There are a few common reasons why you may not be able to boost your Facebook Marketplace post:
Your account or post is not eligible for boosting
Facebook has certain requirements that must be met in order to boost Marketplace posts:
- Your Facebook account must be in good standing and not have any restrictions
- Your Marketplace post must have been live for at least 7 days
- You can only boost posts with a set price, not ones listed as “Free” or with “Contact for price”
- The item must be something that is allowed to be sold on Marketplace based on Facebook’s commerce policies
If your account or post does not meet these criteria, the “Boost Post” option will not be available.
Your account is new or lacks history
Facebook restricts some features, including post boosting, for new accounts or those without much posting history. This is to prevent spam and abuse. You may need to be active on Facebook for a while before you’re able to boost Marketplace listings.
Your post contains prohibited content
Facebook prohibits certain items and content from being sold on Marketplace. This includes:
- Illegal, prescription, or recreational drugs
- Alcohol or tobacco
- Weapons, ammunition, or explosives
- Live animals
- Sexually explicit materials
If your post contains any of these, it will not be eligible for boosting.
There are issues with your payment method
In order to boost a post, you need to have a valid payment method set up for advertising on Facebook. If there are any issues processing your payment, such as:
- Your credit card is expired or has insufficient funds
- Your PayPal account is restricted
- You’ve hit your advertising spending limit
Then you’ll be prevented from boosting the post until you resolve the payment problem.
Your payment details need to be re-entered
Facebook occasionally requires you to re-enter your payment details for security purposes, even if you have boosted posts before. If you see an error about your payment method being invalid, try entering it again in your account settings.
Your advertising account is paused
If your Facebook advertising privileges have been paused for policy violations or other reasons, you won’t be able to create new ad campaigns or boost any posts until the suspension is lifted.
You have hit your advertising daily budget or lifetime spend limit
Facebook places a daily and monthly cap on how much each advertiser can spend. The default limits for new accounts are:
- Daily budget: $1 USD
- Lifetime spend: $500 USD
If you try to boost a post that would exceed these limits, it will fail. You can request Facebook to review and increase your limits by contacting their support team.
You need to increase your daily advertising budget
Each attempt to boost a post counts towards your daily advertising budget on Facebook. If you have already promoted multiple posts that day, you may need to increase your daily budget in order to boost again.
You’ve reached your lifetime advertising spend limit
Once you hit the $500 lifetime maximum spend for a new Facebook ad account, you will be prevented from boosting any more posts. You can request Facebook to review your account activity and increase this limit.
Technical issues on Facebook’s end
In rare cases, technical glitches with Facebook’s systems can also prevent boosting a Marketplace post. This is more likely if you are noticing widespread issues boosting any posts or creating ads. Some common technical problems include:
- Site bugs preventing boost options from loading
- Errors boosting posts from iOS or Android apps
- Facebook API and platform issues
- Account restrictions not syncing properly across Facebook’s systems
If the problems persist for more than a few hours, it’s best to contact Facebook support for assistance investigating any technical issues on their end.
What to do if you can’t boost your Marketplace post
Here are some tips on resolving the most common issues that prevent boosting Facebook Marketplace posts:
- Make sure your account and post meet all eligibility requirements
- Check for any pending issues with your payment details
- Increase your daily and lifetime advertising budgets
- Wait out any new account restrictions or advertising suspensions
- Contact Facebook support if problems persist for more than 24 hours
Double check Marketplace post eligibility
First, carefully review Facebook’s post boosting policies and make sure your account and Marketplace post meet the criteria. Give it some time if your account or post is newly created before trying again.
Update expired payment details
Go to your Facebook ad payment settings and update any expired cards or payment details. Pay any outstanding advertising balances if needed. Confirm your payment method works on a small ad campaign first if needed.
Request higher advertising limits
If you’ve hit your daily or lifetime maximum spend, ask Facebook to review your account and increase your advertising limits by contacting their support team.
Contact Facebook support
For any other persistent issues boosting posts, reach out to Facebook’s support team for help. They can investigate and resolve any account restrictions, technical problems, or other errors preventing you from boosting.
Conclusion
Troubleshooting problems with boosting Facebook Marketplace posts often comes down to ensuring your account and post meet eligibility requirements, fixing any payment issues, and requesting advertising limit increases if needed. Persistent technical problems will require contacting Facebook support to investigate and resolve on their end. With the right troubleshooting steps, you should be able to successfully boost your Marketplace post and get it in front of more interested buyers.