Pinterest rejects ads that break its advertising guidelines, which cover the image, description, landing page and targeting. Common causes are low-quality images, clickbait, landing pages with pop-ups or forced sign-ups, and prohibited products.
Frequent reasons
- Image quality: blurry images, text too small to read, poor crops or too much text overlay.
- Fake interface elements: play or download buttons, notification icons or anything that mimics Pinterest features.
- Landing pages: pop-up ads, automatic downloads, forced sign-ups the ad did not mention, or a page that does not match the ad.
- Clickbait: fear, alarmist language or deliberately withheld information.
- Prohibited or restricted content: such as adult content, drugs or counterfeit goods, plus targeting under-18s or sensitive categories.
Review and appeal
Review can take up to 24 hours. If an ad is disapproved, Pinterest notifies you in Ads Manager and by email with the reason. Editing targeting or the description resubmits the ad, which can take another 24 hours. To appeal, email Pinterest with the reason and your ad URLs. Pinterest is updating its guidelines from 12 November 2026, so check the new version.
In practice
App creative is often rejected for fake download or play buttons, so show the product instead. Pinterest also removed app install ads in 2021, so point ads at web journeys or deep links.
See where Pinterest fits an app media mix on our Pinterest ads page.
Sources checked 4 October 2026
Related Pinterest questions
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