TikTok Ads vs. Facebook Ads

If you want to make your product or services known through social media, Facebook and TikTok are among the top two platforms to consider. TikTok has over a billion active monthly users, while Facebook boasts almost triple that number, and both platforms thrive on ads. They provide tools and analytics that make it easy for you to place your ad and analyze its performance.

You don’t have to be a fervent TikToker to place an ad there, but it helps knowing the platform. However, you’ll need to understand how both platforms work for advertisers and decide on what platform would suit your needs more.

This article will compare the major differences between TikTok ads and Facebook ads, how they perform, and how much you will usually spend on them.

TikTok Ads vs. Facebook Ads – Differences

There are four main aspects of an ad that you’ll need to overview: format, targeting, costs, and performance.

TikTok Ads vs. Facebook Ads – Ad Formats

Both platforms offer ad placement in multiple formats. For some campaigns, a picture ad makes perfect sense, while for others, a video is more suitable. Here is a comparison of the various formats the two platforms offer.

Facebook Ad Formats

Facebook offers seven broad ad formats:

• Image ads: Ever seen a compelling image that persuades you to click? Image ads are simply that, an image with a compelling copy.
• Video ads: This one is also what it sounds like, an attractive video and a copy.
• Carousel ads: Imagine a mini-gallery that your audience can’t resist swiping through. Carousel ads comprise scrollable images or videos gathered together into a single ad.
• Collection ads: A combination of images or videos with a cover image that showcases multiple products.
• Slideshow ads: Ads that utilize a series of images or videos to create a slideshow-like format. The slideshow usually advanced automatically, unlike with carousel ads.
• Instant experience ads: Full-screen mobile ads that provide an immersive experience, including images, videos, and interactive elements.
• Messenger ads: This type of ad randomly pops up in the Messenger app and allows your target audience to initiate a conversation with you.

TikTok Ad Formats

TikTok is a video-only platform, so expectedly, it does not offer as much options as Facebook does when it comes to ad formats, but nevertheless, there are several ways people often promote their products on TikTok. Here are some:

• In-Feed ads: This type of ad works in a similar way to ads on Facebook. They appear randomly among other content on TikTok.
• Brand Takeover ads: That first ad you notice the moment you launch your TikTok app is a brand takeover ad. It is costly, but there’s a guarantee it won’t get buried amidst other content.
• TopView ads: These are just like the brand takeover ads, but they take longer to disappear.
• TikTok Live ads: Live ads leave your audience no escape route as they pop up during a TikTok live video.

TikTok has more alternative ways for your brand to reach a wider audience. While these methods are marketing, they’re not exactly “ads” in the truest sense of the word:

• Branded hashtag challenges: These are not exactly ads, but it is a way of promoting your brand. You get the TikTok community buzzing with excitement by creating unique hashtag challenges, inviting users to participate by creating and sharing their own videos.
• Branded effects: You have to be creative for this one. You create filters, stickers, and special effects carrying your brand name or logo. Users can then add them to their videos.
• Influencer marketing: With this, you leverage the influence of popular TikTok creators, urging them to promote your product.

TikTok Ads vs. Facebook Ads – Ad Targeting

One of the key differences between Facebook and Tiktok is in their targeting options. Targeting, in simple terms, is how you ensure you are not wasting money by displaying your ads to the wrong people. Most ad providers charge you for showing the ad a certain amount of times.

With targeting, you can avoid pushing your ad to a random person who has no interest in your brand. You can instead display it to only high-school gamers living in Asia (if that’s your particular niche) or any similar description of your target audience. It narrows your ad’s reach, but this is a good thing. If the ad is targeted exactly to the people most likely to use your services, then you’re more likely to get a better return on investment on the ad.

Facebook vs. TikTok Targeting Options

Facebook has arguably the most advanced targeting options of all popular social media. Advanced targeting options mean you can save money by describing the exact kind of person you want to show your ads to. Here are some of the targeting options you can find:

• Location targeting
• Demographic targeting
• Interest targeting
• Behavior targeting
• Life events targeting
• Workplace targeting

Facebook also has a few advanced options, such as lookalike audience targeting that sets up an audience close to your existing user base.

TikTok has similar options for location, demographics, behavior, and interests, but the connections and workplaces options are not as advanced.

TikTok Ads vs. Facebook Ads – Ad Cost

It is extremely difficult to accurately compare the cost of ads on platforms like Facebook and TikTok because it can vary depending on various factors, like ad format, targeting options, audience demographics, competition, and campaign objectives.

The most accurate method of measuring the cost of ads is by using metrics like cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-thousand-views (CPM).

The average cost per click (CPC) on Facebook is around $1.84, while the average cost per thousand impressions (CPM) is around $14.20. On TikTok, the average cost per click (CPC) is around $1.63, while the average cost per thousand impressions (CPM) is around $10.5.

TikTok’s ad costs, for example, might be lower, but you should not forget that Facebook has about three times the number of TikTok’s active monthly users.

On the other hand, while Facebook boasts of more users, remember that TikTok has a higher concentration of younger users. So, choosing a platform should ultimately depend on your target audience what you plan to promote.

TikTok Ads vs. Facebook Ads – Ad Performance

The usual way of measuring ad performance is through a metric called CTR (click-through rate). CTR is measured by dividing the number of clicks on your ad by the number of times your ad is displayed to users.

CTR can vary depending on your industry, audience, ad type, and campaign objective.

According to WordStream, the highest CTR for Facebook ads is in the Pets & Animals industry, with 1.68%, while the lowest CTR belongs to the Technology industry, with 0.47%.

Generally, the average CTR for Facebook ads across all industries is around 0.8%.

TikTok, on the other hand, has an average CTR of about 0.5%. This means that users are generally more likely to click on a link in a Facebook ad than a TikTok ad.

The higher CTR on Facebook can be linked to the fact that simply optimizing your ad copy gives you a higher chance of getting it clicked. On TikTok, you have to provide great visual content, which is a little harder, and have a younger audience who has a shorter attention span and brand awareness.

Choose The Right Platform For Your Ad

Choosing the right platform for your promotions can be a challenging task. Research your options carefully while putting your budget and target audience in mind, or seek help from a professional ad management company.

Have you used ads on Facebook or TikTok? Tell us about your experience, challenges, and conclusions in the comments section.