Dynamic overlays in Meta catalog ads (DPA), explained

Dynamic overlays are Meta's built in way to put a price or discount on a catalog ad (also called a dynamic product ad, or DPA). They are free, they update from your catalog, and they take a minute to set up. They also have limits worth knowing before you rely on them.

Everything here comes from Meta's page on adding dynamic overlays, read on September 26, 2026.

What dynamic overlays show

Meta says overlays show product data "such as prices or discounts in a label on your ad media". You pick from four kinds of information:

• Price. The current price.
• Strikethrough price. The sale price with the old price crossed out.
• Percentage off. The sale price with the percent off.
• Free shipping. Shown where it applies, if the product's shipping cost is 0.0 in your catalog.

You can let Meta pick with "Automatically add dynamic overlays." Or you can set them up by hand.

How you can style them

Meta gives you a few style controls:

There are character limits by shape. Meta counts the currency symbol and spaces. For example, $5.99 counts as 5 characters. For a strikethrough price, Meta suggests keeping both prices to 6 characters each.

Where dynamic overlays show

This is the big limit. Meta says: "Dynamic overlays only show on Facebook Feed". Meta also notes that from March 2026, Facebook Feed includes the Friends tab.

So on Instagram, Stories, Reels and other spots, the same ad shows the plain image. If your sale message matters, most of your placements will not show it.

There is also an "Always show" option. Meta says it overrides Advantage+ creative automation, so the overlay always shows on Facebook Feed. It does not add other placements.

How to turn on dynamic overlays

Meta's steps, in short:

1. In Ads Manager, create or edit your catalog ad.
2. In Ad setup, pick Single image or video, or Carousel.
3. In the Advantage+ creative section, click Edit.
4. Turn on Add dynamic overlays.
5. Click Customize to pick the data and style.
6. Finish the ad and click Publish.

Meta notes you may not see a preview. It says the overlays deliver either way.

Dynamic overlays and the learning phase

Overlays are set on the ad. So turning them on for a live ad is an edit to the ad. Meta's significant edits page lists "any change to ad creative" as a significant edit. That sends the ad set back into learning.

For a new ad, that does not matter. For a winning ad you do not want to touch, it does. Read does changing catalog images reset learning for the full answer.

Dynamic overlays vs a designed image

The other way to show a price or a sale is to put it in the image itself. Then it shows in every placement that uses that image, not just Facebook Feed.

Here is a shoe card from the Northbank Supply sample store. The badge, price and rating are part of the image.

The numbers on that card are sample data. Here is how the two ways compare:

A designed image has its own catch. If your catalog also feeds your Facebook Shop, the badge shows there too. Meta can reject shop listings with a promo overlay.

Never use both at once on one product. If your image already shows a price, turn overlays off. Two price tags look like a mistake. Meta's own image templates page gives the same advice for its templates.

Our guide on sale badges for Meta catalog ads covers true discounts. Our Meta catalog editor comparison covers image templates and frames.

Which one to use

Use dynamic overlays when you are building a new ad, you mostly run on Facebook Feed, and a price label is all you need.

Use a designed image when you want the offer seen on Instagram and Reels too. It is also the pick when you want stars and your brand, or do not want to edit a live ad. Convinci builds those images from your Shopify catalog and sends them through a supplementary feed. See your own products in the free preview, and plans on the pricing section.