Pinterest Performance+: A Smarter Way to Run Ads

Pinterest Performance+ is Pinterest’s newest ad feature designed to make campaign setup easier and help you get better results without all the manual work. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed trying to build Pinterest ads from scratch, this update might be what you’ve been waiting for.

Instead of spending hours figuring out targeting, tweaking settings, and guessing what works, Performance+ handles most of it for you. It uses AI and automation to take over the heavy lifting, especially for lower-funnel goals like conversions and catalog sales.

Let’s break it down so you can see how it works and decide if it’s worth testing for your business.

What Makes Pinterest Performance+ Different?

The biggest difference is how hands-off the setup feels. Once you choose your campaign goal, consideration, conversion, or catalog sales, Performance+ takes over. You don’t need to choose interests or keywords. You don’t even need to split your product catalog into separate groups.

Pinterest automatically builds a structure around your goal, often creating both a broad (top-of-funnel) and retargeting ad group for you. The system then analyzes your Pins, figures out what they’re about, and shows them to people most likely to take action.

It also simplifies the ad builder itself. With Performance+ turned on, the steps to build your campaign are cut in half compared to traditional Pinterest Ads.

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And it’s not just setup, it manages your budget pacing and optimizes bids, so you don’t have to guess if you’re over- or under-spending.

Related article: Pinterest Full Funnel Marketing Made Simple

What About Creatives?

Performance+ gives you a few creative options that are actually pretty helpful, especially if you’re running e-commerce or catalog-style ads. 

There’s a feature that lets Pinterest automatically generate backgrounds for your product photos, which is useful if most of your shots are on plain white backgrounds.

There’s also something called creative optimization. Pinterest takes your product and turns it into a more dynamic collection-style ad. So instead of showing one product image, it can show a full range of options or variations in one Pin. That’s great if you have multiple colors, styles, or SKUs.

If you don’t want Pinterest to apply these tools automatically, you can toggle them off, but it’s worth testing with them on first. A lot of advertisers are seeing stronger engagement when they let Pinterest optimize the visuals.

Budget and Learning Phase

You can set either a daily or lifetime budget, and Pinterest will adjust how it’s spent to maximize results. There’s no fixed spend per day, just averages based on what’s performing.

Here are a few things to know:

• Recommended starting budget: $50/day per campaign
• Minimum creative count: At least 10 Pins per ad group
• Learning mode: Lasts 2 – 4 weeks; avoid changes during this time
• Budget changes: No more than 20 – 30% at a time after learning mode ends

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Pinterest now shows when your campaign is in learning mode. This is when the system is figuring out who to serve your ad to and how. Making changes too early can reset that progress.

Do You Still Need to Choose a Target Audience?

Not really. That’s part of the appeal. Performance+ campaigns don’t use manual targeting like keywords or interests. 

Instead, Pinterest relies on its own visual search technology to understand your Pins and match them with the right users. You can still exclude certain regions or age groups if needed, but the more open you leave it, the more room the system has to learn and adjust.

Can You Still Use Existing Pins?

Yes, and you should. You can either upload brand-new creatives or select from Pins you’ve already published. Just make sure the Pins you use are high-quality and clear about what you’re offering. 

Pinterest recommends using at least 10 Pins per ad group to give the system enough variety to work with.

If you only have a few Pins, it limits Pinterest’s ability to test and figure out which ones perform best. More options = more chances to improve results.

What Other Brands Are Seeing with Pinterest Performance+

Brands like Pandora, Adidas, Walgreens, and Frontgate have tested Performance+ and seen encouraging results.

From higher ROAS to better click-through rates, their case studies highlight how the tools can work when paired with the right creative and budget.

While every brand is different, it’s a good sign that larger advertisers are starting to shift toward Performance+ as part of their strategy. It shows that Pinterest is serious about helping brands of all sizes improve ad performance using automation.

Should You Still Use the Old Campaign Format?

You can. In fact, some advertisers are running traditional Pinterest ads and Performance+ campaigns at the same time. Just make sure you’re not using the exact same creatives or overlapping product groups.

Many are slowly shifting their budget over as they see what works. There’s no need to fully replace your old campaigns unless Performance+ clearly outperforms them.

Related article: How to Use Pinterest Ads

FAQs About Pinterest Performance+

Final Thoughts

Pinterest Performance+ takes a lot of the guesswork out of running ads. If you’ve been hesitant to run campaigns because of all the targeting settings and setup steps, this update is worth testing.

It’s not magic, you still need strong creatives, clear goals, and a budget that gives the system enough data to learn. But if you’ve got those pieces in place, Performance+ can help speed up the process and get better results.

The key is to give it time, trust the system to do its job, and focus on creating Pins that stop the scroll.

If you want help setting up your first campaign or managing Performance+ ads the right way, get in touch with us at Pin Nerds Media. We work with brands every day to build smarter Pinterest strategies that actually convert.

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