Create ad sets (batch) (adsap_create_ad_sets)

Platform: Meta · Read or write: Write · Plan: All plans · Consumes a task: Yes · Preview supported: Yes

What it does

Creates one or more ad sets under an existing Meta campaign, up to 20 in one call. Each ad set carries its own targeting, placements, optimization goal, budget and schedule. Ad sets start paused. Ask for a preview first: the copilot validates every ad set and shows a launch review card where you confirm and activate.

When to use it

• Use it once the campaign exists, to add 1 to 20 ad sets under it in one call.
• Pass campaign_objective when the campaign is new. Adsap otherwise looks the objective up in its cache, and the call fails if it is not there yet.
• Each ad set needs targeting with at least one country, or a saved_audience_id. Get targeting IDs from adsap_search_detailed_targeting and adsap_search_geo_locations.
• Detailed targeting goes in targeting.flexible_spec, a list of groups as in Ads Manager. People must match at least one item inside a group (or), and every group (and). [{"interests":[Cooking],"behaviors":[Frequent Travelers]},{"family_statuses":[Parents (All)]}] reaches people who like cooking or travel often, and are parents. Up to 25 groups.
• Meta combines the separate targeting.interests and targeting.behaviors lists with and: people must match an interest and a behavior. To use or between them, put both in one flexible_spec group.
• Meta cannot build (A and B) or (C and D) in one ad set. Create two ad sets instead. Size the audience first with adsap_get_delivery_estimate, using the same groups.
• OFFSITE_CONVERSIONS and VALUE need a pixel_id and a conversion_event. Pixels come from adsap_list_meta_assets, events from adsap_list_pixel_events.
• It supports a preview call. With dry_run set to true, Adsap validates every ad set and creates nothing.

Worked example

You ask

“Add a Prospecting US ad set to the Spring sale campaign: people 25 to 54 in the US, optimized for purchases. The campaign holds the budget. Preview it first.”

The assistant calls adsap_create_ad_sets

{
  "campaign_id": "120210000000002",
  "campaign_objective": "OUTCOME_SALES",
  "ad_account_id": "act_1234567890",
  "ad_sets": [
    {
      "name": "Prospecting US",
      "optimization_goal": "OFFSITE_CONVERSIONS",
      "pixel_id": "120210000000009",
      "conversion_event": "PURCHASE",
      "targeting": {
        "countries": ["US"],
        "age_min": 25,
        "age_max": 54
      }
    }
  ],
  "dry_run": true
}

Adsap returns

The field names are the ones Adsap returns. The values are examples.

{
  "dry_run": true,
  "validation_passed": true,
  "ad_sets_count": 1,
  "resolved_payloads": [
    {
      "ad_account": "act_1234567890",
      "campaign": "120210000000002",
      "ad_set_name": "Prospecting US",
      "objective": "sales",
      "campaign_objective": "OUTCOME_SALES",
      "optimization_goal": "OFFSITE_CONVERSIONS",
      "destination_type": "WEBSITE",
      "budget": 0,
      "budget_type": "Campaign Budget",
      "geo_locations": {
        "countries": ["US"]
      },
      "genders": "All",
      "age_min": 25,
      "age_max": 54,
      "placements": "",
      "pixel_id": "120210000000009",
      "custom_event_type": "PURCHASE",
      "advantage_audience": 0,
      "status": "PAUSED",
      "click_through": 7,
      "view_through": 1
    }
  ],
  "warnings": [
    "No budget set. Campaign must use CBO (Advantage Campaign Budget), otherwise Meta will reject."
  ]
}

How to read it

resolved_payloads has one entry per ad set, with the defaults filled in. Here destination_type falls back to WEBSITE and status to PAUSED. An empty placements means Advantage+ automatic placements. click_through 7 and view_through 1 are the default attribution windows in days. The example shows part of each entry and leaves out request_echo, which repeats your input.

Read warnings before you confirm. This ad set has no budget, which only works when the campaign holds the budget. The list always ends with a reminder that Meta runs its own checks at creation. That entry is left out here. The preview opens a launch review card where you confirm the create.

Parameters

Descriptions are shortened from the tool schema. Your assistant sees the full text.

Example prompts

• “Add an ad set to the Summer Sale campaign targeting women 25 to 45 in the US, optimized for purchases, $30 a day.”
• “Create three ad sets under this campaign, one each for the UK, Germany and France, same interests, 20 EUR daily each.”
• “Preview a lead ad set with Instant Forms as the destination before creating it.”
• “Create an ad set in France for people who like cooking or travel often, and who are parents.”

Notes

Messaging, calls, event responses, reminders and shop destinations are not supported yet. For those, use Meta Ads Manager. App promotion ad sets need the app store URL and an app in Live mode.

Related tools

• adsap_list_ad_sets: List ad sets for a campaign (fast cached list).

Guide

Read Creating an ad set for the workflow around this tool, and the Tool reference for every tool.

The Meta Ads MCP server  page shows how to connect Meta Ads to Claude, ChatGPT or Perplexity.