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Platform Targeting Comparison

Each advertising platform offers different targeting capabilities based on their user data and advertising ecosystem. Understanding these differences helps you choose the right platform for your audience and plan campaigns that work within each platform’s constraints.
What you’ll learn:
  • Core targeting capabilities by platform
  • Platform-specific limitations and restrictions
  • Custom audience requirements
  • Special targeting restrictions

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Quick Comparison Table

This table compares key targeting capabilities across all platforms:
CapabilityMetaTikTokSnapchatGoogle
Minimum Age13131318 (most campaigns)
Maximum Age6555+5565+
Gender TargetingAll, Male, FemaleAll, Male, FemaleAll, Male, FemaleAll, Male, Female, Unknown
Location TargetingCountries, regions, cities, postal codes, radiusCountries, regions, citiesCountries, regions, cities, postal codes, radiusCountries, regions, cities, postal codes, radius
Interest Targeting✅ Extensive✅ Moderate✅ Moderate✅ Extensive (Affinity)
Behavior Targeting✅ Extensive✅ Limited✅ Limited✅ Extensive (In-Market)
Custom Audiences✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes (Remarketing)
Lookalike Audiences✅ Yes (1-10%)✅ Yes✅ Yes (1-10%)✅ Yes (Similar)
Keyword Targeting❌ No❌ No❌ No✅ Yes (Search only)
Placement Targeting✅ Limited❌ No❌ No✅ Yes (Display/Video)
Device Targeting✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
Income Targeting✅ Yes (US)❌ No✅ Yes (US)✅ Yes
Education Targeting✅ Yes❌ No❌ No❌ No
Life Events Targeting✅ Yes❌ No❌ No✅ Yes

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Demographics Comparison

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Age Targeting

Each platform uses a different age format: Meta uses numeric min/max; TikTok and Snapchat use brackets (e.g. 18-24, 25-34); Google uses range codes. Whathead lets you set age as a range (e.g. 18–50); a mapping system converts it to the correct brackets or min/max per platform.
Age Ranges: 13-65
  • Minimum age: 13
  • Maximum age: 65
  • Meta allows custom age ranges within 13-65 (e.g., 23-37)
  • Special ad categories have additional restrictions enforced by Meta
Whathead validates age ranges are between 13-65 before publishing to Meta. Meta may enforce additional restrictions based on campaign objective or ad category.

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Gender Targeting

All platforms support basic gender targeting:
  • All genders: Show ads to everyone (recommended for maximum reach)
  • Male: Show ads to male users
  • Female: Show ads to female users
Meta Special Ad Categories Restriction: Housing, employment, and credit ads cannot target by gender. This is a legal requirement to prevent discrimination.

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Language Targeting

PlatformLanguage Targeting
Meta✅ Target users by language preference (100+ languages)
TikTok✅ Target users by preferred language (50+ languages)
Snapchat✅ Target users by language preference (30+ languages)
Google✅ Target users by language (40+ languages)
Language targeting is based on user account settings, not location. A user in France with English language settings will see English-targeted ads.

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Interest and Behavior Targeting

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Interest Targeting Depth

Most Comprehensive Interest TargetingMeta offers the deepest interest targeting with thousands of options:
  • Categories: Sports, Entertainment, Shopping, Technology, Business, etc.
  • Subcategories: Specific interests within each category
  • Brands: Users interested in specific brands
  • Pages: Users who like specific Facebook pages
Interest data comes from:
  • Pages users like and follow
  • Content users engage with
  • Groups users join
  • Ads users click
Meta’s interest targeting is the most granular, allowing very specific audience definition.

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Behavior Targeting Comparison

Behavior TypeMetaTikTokSnapchatGoogle
Purchase Behavior✅ Extensive❌ Limited❌ Limited✅ Extensive (In-Market)
Device Usage✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
Travel Behavior✅ Yes❌ No❌ No✅ Yes (Life Events)
Digital Activities✅ Yes✅ Yes (in-app)✅ Yes (in-app)✅ Yes
App Usage✅ Yes✅ Yes❌ Limited✅ Yes
Content Consumption✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes

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Custom Audiences

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Minimum Audience Sizes

Different platforms have different minimum requirements for custom audiences:
Audience TypeMetaTikTokSnapchatGoogle
Customer Lists100 matched users1,000 matched users1,000 matched users1,000 matched users
Website Visitors100 users1,000 users1,000 users100 users (Display/Video), 1,000 users (Search)
App Users100 users1,000 users1,000 users100 users
Engagement100 users1,000 users1,000 users100 users
If your custom audience doesn’t meet the minimum size, you cannot use it for targeting. Build larger audiences before creating campaigns.

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Custom Audience Types

Custom Audience Options:
  • Customer Lists: Email, phone, mobile advertiser ID
  • Website Traffic: Requires Meta Pixel installation
  • App Activity: Requires Meta SDK integration
  • Offline Activity: Upload in-store purchase data
  • Engagement: Users who engaged with Facebook/Instagram content
  • Video: Users who watched your videos
  • Lead Form: Users who opened or submitted lead forms
  • Instant Experience: Users who opened Instant Experiences
Meta offers the most custom audience types, enabling highly specific retargeting.

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Lookalike Audiences

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Similarity Levels

PlatformSimilarity RangeRecommendation
Meta1-10% (1% most similar)Start with 1-2%, expand to 3-5% for reach
TikTokNarrow to Broad (no percentage)Start narrow, expand based on performance
Snapchat1-10% (1% most similar)Start with 1-2%, expand to 3-5% for reach
GoogleAutomatic (no manual control)Google automatically determines similarity
Lower percentages (1-2%) give you audiences most similar to your source. Higher percentages (5-10%) give you broader reach but less similarity.

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Source Audience Requirements

PlatformMinimum Source SizeRecommended Source Size
Meta100 users1,000+ users from same country
TikTok1,000 users10,000+ users
Snapchat1,000 users10,000+ users
Google1,000 users5,000+ users
Larger source audiences create better lookalike audiences. Use your highest-value customers (purchasers, not just website visitors) as the source.

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Platform-Specific Limitations

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Meta Special Ad Categories

Meta enforces strict targeting restrictions for housing, employment, and credit ads to comply with anti-discrimination laws:
Special Ad Categories Restrictions:If your ad is categorized as Housing, Employment, or Credit, you cannot target by:
  • Age (must target 18-65+)
  • Gender (must target all genders)
  • Zip code (must use broader location targeting)
These restrictions are legally required and cannot be bypassed. Violating these rules can result in account suspension.
What you CAN still target for special ad categories:
  • Location (country, state, city - but not zip code)
  • Language
  • Custom audiences (with restrictions)
  • Lookalike audiences (with restrictions)
When you select a special ad category, Meta automatically removes restricted targeting options from the interface.

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Meta App Campaign Restrictions

Meta enforces additional targeting restrictions for app promotion campaigns (objective: OUTCOME_APP_PROMOTION or conversion location: APP):
App Campaign Targeting Restrictions:App campaigns have the following limitations:
  • Device OS: Can only target mobile devices (iOS, Android). Desktop targeting is not allowed.
  • Placements: Cannot use Threads platform or desktop-only placements (e.g., Right Hand Column)
  • Mobile requirement: Must target at least one mobile operating system
These restrictions are enforced by Meta’s API during publishing.
Whathead validates these restrictions before publishing and will show validation errors if your targeting configuration doesn’t meet Meta’s requirements for app campaigns.

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TikTok Limitations

TikTok-Specific Constraints:
  • Younger User Base: Most users are under 35, limiting reach for older demographics
  • Limited Behavior Data: Less purchase behavior data compared to Meta
  • Higher Minimums: Custom audiences require 1,000 matched users (vs. 100 on Meta)
  • No Education Targeting: Cannot target by education level
  • No Income Targeting: Cannot target by household income

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Snapchat Limitations

Snapchat-Specific Constraints:
  • Youngest User Base: Majority of users are under 25
  • Limited Reach for 35+: Very limited inventory for older demographics
  • Higher Minimums: Custom audiences require 1,000 matched users
  • Limited Interest Depth: Fewer interest categories than Meta
  • No Education Targeting: Cannot target by education level

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Google Limitations

Google-Specific Constraints:
  • No Users Under 18: Cannot target users under 18 (unsuitable for teen products)
  • Search Campaign Minimums: Remarketing lists need 1,000 users for Search campaigns
  • Limited Social Data: No social engagement or interest data like Meta
  • Placement Restrictions: Some placements have limited targeting options

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Device and Connection Targeting

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Device Targeting Options

Device OptionMetaTikTokSnapchatGoogle
Mobile vs Desktop✅ Yes✅ Mobile only✅ Mobile only✅ Yes
iOS vs Android✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
Device Models✅ Yes❌ No❌ No✅ Limited
Device Price Range❌ No✅ Yes❌ No❌ No
Operating System Version✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
TikTok and Snapchat are mobile-only platforms. You cannot target desktop users on these platforms.

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Connection Type Targeting

Connection TypeMetaTikTokSnapchatGoogle
WiFi✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
Cellular (All)✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
2G/3G/4G/5G✅ Yes✅ Yes❌ No❌ No
Target WiFi users for video ads with large file sizes. Target cellular users for lightweight ads to avoid slow loading.

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Location Targeting Comparison

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Location Granularity

Location LevelMetaTikTokSnapchatGoogle
Countries✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
Regions/States✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
Cities✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes✅ Yes
Postal Codes✅ Yes❌ No✅ Yes✅ Yes
Radius Targeting✅ Yes (1-50 miles)❌ No✅ Yes (1-50 miles)✅ Yes (1-500 miles)
DMA (Designated Market Area)✅ Yes (US)❌ No❌ No✅ Yes (US)
TikTok Limitation: TikTok does not support postal code or radius targeting. You can only target at the city level or broader.

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Location Targeting Methods

Location Options:
  • People living in this location: Users whose home is in the location
  • People recently in this location: Users who were recently in the location
  • People traveling to this location: Users traveling to the location
  • People living in or recently in this location: Combination (default)
Choose “People living in” for local businesses. Choose “People traveling to” for tourism campaigns.

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Audience Size Recommendations

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Optimal Audience Sizes by Platform

PlatformMinimum ViableOptimal RangeToo Large
Meta50,000100,000 - 5M10M+
TikTok100,000500,000 - 10M50M+
Snapchat50,000100,000 - 3M10M+
Google50,000100,000 - 5M10M+
Too Small: Audiences under 50,000 may limit delivery and increase costs. The platform’s algorithm needs sufficient users to optimize.Too Large: Audiences over 10 million may be too broad for effective optimization. Consider splitting into multiple ad sets.
Optimal audience size also depends on your budget. Higher budgets can support larger audiences. As a rule of thumb, aim for at least $1 daily budget per 10,000 users in your audience.

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Choosing the Right Platform for Your Audience

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Platform Selection Guide

Best for:
  • Broad age ranges (18-65+)
  • Detailed interest targeting needed
  • B2C with specific customer profiles
  • Retargeting website visitors
  • Lookalike audiences from customer lists
Avoid Meta for:
  • Housing, employment, or credit ads requiring narrow demographics
  • Very niche audiences (may not have enough users)

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Targeting Validation by Platform

When you publish campaigns in Whathead, the system validates your targeting configuration against platform requirements:

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Common Validation Errors

Error: “Your audience is too small for this platform”Cause: Your targeting is too narrow, resulting in fewer than 50,000 potential users.Resolution:
  • Remove some targeting criteria
  • Expand age ranges
  • Add more locations
  • Use broader interest categories
Error: “Custom audience must have at least X matched users”Cause: Your custom audience doesn’t meet the platform’s minimum size requirement.Resolution:
  • Wait for more users to be added to the audience
  • Combine multiple small audiences
  • Use a different audience type
  • Check that your pixel or SDK is tracking correctly
Error: “Cannot target by age/gender/zip code for special ad categories”Cause: You selected Housing, Employment, or Credit category but used restricted targeting.Resolution:
  • Remove age, gender, or zip code targeting
  • Use broader location targeting (city or state)
  • Use only allowed targeting options
  • Verify your ad category is correct
Error: “This platform does not allow targeting users under 18”Cause: You’re trying to target users under 18 on Google.Resolution:
  • Change age range to 18+
  • Use a different platform (Meta, TikTok, or Snapchat) for teen audiences
Error: “Postal code targeting is not available on this platform”Cause: You’re trying to use postal code targeting on TikTok.Resolution:
  • Use city-level targeting instead
  • Use radius targeting on a different platform
  • Target broader geographic areas

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Next Steps

Targeting Overview

Learn core targeting concepts and best practices across all platforms.

Meta Targeting

Deep dive into Meta’s detailed targeting options and custom audiences.

TikTok Targeting

Explore TikTok’s interest-based targeting and video engagement audiences.

Snapchat Targeting

Learn about Snapchat’s demographic and lifestyle targeting options.

Google Targeting

Understand Google’s intent-based targeting and remarketing capabilities.

Publishing Workflow

Learn how targeting validation works during the publishing process.