Hook rate formula and ad hook examples for Facebook and Instagram

The hook rate formula is simple: 3-second video plays divided by impressions. It tells you how many people who saw your video ad stopped long enough to watch the opening. Since most people scroll past most ads, the first three seconds decide whether the rest of the ad gets a chance.

Below is how to track it, how it fits with the other video numbers, and 12 ad hook examples you can adapt. They’re patterns, not magic lines. The best hook for your business comes from your customers’ own words.

The formulas

Metric	Formula	What it tells you
Hook rate	3-second video plays / impressions	Did the opening make people stop?
Hold rate	ThruPlays (or 15-second plays) / 3-second video plays	Of those who stopped, how many kept watching?
Click-through rate	Link clicks / impressions	Did the ad make people want to act?

This is an illustration, not a client story. An ad gets 20,000 impressions. 5,000 people watch at least three seconds, so the hook rate is 5,000 / 20,000, a quarter. Of those 5,000, 1,000 watch through, so the hold rate is 1,000 / 5,000, a fifth.

Hook rate and hold rate aren’t usually standard columns. Most advertisers build them as custom metrics in Ads Manager from the video plays and impressions columns. Meta renames columns now and then, so check what yours are called before building the formula.

How to read them together

1. ImpressionThe ad appears in the feed
2. HookThey stop for three seconds
3. HoldThey keep watching
4. ClickThey want to know more

• Low hook rate: the opening isn’t stopping people. Change the first shot, the first line or the first words on screen.
• Good hook rate, low hold rate: the opening works but the middle loses them. Get to the point faster.
• Good hook and hold, low click-through: people watch but don’t act. The offer or the call to action is weak.
• All three good, few sales: the ad works. Look past the click. See Facebook ads not converting.

12 ad hook examples

Each pattern below has a generic example. Swap in your own customer, problem and product. These are templates I’d start from, not proof that any line works for you.

Problem hooks

1. Name the problem out loud. “If your back hurts after every shift, watch this.”
2. The mistake. “Most people clean their oven the wrong way. Here’s the fix.”
3. The cost of waiting. “Every month you put off fixing this leak, it gets more expensive.”

Result hooks

4. Show the after first. Open on the finished result, then rewind to how you got there.
5. The before and after. Split screen, no words for the first second.
6. The specific outcome. “This is what a garage looks like after a four-hour clean-out.”

Curiosity hooks

7. The unexpected claim. “I stopped running sales, and more people bought.”
8. The question they’ve asked. “Why does my coffee taste bitter at home?”
9. The list. “Three things I’d check before buying any mattress.”

People hooks

10. The customer type. “For anyone who runs a small business and hates bookkeeping.”
11. The founder speaking. A real person looking into the camera: “I started this because…”
12. The objection, answered. “You probably think this is too expensive. Here’s why it isn’t.”

Two cautions. Don’t make claims you can’t back up, like income promises or health results; Meta’s ad policies restrict them and they erode trust anyway. And don’t write a hook that the rest of the ad doesn’t deliver. A bait opening gets a high hook rate and a terrible hold rate.

Where good hooks come from

The strongest hooks usually come from what customers have actually said. Read reviews, emails and messages, and look for:

• The words they used to describe the problem.
• What almost stopped them from buying.
• What they said after it worked.

Turning those into openings is quicker than inventing them. The customer research questions post has a list of questions to ask.

Write your own hooks in ten minutes

Here’s the exercise I’d give anyone making their first round of video ads:

1. Pick one customer. A real one, if you can. Write down who they are in one line.
2. Write their problem in their words. Not your marketing words. What would they say to a friend?
3. Write three openings for each pattern above. Problem, result, curiosity, people. That’s twelve lines.
4. Read them out loud. Cross out anything that sounds like an ad. Keep anything that sounds like a person talking.
5. Pick the three most different. Not the three you like most. The three that are least alike.

Those three are your first hook test. Film them as the opening of the same video, so the only difference is the first few seconds.

How to test hooks

Hooks are a good second-level test. Once you have a concept that works, keep the rest of the video the same and change only the first three seconds. Run three or four versions in one ad set and compare hook rate, hold rate and cost per result. The creative testing strategy explains the order I test in and how to set a stop rule.

If a winning ad starts to tire, a new hook on the same concept can bring it back for a while. See creative fatigue.

Common mistakes

• Chasing hook rate alone. A shocking opening that has nothing to do with the offer stops people and then loses them.
• Slow starts. Logos, intros and “Hi, I’m…” in the first seconds waste the most valuable part of the ad.
• Sound-only hooks. Many people watch without sound. Put the hook on screen in text as well.
• Comparing across placements. Reels, Stories and feed behave differently. Compare like with like.
• Copying another brand’s hook word for word. Borrow the pattern, not the line.

Where this fits

If your videos get views but not customers, check the offer and the page behind the hook as well. A Growth Diagnostic looks at both. Or book a call to talk it through.

Questions people ask

What is the hook rate formula?

Hook rate is 3-second video plays divided by impressions. If an ad had 10,000 impressions and 2,500 people watched at least three seconds, its hook rate is 2,500 / 10,000, or a quarter of viewers.

What is a good hook rate for Facebook ads?

Compare against your own ads rather than a universal number. Hook rate depends on placement, format and audience. If a new hook beats your current best on the same offer, it's good for you.

What is the difference between hook rate and hold rate?

Hook rate measures how many people stop and watch the opening. Hold rate measures how many of them keep watching. A high hook rate with a low hold rate means the opening works but the middle loses people.

Is hook rate a built-in metric in Ads Manager?

Usually not by that name. Most advertisers create it as a custom metric from the video plays and impressions columns. Column names change from time to time, so check what your account shows.