As a PPC agency, we often ask ourselves this question when launching a new remarketing campaign for a client with a limited ad budget.

Ideally, you want to do both, but not all clients have the budget for it, so we often have to choose one.

Ultimately, whether remarketing on Facebook Ads is “better” than Google Ads (including Google Display Network and RLSA) depends on your specific campaign goals, target audience, and where your audience spends their time.

Both platforms have unique advantages and can be highly effective for remarketing campaigns under the right circumstances. Here’s a comparison to help determine which might be better for your needs:

Facebook Ads Remarketing

• Audience Engagement: Facebook users are often in a browsing, discovery, or socializing mode, which can be advantageous for engaging with remarketing ads.
• Visual Format: Facebook supports highly visual ad formats, including images and videos, which can be more engaging and capture attention effectively.
• Detailed Targeting: Facebook offers extensive targeting options based on user demographics, interests, behaviors, and more, allowing for highly personalized remarketing campaigns.
• Cross-Platform: Facebook’s remarketing can extend across its family of apps, including Instagram, Messenger, and the Audience Network, offering diverse touchpoints.
• Social Proof: Ads can accumulate likes, comments, and shares, providing social proof that can enhance the effectiveness of your campaign.

Google Ads Remarketing

• Intent-Based Targeting: Google excels at capturing user intent, especially through search remarketing (RLSA), where ads are shown to users actively searching for related topics or services.
• Broad Reach: The Google Display Network covers over 2 million sites, reaching over 90% of Internet users worldwide, offering extensive visibility.
• Diverse Ad Formats: Google supports various ad formats, including responsive ads, image ads, and more, suitable for different stages of the user journey.
• YouTube Remarketing: Google allows for remarketing on YouTube, which is the second largest search engine and offers a highly engaging video platform.
• Integration with Google Analytics: Tight integration with Google Analytics enables detailed tracking and insights, which can be directly used for creating and refining remarketing lists.

Choosing Between Facebook Ads and Google Ads for Remarketing

• Consider Your Audience: Where does your target audience spend most of their online time? If they’re more likely to engage with content on social media, Facebook might be more effective. For audiences actively searching for services or products like yours, Google could be more impactful.
• Ad Content and Format: Think about the content and format of your ads. If your strategy relies heavily on visuals and storytelling, Facebook’s format might be more suitable. For intent-based targeting and reaching users across a vast network of sites, Google could be advantageous.
• Campaign Goals: Define your campaign goals clearly. For brand awareness and engagement, Facebook is strong. For driving action from users with a demonstrated interest (e.g., visiting your website), Google Remarketing might yield better results.
• Budget and ROI: Test both platforms to see which offers better ROI for your specific needs. Consider starting with a smaller budget on both platforms and comparing the results.

Ultimately, the “better” platform for remarketing depends on your specific needs and goals. Many businesses find that using both Google Ads and Facebook Ads in a complementary manner allows them to cover all bases, reaching potential customers at different stages of their decision-making process and across different parts of the digital landscape.

Amine Rahal

Tech Entrepreneur, Author, and CEO of Little Dragon Media. Passionate about entrepreneurship, philanthropy, digital marketing, blockchain, finance, investing, health fitness & nonprofits.