Browsers and devices keep cutting what a tracking pixel can see. Many browsers are now blocking third-party cookies by default, there are ad and cookie blocker extensions, and Apple, with its App Tracking Transparency prompt (introduced with iOS 14), has made user data collection more difficult.
CAPI is a good solution to this problem. It allows businesses to track conversions even if users have cookies blocked or disabled. It also provides more accurate and reliable conversion data than cookies can.
In this blog post, we will discuss what CAPI is, how it works, and the benefits of using it in a cookieless world. We will also provide instructions on how to set up and use CAPI.
What is the Facebook Conversions API?
The Conversions API, formerly known as Facebook Server-Side API, allows advertisers to send web events from their servers to Facebook.
CAPI will help you push event and conversion data to Meta Ads Manager (formerly Facebook Ads Manager) while maintaining user privacy.
If the word API scares you (like it does me), let me break down how all this works. API is an acronym for application programming interface and it’s the most common way different apps and systems communicate with each other.
With Facebook CAPI, you can send data you capture from your system (like Shopify for example) to the Meta Ads Manager.
This might sound similar to the Meta Pixel (formerly the Facebook Pixel): you place the pixel on your site and Meta collects that event and conversion data for Ads Manager.
The difference is that Facebook is the one doing the capturing and data collection. With Facebook CAPI, you’re using your data (customer id, order id, purchase events, offline events, etc.) and then giving that to Facebook.
In this article, we’re going to cover everything you need to know about Facebook Conversions API.
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You might also be interested in: How to set up Facebook ads custom conversions
How the Facebook Conversions API works with your Meta Pixel
So Conversions API is not a replacement for your Meta Pixel nor is it the ultimate solution to keep everything as it is before this cookieless world. It’s here for you to use in parallel with your Meta Pixel.
The Meta Pixel allows Facebook to do two main things:
- track and collect user activity and match it to a Facebook profile
- measure events and conversions to track ad performance
For the most part, this is all we needed when we were allowed to use cookies. The only major cause for reporting discrepancies from our data (again like Shopify or a CRM) and with Facebook’s data was due to the use of ad blockers.
Now with tracking limits and the necessary changes Meta has to make to comply, there will be an even bigger gap in conversion data.
This is where CAPI comes in. With data from the Meta pixel and your “server” (your ecom/CRM data), Meta can improve reporting and measuring conversion events.
Then you might wonder if this will create duplicate conversion events, one you sent through the API and one from the pixel. But don’t worry, Meta has a solution for this already.
Built in to CAPI is an auto deduping process to ensure the same events captured by the pixel aren’t counted twice as long as you’re sending Meta’s required parameters: the Meta Pixel’s eventID must match the server event’s event_id, both must carry the same event_name, and the two events must arrive within 48 hours of each other.
After you’ve set up sending events through Facebook CAPI, you’ll see a tool called Event Match Quality in your Events Manager which you can use for each individual event.
It will score how well Facebook is matching your provided data to a Facebook account.
Facebook CAPI relies on user data keys such as first name, last name, email, phone number, city, state, type of browser, and IP address.
These user data keys are unknown for website visitors unless they choose to sign in or sign up for something. So most of the time, Facebook CAPI will use less reliable data keys such as browser ID and IP address.
Therefore, expect to see a lower Event Match Quality score on events such as Page View or View Content, since anonymous visitors can trigger these events and there’s not enough data to match them with.
The highest scores will come from logged-in customers.
What kind of events can you track with the Conversions API?
The good news is you can choose to track any of the events you're already familiar with, not just purchases, with CAPI.
So, for example, you can track content views, pageviews, newsletter sign-ups, subscription changes, offline events, and of course, purchases.
You’re probably already familiar with your most important events, but here’s what I recommend for e-commerce brands:
- purchase
- initiate checkout
- add to cart
- product view
- email sign-up
With these core events at the minimum, you’ll be able to get the most out of Facebook CAPI in regards to better ad reporting and management.
You’ll be able to more accurately measure ROAS and other cost-per-metrics associated with your funnel.
Getting started with Conversions API
Before getting started with CAPI, there are some things you need to do first like having a Meta Pixel and its Pixel ID, access to Meta Business Suite, and an access token.
If you don’t have the Meta Pixel set up yet, or are completely new to all this, then start with our Facebook ads for e-commerce guide first.
Before showing you how to implement CAPI, let’s first look at direct integrations, which is by far the easiest way to implement it.
How to set up the Facebook Conversions API in Shopify
Shopify’s Facebook & Instagram channel (formerly the Facebook Sales Channel app) has two options in its data sharing settings, Enhanced and Maximum. Both options set up CAPI for purchase events.
The native Facebook CAPI with Shopify sends only the Purchase event server-side, while the pixel sends PageView, ViewContent, Search, AddToCart, InitiateCheckout, AddPaymentInfo, and Purchase. However, for most online stores, the native integration option is enough to continue getting good results.
1. Install the Facebook & Instagram channel
If you don’t have it installed already, head to “Sales channels” in the sidebar from your Shopify dashboard, find the Facebook & Instagram channel, and install it. Follow the prompts to complete the installation and set up.
When the Shopify settings pop up, you’ll need to select the right business portfolio (formerly Business Manager), catalog, profile, page, and pixel.
You’ll also need to switch Automatic Advanced Matching on separately, in Events Manager: open your pixel, go to Settings, and turn it on.
In the following prompt, you’ll be asked what Shopify is allowed to do with your Meta account. Make sure all functionality is set to “yes”.
2. Enable Enhanced or Maximum data sharing
Now that the Facebook & Instagram channel is installed, you’ll see “Facebook & Instagram” under sales channels in the sidebar of your Shopify dashboard. Click it and go to the settings tab, then scroll down and click the “Data sharing settings” link.
Go to “enable tracking” and toggle it on, set the data sharing level to “Enhanced” or “Maximum”, and ensure the right Meta pixel is selected under “behavior will be tracked with this pixel”.
Click confirm to save your configuration.
3. Verify everything is working
It’s important you don’t have your Meta Pixel installed twice on your website and firing more than once for individual events. You keep the pixel itself: CAPI runs alongside it, not instead of it. If you want to check for doubles, the Test Events tool in Events Manager shows every event as it comes in.
So, if you have your Meta Pixel hardcoded on your site, you’ll want to remove it: Shopify asks you to take that code out of your theme once the channel manages the pixel.
If you set your Meta Pixel in your general Online Store preferences, you’ll want to remove it there as well: go to Preferences, find the Meta pixel section, and delete it.
Now there’s two things to test. First, download the Meta Ads Data Advisor (formerly the Meta Pixel Helper) browser extension for Chrome.
Go to your site, click the Meta Ads Data Advisor extension, and it will diagnose whether there are any issues with your Meta Pixel and Conversions API implementation.
Second, test whether the data you’re sending through CAPI is correct by using Facebook’s Payload Helper tool.
Just enter your Pixel ID in the “test this payload” box and click the “send to test events” button.
If you’re using a third-party checkout that runs outside Shopify Checkout, they have their own checkout process and will require different setups with Conversions API to work properly.
How to set up the Facebook Conversions API on other platforms
If you’re not using Shopify, Facebook has a number of partner integrations with various platforms you can use. In Events Manager, open Integrations. The list is long, so filter it by data source (Conversions API) and by category.
Facebook’s partner integrations are grouped by category: e-commerce, website platforms, tag management, analytics, customer data platforms, CRM and marketing software, mobile platforms, and a few more.
If you want to set up Conversions API through one of these platforms, Meta has an automatic setup process for each one. Just click the platform you want and follow the prompts.
Meta also offers the Conversions API Gateway: a code-free option you turn on from Events Manager that runs on a cloud instance you provision (AWS or Google Cloud). Meta doesn’t charge for it; the cost is the cloud resources or a partner’s fee.
Can you set up the Facebook Conversions API manually?
If you want complete control of your CAPI implementation or are using a platform without a native integration, you’ll have to resort to setting it up manually, which will require a degree of coding knowledge.
A custom implementation of the Meta CAPI will look something like this:
If you don’t have a developer on hand, a middle route is Bïrch Hub. You create a gateway in the Hub section of Bïrch, connect your Meta account and the dataset, and the Conversions API Gateway is configured for basic tracking from there. What stays on your side is a custom tracking domain (a CNAME record) and the Signals Pixel on your site; on Shopify the code goes into theme.liquid. The first 10,000 events per gateway are free.
If you do go for a custom implementation, you’ll be able to own and have full control over the data you collect, which has the following benefits:
- centralized place for all your tracking and data with less user privacy issues
- protection with other platforms who in the future may suffer from the same tracking issues impacting Facebook
- first-party tracking on your own subdomain to mitigate data loss from ad blockers
- ability to set up automated error and data monitoring for all tracking
Wrap up
For most folks, implementing the Meta Conversions API will be a first step toward server-side tracking.
As mentioned above, there are a lot of benefits to server-side tracking and based on current privacy and data trends, we expect to see server-side tracking relied on a lot more.
Here’s what I recommend considering next:
- remember to test whether your Meta Pixel is functioning correctly with the Meta Ads Data Advisor browser extension for Google Chrome
- test your Conversions API implementation with Facebook’s Payload Helper
- after a week with your Conversions API implemented, monitor all your server events’ deduplication and matching performance in Events Manager
- the same audit (which datasets and pixels are connected, which events arrive and at what volume) can now be asked in Bïrch AI; in Bïrch AI, it needs Meta MCP connected from a personal Meta profile, and the prompt is in step 1 of our guide to the ads MCP server
- whether you want to invest in a complete server-side tracking set up; our comparison of the Meta Pixel, CAPI, the Conversions API Gateway, Signals Gateway, and Bïrch Hub lays out the trade-offs
Whether you choose automated integrations or a custom implementation, CAPI offers benefits like centralized tracking, data protection, and first-party tracking. It's a step toward server-side tracking, which is likely to become more prevalent in the future.
Remember, the more accurate your data is, the better Meta will be able to optimize your ad campaigns for your desired result and the more accurate any Meta ad automations you have set up will perform.
So, take the necessary steps to keep your conversion data complete as browsers restrict tracking, and stay ahead in the game.
Key takeaways
- Using the Meta CAPI, you can gain back reported conversions for your Meta ads your Meta Pixel couldn’t capture
- It is not a replacement for your Meta Pixel, they should be ran in parallel
- More conversion data using both Meta Conversions API and the pixel will help Facebook’s ad optimization algorithm be more effective
- Using CAPI is not difficult, especially if you’re using a platform with a direct integration, like Shopify
