Frequency
The average number of times a unique user sees a specific ad within a given time period.
What Frequency means
Frequency measures how many times, on average, each unique user in your audience has seen your ad. It's calculated by dividing total impressions by unique reach. High frequency can lead to ad fatigue, negative brand perception, and user complaints — some platforms interpret persistent high-frequency delivery as poor user experience. Most platforms provide frequency capping options to limit how often individuals see an ad. Meta recommends monitoring frequency alongside performance metrics and refreshing creative when frequency exceeds certain thresholds (typically 3-5 for feed ads, higher for awareness campaigns). From a compliance perspective, excessive frequency targeting a narrow audience could be flagged as harassing behavior in extreme cases, particularly for sensitive ad categories.
Related terms
Impressions
The number of times an ad is displayed on a screen, regardless of whether it was actually seen or clicked.
Reach
The total number of unique users who saw an ad at least once during a campaign period.
Ad Fatigue
The decline in ad performance that occurs when an audience sees the same ad too many times.
Ad Set
A mid-level organizational unit within ad campaigns that defines targeting, budget, schedule, and placement settings.