What are lookalike audiences?
Nicklas Segatz Mortensen · Growth Hacker · Fractional CMO · Meta Ads Nerd · 8 July 2026 · 3 min.
Definition
A lookalike audience is an audience Meta builds by finding new users who statistically resemble a seed audience you provide, for example your buyers or your most valuable customers.
Also called: Lookalike Audience, LAL, Similar audience
Sådan virker det
En lookalike audience finder nye mennesker, der ligner dine bedste kunder. Du giver Meta et seed (fx købere eller høj-CLTV-kunder), og algoritmen udvider til et bredt, lignende publikum. Kvaliteten af seedet afgør kvaliteten af lookalike’en.
01The seed decides everything
A lookalike is only as good as the seed it's built on. Feed Meta all your visitors and you get a broad, blurry audience. Feed it your most valuable customers (high CLTV, repeat buyers) and the algorithm goes looking for more of exactly those people. The quality of the data in determines the quality of the audience out.
As Meta's broad automation (Advantage+ audience) has grown stronger, classic lookalikes are used less as hard targeting and more as a signal the algorithm can factor in. But a clean, value-based seed is still one of the best signals you can give it.
Frequently asked questions
What's the best seed for a lookalike?+
Your most valuable customers (high CLTV, repeat buyers, large orders) rather than all visitors. The sharper and more value-based the seed, the more precisely the algorithm hunts for similar people.
Are lookalikes still relevant with Advantage+?+
Yes, but more as a strong signal than as hard targeting. Meta's broad automation handles much of the expansion itself, but a clean, value-based seed helps it find the right people.
Related terms
Glossary
What are custom audiences?
A custom audience is an audience you build from your own data: customer lists, website visitors (via pixel/CAPI), app activity, video viewers or engagement on Meta.
Read the entry →Glossary
What is prospecting?
Prospecting is top-of-funnel advertising aimed at new, cold audiences that have had no prior contact with the brand. The purpose is to build awareness and win entirely new customers.
Read the entry →Glossary
What is CLTV?
CLTV (Customer Lifetime Value) is the total gross profit an average customer contributes across their entire lifetime as a customer, from first purchase to last.
Read the entry →
Nicklas Segatz Mortensen
Growth Hacker · Fractional CMO · Meta Ads Nerd at Oaksmond
Growth hacker and fractional CMO with 10+ years' experience and hundreds of millions in managed ad spend behind him. Background from larger Danish and international scale-ups, and from the agency world.
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