what the ad formats are on pinterest

Welcome! I'm excited to help you master Pinterest ads—it's a incredibly visual platform with some unique quirks that make it stand out from other social networks.

To make sure we tailor this session perfectly to what you need, what is your main goal for learning about Pinterest ads (e.g., running ads for a business, preparing for a marketing project, or general curiosity), and do you have experience with other ad platforms?

I am applying for an account manager role at pinterest. I have decent background in programmatic advertising

That's fantastic. Your programmatic background will be a huge asset—you already know the mechanics of targeting and bidding, so our goal is to layer on the unique, highly visual creative rules that drive Pinterest's auction.

Pinterest is essentially a visual search engine where users have exceptionally high buying intent. To capture that intent, we need to master how their ad formats function. Let's look at the foundational roadmap we will cover to get you completely ready for your Account Manager interviews.

Your path

Format Specs and Visual Best Practices

Matching Formats to Campaign Objectives

Ad Creation and Strategy Optimization

Let's dive right into our first subtopic and look at the absolute bread and butter of the platform: Standard Image and Standard Video ads.

The Core Creative Formats

Unlike other platforms where square or horizontal formats dominate, Pinterest is a vertical-first world. Standard Image ads rely on a very specific to avoid getting cut off in the feed. Similarly, standard video ads are designed to capture attention immediately as users scroll, meaning you have to design for sound-off viewing right from the start.

\text{Ideal Pinterest Dimensions} = 1000\text{px} \times 1500\text{px} \implies \text{Ratio} = \frac{2}{3}

For video ads, the sweet spot for duration is surprisingly short: 6 to 15 seconds. While the platform technically allows videos up to 15 minutes long, shorter, punchier videos see dramatically higher completion and engagement rates.

Continue to carousel, collection, and shopping ads

Let's move right into the next major group of formats. Understanding these is crucial for your Account Manager interview, as they directly help advertisers solve different business goals—from storytelling to driving direct ecommerce sales.

Multi-Image and Shoppable Formats

When an advertiser wants to showcase multiple products or tell a step-by-step story, they usually look at or . Knowing how to position these against each other is a key account management skill.

Now, if your client is a large retailer with hundreds or thousands of products, they won't want to create those ads manually. That's where Shopping Ads (also known as Catalog Ads) come in. These are dynamic, automated single-image ads that pull product imagery, pricing, and availability straight from the advertiser's uploaded product feed.

To give you a clearer picture of how these three distinct formats stack up side-by-side, I have mapped out their primary characteristics.

Ad Format	Creative Assets Needed	Primary User Action	Best Strategic Use Case
Carousel	2 to 5 separate cards (1:1 or 2:3)	Swiping horizontally through cards	Telling a brand story, showing features, or comparative options
Collection	1 large hero asset + 3 to 24 secondary products	Tapping to open an immersive, full-screen shop	Curated lifestyle bundles or shoppable seasonal gift guides
Shopping	Automatically pulled from product catalog feed	Direct click-through to purchase on retailer site	Dynamic retargeting, scaling product catalog visibility

Besides these three main formats, Pinterest also offers interactive, high-impact options to capture attention in the feed. These include Quiz Ads, which ask multiple-choice questions to deliver personalized product recommendations, and Premiere Spotlight, which is a premium reservation placement that gives brands a temporary, full-screen takeover of the Search landing page—ideal for massive product launches.