Page reach and post reach are two important metrics to understand when using Facebook for marketing. In simple terms, page reach refers to the number of unique people who saw any content from your Facebook Page over a specified period of time. Post reach refers to the number of unique people who saw a specific post from your Page over a period of time.
What is Facebook page reach?
Facebook page reach measures the total number of unique users who have seen any content from your Facebook Page during a given period. This includes:
- Posts
- Photos
- Videos
- Events
- Page stories
- Check-ins
- Any other activity on your Page
Page reach is an important metric for understanding the overall exposure and visibility your Facebook Page is getting. A high page reach indicates your content is reaching a large audience and your Page is being discovered by new users.
How is Facebook page reach calculated?
Facebook calculates page reach by counting the number of unique users who have viewed or interacted with your Page over a specified period of time. This includes:
- Liking your Page
- Commenting on a post
- Sharing content from your Page
- Tagging your Page in a post or photo
- Checking into your location
- Messaging your Page
- Clicking on an ad that brings them to your Page
- Viewing or interacting with any content on your Page, even if they haven’t liked it
Each unique user who performs one of these actions counts toward your overall page reach. The same user will be counted multiple times if they perform multiple actions. However, they will only be counted once per day no matter how many actions they take.
Why is Facebook page reach important?
Page reach is important because it shows how broadly your content is being distributed on Facebook. A high reach indicates more people are being exposed to your brand, products, and messaging. Key reasons page reach matters include:
- Measuring brand awareness – If your page reach is growing, it likely means more people are becoming aware of your brand.
- Informing content strategy – Seeing what types of content increase reach can help you craft better content.
- Evaluating campaigns – Page reach can show the impact of social media campaigns and paid advertising.
- Benchmarking – Comparing reach week-over-week and month-over-month provides benchmarks to beat.
What is Facebook post reach?
Facebook post reach measures how many unique users saw a specific post from your Page over a given time frame. Unlike page reach, it focuses solely on one published post rather than all content from your Page.
Post reach indicates how far a singular piece of content reached within your audience. It provides valuable data on which types of content resonate best with your followers.
How is Facebook post reach calculated?
Facebook calculates post reach by counting the unique users who have seen that post in their News Feed or on your Page. Users count toward reach when they:
- Scroll past the post in their News Feed
- Like, comment, or share the post
- Click on the post to view photos or videos
- Click on any links or ads in the post
- Hover over the post for a few seconds (desktop only)
Facebook also estimates how many users likely saw the post as they scrolled by it, even if they did not interact. Each user is counted only once per post, regardless of how many times they view or engage with it. The timeframe for post reach is typically the first 28 days after publishing.
Why is Facebook post reach important?
Measuring post reach provides useful data to inform your Facebook strategy. Reasons it’s important include:
- Seeing what types of posts resonate best with your audience
- Identifying what content drives the most reach
- Figuring out the best times to post for maximum reach
- Monitoring how changes to Facebook’s algorithm impact reach
- Comparing reach between different posts
- Determining if you should boost posts with paid promotion
Post reach metrics make it easy to isolate the performance of single posts. You can use these insights to craft content that better engages your audience and gets visibility in the News Feed.
Differences between page reach and post reach
While page reach and post reach both measure how far your Facebook content is spreading, there are some key differences:
| Page Reach | Post Reach |
|---|---|
| Measures all content from your Page | Measures only one published post |
| Covers any user interaction | Only counts views, clicks or hovers on the post |
| Provides general awareness metrics | Gives data on specific content types |
| Can be viewed for any date range | Typically covers only 28 days |
In summary:
- Page reach is a broader metric showing overall exposure of your brand.
- Post reach provides granular data on how individual posts perform.
Typical page reach vs post reach
As a general rule of thumb, you can expect post reach to be significantly lower than page reach. There are a few reasons for this:
- Page reach accumulates all content over time, while post reach is isolated to one post.
- Not all users who see your page interact with every post.
- The average user doesn’t scroll too far down your Page viewing older content.
- Facebook shows your posts to a portion of your audience, not everyone who has liked your Page.
For example, a Page might accumulate a reach of 50,000 users over a week. But an individual post may only generate a reach of 5,000 to 10,000 users in that same timeframe.
The ratio of page reach to post reach can vary substantially depending on factors like:
- Total audience size – larger Pages tend to have higher reach in general
- How frequently you post – more posts boosts page reach
- Content type – video and images typically drive more reach than plain text
- CTA value – posts with special offers or discounts tend to see higher reach
Benchmark studies have found an average page reach to post reach ratio around 5:1 to 10:1. However, high-performing posts can still sometimes achieve 50%+ of your total page reach or more.
How to increase Facebook page and post reach
There are a number of proven tactics you can use to increase both your Facebook page reach and post reach. Some best practices include:
Increase page followers
The simplest way to drive more page reach is increasing your total Page followers. This gives you a larger audience to potentially reach with each post.
- Run Facebook ads promoting your Page
- Encourage followers to invite friends to like your Page
- Leverage Facebook Events to attract local followers
- Promote your Page across other channels
- Use social media contests and giveaways
Post more consistently
Pages that post frequently tend to achieve higher overall reach. More posts equals more opportunities for users to engage.
- Post 1-2 times per day in most niches
- Use social media management tools to schedule and recycle content
- Go live or use video to create “tent pole” content
Analyze post insights
Pay attention to which individual posts drive the most reach. Then make more content in that style:
- Check your Post Insights data regularly
- Identify reach drivers like video, images, questions or special offers
- Reshare your most engaging older posts
Optimize posting times
Figure out when your audience is most active on Facebook and post during those high traffic windows:
- Try using Facebook’s Best Time to Post tool
- Test posting at different times and days
- Analyze post metrics to see when reach is highest
Promote high-value posts
Use Facebook’s advertising tools to give your best performing organic posts an extra boost:
- Boost posts with relevant targeting
- Create Instagram/Facebook dual promotions
- Retarget users who already engaged
Combining several of these tactics is key for driving maximum, sustained reach over time. Reach will also vary based on audience interests, post quality, and competitiveness of the niche. But optimizing content and promotion for reach is something any brand can do.
Conclusion
Monitoring both page reach and post reach metrics provides a powerful view into how broadly your Facebook content is spreading. While high reach alone doesn’t guarantee success, it is an important precursor to generating engagement, conversions, and loyalty over the long-term.
By posting more consistently, using high-quality content tailored to your audience, and leveraging promotions, any brand can improve Facebook reach. Blend these best practices into your larger social strategy to build an impactful presence.