ads Manager | Yes | Yes | No |
The last two rows matter most. Meta is clear that partnership ads are not the same as organic branded content. A creator letting you be tagged in a paid partnership post is a separate permission from letting you run ads from their handle.
Why Brands Run Them
The case for partnership ads comes down to who the ad seems to come from.
The ad looks like a person, not a brand. A recommendation from a creator lands differently from the same words under your logo. That's the whole idea behind UGC, and partnership ads take it one step further by putting the creator's actual handle on it.
You get two sets of signals. Meta says the ads use signals from both accounts for ranking. Meta doesn't say much more than that, but it's the main reason it gives for the format.
You can reach the creator's audience. With the broader permission type, you can include or exclude the creator's custom audience in your campaign.
You keep the reporting. Unlike a creator's organic post, partnership ads sit in Ads Manager with the rest of your account, so you judge them on the same numbers.
What they don't do is fix a weak ad. A creator handle on top of a slow hook is still a slow hook.
The Two Kinds of Permission
Before you can run a partnership ad, you need permission from the partner whose handle the ad will include. There are two types.
| Content-level | Account-level | |
|---|---|---|
| What it covers | One specific post, story or reel | The partner's handle and their content that tags you |
| How the creator grants it | Turns on "Allow brand partner to boost," or shares an ad code | Accepts your request in the Instagram or Facebook app, or in Meta's hub |
| Can you make new ads from scratch | No | Yes |
| Use the creator's custom audience | Not included | Yes |
| Best for | One-off posts and short promotions | Ongoing creator relationships |
Content-level is the narrower option. The creator either turns on the boost toggle on a post that tags you with the paid partnership label, or shares an ad code for any post, story or reel. You can edit the content for the ad, and the original post stays the same.
Account-level is the one that makes partnership ads useful at scale. Once a creator accepts, you can create partnership ads from their handle without any existing post. That means you can upload new videos and run them under the creator's name, as long as you have the rights to the content. You can also boost their posts that tag you, including archived ones. On Instagram, a tag can be the paid partnership label, an @mention, a people tag, a product tag or a Collab. On Facebook, it has to be the paid partnership label.
Either way, creators can revoke permission at any time.
How to Set Up a Partnership Ad
Here's the short version of Meta's setup steps. Menus move around, so expect small differences.
- Get permission first. Send an account-level request from the creator hub in Meta Business Suite, or ask the creator to share an ad code for one post.
- Start a campaign in Ads Manager. Pick your objective and set the budget, schedule and audience as usual.
- Turn on the partnership ad toggle at the ad level.
- Add the content. With an ad code, paste the code, post ID or post URL. Without one, choose an existing post, or create the ad and upload new media.
- Choose the identities that show in the header (more on this below).
- Publish. Meta reviews it like any other ad.
One thing to sort out before step 1: if an agency runs your account, Meta says you'll need to give the agency permissions across your Instagram account, Facebook Page and ad account. Otherwise they can't build partnership ads for you.
Choosing an Identity
When you set up a partnership ad, you choose whose name goes in the header:
- Both identities. The creator and the brand together.
- First identity only. Usually just the creator.
- Dynamic identity. Meta picks whichever it predicts will perform best.
Dynamic identity is on by default. Placements that don't support it show both identities, and WhatsApp Status always shows both.
Our take: leave dynamic on unless you have a reason not to. A brand with strong recognition might want its name in every header. A newer brand might be happy to let the creator front it. Either way, test it instead of guessing.
What Makes a Partnership Ad Work
The handle gets the ad looked at. The ad still has to hold attention and sell. The same rules apply as with any UGC ad.
Write for the first 3 seconds. In our data from 479 video ads, the median hook rate was 20.9%. Most people decide before the creator finishes the first sentence. Our UGC script template is built around this.
Let the creator sound like themselves. A partnership ad that reads like a brand script undercuts the reason for running it. Give the creator the key points and let them say it their way.
Match the creator to the buyer. The creator's face and handle are now the front of your ad. Cast people who look and sound like the people you want to reach.
Run more than one. One creator's video is one idea. Big accounts run a lot of them. The largest consumer brand in our creative count data ran 749 creatives in a 7-day window, including a long tail of creator and whitelisted ads that each got a small amount of spend.
Watch for fatigue. Partnership ads wear out like anything else. When frequency rises and results slip, it's time for new concepts, not just new handles.
Common Mistakes
- Treating permission as a contract. Meta says permissions control access in its tools. They don't set pay, how long you can run the ad or who owns the content. That belongs in a separate agreement with the creator.
- Not checking permissions before launch. Creators can revoke access. If they do, review any affected ads before you run them again.
- Only boosting what's already posted. Content-level boosts are easy, but account-level access lets you test new cuts, hooks and edits under the creator's name.
- Splitting them off into their own campaign by default. Partnership ads are still ads. Unless you need a separate budget, they can sit in your main campaign and compete for spend like everything else. See CBO vs. ABO for how that plays out.
- Forgetting comments. You won't be able to manage likes and comments on a boosted post until the ad is live. After that, you can hide comments, and the creator can unhide them.
For more numbers on what works in Meta accounts, see our Meta Ads Statistics hub.
How We Think About Partnership Ads at Biddyco
We're a UGC ad agency, so we spend most of our time on the part partnership ads can't fix: the ad itself. We cast creators who look and sound like your buyer, write hooks for the first 3 seconds, and edit everything in-house, so the video earns its spend whether it runs from your handle or a creator's.
Our US-based senior team works across 100+ accounts and $20M+ in monthly spend. New files land every 2 to 4 weeks, and we aim for one round of feedback.
If you want more creator ads worth putting spend behind, talk to us.
FAQ
What is a partnership ad on Meta?
A partnership ad is a Facebook or Instagram ad that shows a partner's handle in the header, usually a creator's, while the brand pays for it and runs it from Ads Manager. Meta used to call them branded content ads.
Are partnership ads the same as whitelisting?
They do the same job. Whitelisting is the older, informal name for running ads from a creator's handle. Partnership ads are Meta's built-in way to do it, using permissions instead of shared account access.
What's the difference between partnership ads and branded content?
Branded content is an organic post by a creator with a "Paid partnership" label. Partnership ads are paid ads the brand runs, with an "Ad" label and full results in Ads Manager. Meta treats them as separate permissions.
Do I need the creator's permission to run a partnership ad?
Yes. The creator either grants content-level permission for one post, by sharing an ad code or turning on the boost toggle, or account-level permission for their handle. They can revoke it at any time.
Can I run a partnership ad without the creator posting anything?
Yes, with account-level permission. You can upload new content and run it under the creator's handle without an existing post, as long as you have the rights to the content.
Do partnership ads perform better than regular ads?
Meta says they use signals from both accounts for ranking, but there's no guarantee. Test them against your regular ads with the same budget rules, and judge them on cost per purchase like everything else.
