# Read your Ad Spy results Understand ad tiles, ad copy, carousels, how long an ad has run, and how to filter and reopen past searches. Source: https://infinall.ai/docs/ad-spy/read-the-results Last checked: 2026-10-26 ## What it is Results appear as a grid of ad tiles. Open a tile to read the ad copy, see every slide of a carousel, and see how long the ad has been running. Without a search, the grid shows ads that are already stored. Reading and filtering never uses credits. ## Who can use it Everyone, on Free and Pro. Browsing stored ads is open to both plans. ## Cost Free, no credits. Opening ads, filtering, refreshing the list and reopening past searches never use credits. ## Where to find it Open **Library**, then the **Spy** tab. Results show under the search bar after a search, or the stored ads show when you open the tab. ## Buttons and controls ![Ad Spy results grid with the format chips, advertiser filter, Recent searches, platform and status filters and the ad tiles.](/docs/screens/ad-spy/read-the-results.webp) | # | Name in the app | What it does | Plan | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | All | Shows every format. Next to it: **Images**, **Videos**, **Carousels** and **Text** show only that format. | Both | | 2 | Filter stored advertisers | Type part of an advertiser name to narrow the stored ads. | Both | | 3 | Recent searches | Pick one of your past searches to see only its ads. The first choice is **Recent searches** (or **No recent searches** if there are none). | Both | | 4 | Platform filter | Shows **All platforms** at first. Choose **Meta**, **Google** or **LinkedIn** to show only those ads. | Both | | 5 | Status | Shows **All statuses** at first. Choose **Active** for ads still running or **Ended** for ads that stopped. | Both | | 6 | Refresh | Reloads the list. | Both | | | Back to all ads | Appears when you are looking at one search. Takes you back to the full list. | Both | | | Results per platform | A short list under the search bar after a search. It says how many ads each platform gave, or why one came back short. | Both | | 7 | Save | On each ad tile. Saves the ad to a folder. See [Save an ad](/docs/ad-spy/save-and-track). | Both | | 8 | Open landing page | On a tile, bottom right. Opens the ad's own page in a new tab. Shows only when the ad has a link. | Both | | | Back | In the opened ad. Closes it and returns to the grid. | Both | | | Previous | In the opened ad. Shows the previous ad in the grid. | Both | | | Next | In the opened ad. Shows the next ad in the grid. | Both | | | Close | In the opened ad. Closes it. | Both | | | Previous slide | In an opened carousel. Shows the previous slide. | Both | | | Next slide | In an opened carousel. Shows the next slide. | Both | | | Go to slide | The small dots under a carousel. Jump to one slide. | Both | | | Download | In the opened ad. Downloads the image. Shows only for ads that have an image. | Both | | | Watch on YouTube | In the opened ad. Opens the video on YouTube. Shows only for Google video ads. | Both | | | Landing page | In the opened ad. Opens the ad's page in a new tab. | Both | ## How to open an ad 1. Run a search, or open the **Spy** tab to see stored ads. 2. Choose a tile. 3. Read the panel on the right: platform, **Active** or **Ended**, the advertiser name and **Updated** time. 4. Read the facts: **Format**, **Running**, **Started** and **Countries**. 5. Read **Ad copy** for the headline, the body text and the **CTA**. 6. Choose **Next** or **Previous** to move through the grid, or **Back** to close. ## How to see how long an ad has run 1. Open the ad. 2. Look at **Running**. It shows the number of days. 3. Look at **Started** for the date it began. ## How to use the filters 1. Choose a format chip such as **Videos**. 2. Choose a platform in the platform filter. 3. Set **Status** to **Active** to hide ads that already stopped. 4. Type an advertiser in **Filter by advertiser**. ## How to go back to an earlier search 1. Open **Recent searches**. 2. Choose a search. The line shows the words you searched, the platform, how many ads it found and how long ago. 3. Choose **Back to all ads** when you want the full list again. ## Options explained **Active and Ended.** Active ads were still running when last seen. An ad that has not been seen for 14 days counts as taken down. **Tile labels.** | Label | What it means | | --- | --- | | Active | The ad is still running. | | 1/3 (with a stack icon) | A carousel. The number is how many slides it has. | | Carousel, then a slide count | A carousel with that many slides. | | 12d running | The ad has run for that many days. | | Used in 4 ads | Several ads share this same picture, so they are shown as one tile. | | similar preview | The original picture is gone, so a similar picture is shown. | **Creatives and ads.** The count above the grid can read "24 creatives (31 ads)". Several ads can use one picture, so one tile may stand for more than one ad. **Results per platform.** Each line reads like "Meta: 24 ads" or "Google: searching". A platform that came back short gives a reason, for example "busy right now, try again in a few minutes" or "no ads found for this brand". ## Limits - The grid loads 24 tiles at a time and keeps loading as you scroll. - A search shows up to 200 ads, and pages of 24 tiles. - The Recent searches list holds your last 20 searches. ## When something goes wrong | Message in the app | What it means | What to do | | --- | --- | --- | | The Spy database is empty | There are no stored ads to show yet. | Search a competitor to add the first results. | | No ads found | Your search matched nothing. | Try a broader brand or keyword. Empty searches cost 0 credits. | | No matching ads are running right now. The search was completed and counted. | The search worked but nobody is running matching ads. | Try another brand, keyword or country. | | Preview unavailable | The picture could not be loaded. | Open the ad. Try **Landing page**. | | This ad is a video, but only a poster frame is available. | The video file is gone and only a still is left. | Use **Landing page** to see the ad. | | Something went wrong. Try again. | A search or load failed without a clear reason. | Try again. | ## Questions ### Why are there fewer tiles than ads? Several ads can use the same picture. They are merged into one tile and the tile says "Used in" with a count. ### How do I know an ad is still live? Look for the **Active** badge on the tile or in the opened ad. ### Why does a picture show "similar preview"? The original picture has expired. A similar picture stands in. The ad text is still the real copy. ### What does a carousel show? Every slide. Use **Previous slide**, **Next slide** or the dots to move through them. ### Does opening an ad cost anything? No. Reading ads never uses credits.