- The Meta Ad Library shows you all your competitors’ ads and their targeting parameters for free.
- Instagram’s Competitive Insights tool compares the frequency and performance of up to 10 accounts.
- Proper benchmarking requires using the exact same engagement calculation formula for everyone.
An Instagram competitor analysis is the fastest way to understand what works in your market, without spending time on blind experiments. Your customers are already comparing your profile to others. According to Kepios/DataReportal, 62.3% of active adult users use Instagram to research brands and products.
Consider a hair salon in Kalamaria and a gym in Heraklion. Each fights for the attention of the local audience in its area. Monitoring what the businesses next to you post helps you spot gaps. If everyone only uploads photos, you have room to stand out with video. You can collect this data using free tools and easily organize it in a simple file.
Meta Ad Library: How to see competitors’ ads for free
The Meta Ad Library is the primary tool to see which campaigns others pay for to promote their business. It is free, public, and opens at Facebook.com/ads/library without needing to log into a Meta account, as ContentStudio explains.
A step-by-step process to find active and past campaigns, completely free.
To find the right data, select the country and leave the category on “All ads”. When you type a competitor’s name, choose the specific Page from the dropdown menu instead of pressing Enter. Pressing Enter searches for the keyword across all advertisers. Then, use the platform filter to isolate Instagram ads.
European businesses have a major advantage. Under the Digital Services Act, ads shown to EU users remain in the library for one year after their last impression, according to Alenich. This means you can see a competitor’s past campaigns, not just the active ones. Commercial ads do not show the spend, but they do show the reach and targeting parameters.
Practical tip: When looking at a competitor’s Ad Library, pay attention to ads that have been running for weeks or months. An ad running for weeks or months is likely performing well, although this is an assumption and not a measured metric.
Competitive Insights: Instagram’s built-in solution
On November 3, 2025, Instagram launched Competitive Insights in the Professional Dashboard. This feature allows you to compare up to 10 public professional accounts.
You can see their follower growth, posting frequency, and the performance of individual posts over 30 to 90 days. The tool shows performance even when a competitor hides their likes. Comparisons are made one-to-one, without detailed charts or clicks, which Social Media Today notes as a limitation.
To find it, go to your profile, tap the menu, select “Professional Dashboard”, and then “Competitive Insights”. If you do not see it yet, be patient, as Meta is rolling it out gradually. If you do not know how to evaluate the numbers, read how to measure engagement rate on Instagram.
Which numbers actually matter in an Instagram competitor analysis
It is easy to get carried away by likes and followers. However, other criteria determine a post’s reach.
The top three signals that matter most for ranking are watch time, likes and sends.
Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram
Useful benchmarks and tool limits to accurately evaluate your competitor research.
In January 2025, Mosseri suggested tracking average watch time, likes per reach, and sends per reach. Since you cannot see your competitors’ reach, focus on their content format. According to the Instagram Content Playbook 2025 by Metricool and HypeAuditor, for accounts with up to 1,000 followers, the median reach was 134 for Reels, 56 for carousels, and 23 for static images.
Median reach per post format for brand accounts with 0 to 1,000 followers, in 2025.
These are realistic numbers for most small accounts, like a tavern in Naxos or a local e-shop. Reels bring the reach and carousels retain the audience. A look at how the Instagram algorithm works explains why the platform consistently promotes these two formats.
The trap of international benchmarks
When calculating your competitors’ interaction, you will come across many different studies. Socialinsider found that the average brand engagement rate was 0.48% in 2025, calculated based on followers (carousels 0.55%, Reels 0.52%, static images 0.37%).
On the other hand, Hootsuite reports an average of 4.2% for carousels. The huge difference is due to the different calculation formulas. Hootsuite divides likes, comments, shares, and saves by reach, while Socialinsider divides by followers.
The important thing is to use the exact same calculation formula for all your competitors and for your own profile. Only then does the comparison make sense. If you decide to divide the sum of likes and comments by followers, do the same everywhere.
The practical one-hour template
You do not need to spend days spying on other profiles. Create a simple file with five competitors and dedicate one hour a month to fill in six basic columns:
- Followers: The total number, to know the account size.
- Post volume: How many posts they made in the last month.
- Dominant format: Do they mostly upload Reels, carousels, or simple photos?
- Engagement: The average interactions for their last 9 posts.
- Ads: Are they running campaigns in the Ad Library? How many months has the oldest one been active?
- Customer service: Do they reply to comments? Do they give prices publicly or ask for a direct message (DM)?
Below the table, write down three gaps you spotted in the market and one experiment you will try next month. Sprout Social advises focusing exactly on these gaps—for example, on competitors who ignore their customers’ comments.
Myths you should ignore
As you observe others, you might be tempted to blindly copy certain patterns. Many, for example, look for the perfect posting time.
Practical rules for drawing accurate conclusions from public competitor data.
- Use the same engagement calculation formula for everyone.
- Look in the Ad Library for ads that have been running for months.
- Track likes and sends per reach.
- Do not look for a magic posting time; studies disagree.
- Do not press Enter in the Ad Library; select the Page from the menu.
- Do not assume sends are worth 3-5 times more than likes.
An analysis of 52 million posts by Buffer shows that top accounts post more frequently, but there is no single magic time for everyone. Buffer suggests Thursday at 09:00, while Later suggests 05:00. If you are looking for what time to post on Instagram, the only correct answer lies in your own audience statistics.
Meta has never published weightings for interactions. Claims that sends are worth three or five times more than likes are not confirmed by the platform. It is also reported that a maximum limit of 5 hashtags per post applies since December 2025, although it has not been officially confirmed. Do not try to copy the long lists of hashtags from older posts.
Frequently asked questions
Can I see who my competitors are targeting with their ads?
Yes, if the ads are shown in the European Union. Due to the Digital Services Act, the Meta Ad Library displays the targeting parameters the advertiser selected for European users.
Why do I see different engagement rates on different websites?
Because they use different formulas. Some divide interactions by followers, while others divide by reach. The important thing is to choose one formula and apply it consistently to all the accounts you track.
How many hashtags do big accounts use?
It is reported that since December 2025, Instagram set a maximum limit of 5 hashtags per post, although it has not been officially confirmed. The tactic of using dozens of hashtags no longer works.
Where exactly do I find Competitive Insights?
You must have a Professional account (Business or Creator). Go to your profile, open the menu, select “Professional Dashboard”, and there you will find “Competitive Insights”.
Monitoring the competition gives you the map, but execution requires consistency. If you do not have time to create and schedule your content, InstaBot reads your site and your Instagram, learns your business’s tone, and creates custom posts, carousels, and Reels. You simply approve the result, and the tool handles the publishing.
Sources
- DataReportal – Digital 2025: the state of social media in 2025
- ContentStudio – How to use the Meta Ads Library for Ad research
- Alenich – Meta Ads Library: How to Use It (2026 Guide)
- Social Media Today – Instagram Adds Competitor Insights for Professional Accounts
- Social Media Today – Instagram Shares Algorithm Insights To Inform Strategy
- Metricool & HypeAuditor – Instagram Content Playbook 2025
- Socialinsider – Social Media Benchmarks 2026
- Hootsuite – How to calculate engagement rate in 2026
- Sprout Social – How to Perform a Social Media Competitive Analysis
- Buffer – The State of Social Media Engagement in 2026
