How Do I Export Facebook Ads Data to Excel?

Quick Answer

To export Facebook Ads data to Excel, open Meta Ads Manager, go to the Campaigns, Ad Sets, or Ads tab, select the data you want, click the Reports dropdown in the top right, choose Export table data, select XLSX or CSV, and click Export. For recurring exports, use Export as scheduled report to auto-email yourself the file daily, weekly, or monthly.

Step-by-Step: One-Time Export

Step 1: Set Your View

Go to business.facebook.com/adsmanager
Choose Campaigns, Ad Sets, or Ads tab (level of data)
Set the date range (top right)
Apply any filters (status, objective, campaign name)
Customise columns via Columns dropdown > choose a preset or Customize Columns
Add or remove metrics until you see exactly what you want in the table

Step 2: Export

Click Reports in the top right
Click Export table data
Choose format:

- XLSX (Excel native format) - CSV (universal)

Choose whether to export the visible data or all data
Click Export
The file downloads to your computer

Open in Excel. Data is ready to use.

Step-by-Step: Scheduled (Recurring) Export

In Ads Manager, click Reports > Create Custom Report
Select the breakdowns you want (by campaign, ad set, age, placement, etc.)
Choose the metrics (spend, impressions, clicks, conversions, ROAS)
Choose the date range (last 7 days, last 30 days, rolling)
Click Save
Click Schedule email
Set frequency: daily, weekly, monthly
Enter recipient emails
Click Save

Meta emails the XLSX file on schedule. No manual export needed.

Columns You Should Always Include

Column	Why
Campaign name	Reference
Ad set name	Reference
Ad name	Reference
Status	Active vs paused
Delivery	Whether Meta is actively serving the ad
Budget	Daily or lifetime amount
Amount spent	Total money used
Impressions	Ad views
Reach	Unique people reached
Frequency	Impressions ÷ Reach (target: 1-3)
CPM	Cost per 1,000 impressions
Clicks (all)	All clicks including likes, comments
Link clicks	Clicks to your destination URL
CTR (link click)	Link clicks ÷ Impressions (target: 1-3%)
CPC (link click)	Cost per link click
Landing page views	Pixel-verified arrivals
Conversions	Event-specific (Purchase, Lead, etc.)
Cost per result	Spend ÷ Results
ROAS	Revenue ÷ Spend (for sales campaigns)
Quality ranking	Meta's creative quality score
Engagement rate ranking	Meta's engagement score
Conversion rate ranking	Meta's conversion score

Strip everything else — extra columns clutter the export and slow Excel analysis.

Breakdowns That Unlock Insights

Under Breakdowns, add these to get deeper analysis:

Age — which age group converts best
Gender — conversion by gender
Placement — Feed vs Stories vs Reels performance
Platform — Facebook vs Instagram
Device — Mobile vs Desktop
Country — geographic performance
Time of day — when conversions peak

One export with placement breakdown typically reveals that Reels generate 40-60% lower CPA than Feed. Worth checking monthly.

Automation Options Beyond Native Export

Method	Speed	Cost	Best For
Native scheduled report	Daily/weekly/monthly	Free	Basic reporting
Meta Marketing API	Real-time	Free (dev cost)	Custom dashboards
Supermetrics	Hourly	$29-99/month	Sheets/Excel automation
Funnel.io	Hourly	$399+/month	Enterprise multi-channel
Zapier	Polling	$19-49/month	Simple workflows
Google Sheets + Meta Ads add-on	Daily	Free	Solo founders

For most small teams, Google Sheets + the Facebook Ads add-on (free from Google Workspace Marketplace) is the sweet spot — recurring exports into a live spreadsheet without paid tools.

Common Problems

Problem: Export missing rows
You filtered the view without realising it. Clear all filters before exporting.

Problem: Numbers don't match Ads Manager UI
The UI uses default attribution settings; the export uses whatever you selected in the report customisation. Check attribution window.

Problem: Export is empty
Date range has no data. Widen the date range or check if campaigns are paused.

Problem: Too many columns, file is unreadable
Customise columns first. Remove everything you don't need before exporting.

Problem: XLSX file corrupted
Try CSV instead. Some browser / Excel version combinations corrupt XLSX downloads.

Problem: Scheduled report not arriving
Check spam folder. Sender is facebookmail.com. Add to contacts to prevent filtering.

The Weekly Review Template

Structure your exported Excel file with these tabs:

TAB 1: Campaign Summary
- Campaign name, spend, impressions, clicks, conversions, cost per result, ROAS
- Sort by spend descending
- Highlight top 3 and bottom 3

TAB 2: Placement Breakdown
- Same metrics broken down by placement
- Identify best and worst performing placements

TAB 3: Demographic Breakdown
- Spend and conversions by age × gender
- Find highest-converting demographic

TAB 4: Week-over-Week
- Compare this week's metrics to last week's
- Highlight changes > 15%

TAB 5: Actions
- What to scale, pause, edit, or test next week

Spend 30 minutes per week with this template and you'll outperform 80% of Facebook advertisers.

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Exporting raw data without customising columns. The default columns are useless. Customise first.

Mistake 2: Exporting at the wrong level. Campaigns gives overview; Ads gives creative-level detail. Pick based on your analysis.

Mistake 3: Forgetting breakdowns. Without breakdowns, you miss the insights that actually drive decisions.

Mistake 4: Manual weekly exports for months. Use scheduled reports or automation. Stop doing repetitive work.

Mistake 5: Exporting once and never analysing. Exports without review are useless. Schedule the analysis session, not just the export.

Skip the Manual Exports

Exporting, formatting, and analysing Facebook ads data every week is exactly the kind of repetitive work that burns founder time.

Pix-Vu runs your Facebook ads and generates auto-delivered weekly performance reports — no exports, no pivot tables, no Excel formatting. You get insights and recommendations, not raw data. $99/month.

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