Brand ads
Starbucks' Facebook and Instagram ads this autumn run on three ideas: fall flavours like pumpkin and pecan, protein added to cold brew and cold foam, and gift cards you can send in a tap. Most are vertical videos with small lowercase captions, and many look more like posts than commercials.
The brand still sells a mood more than a drink. Libraries, candles, pumpkins and slow sips set the scene. The new protein ads borrow gym language ("your coffee works harder now") to reach a different crowd.
Every ad below is live in the public Meta Ad Library and belongs to the brand that runs it. We show a still frame, the copy, and our read on why it works. Dates are when each ad started running.
new Aerocano: espresso, ice, and air-whipped into something dreamy, like Belmont Cameli
CTA: Order nowHook: A man in a leather armchair in a home library sips an iced drink, with the caption "it's nice actually".
The understated caption reads like a friend's honest review instead of a brand boast. The calm, bookish setting makes the new Aerocano feel like a slow-afternoon treat.
Falling for pumpkin
no one said it was easy
CTA: See menuHook: A behind-the-scenes shot of a film set with the caption "gotta smash a few pumpkins to get the…".
The unfinished sentence makes you watch to see the shot. Showing how the ad was made gives people a peek behind the curtain, which feels more personal than a polished spot.
Coffee, but it lifts now
Try +17g protein for a coffee that’s built different. Sip on the Vanilla Protein Cream Cold Brew.
CTA: See menuHook: Two battery icons over a cold brew: "Your coffee" at half charge, "Your coffee with 17g protein" fully charged.
The battery graphic explains the product at a glance, with no reading required. The headline "Coffee, but it lifts now" speaks to gym-goers in their own slang and gives a familiar drink a new reason to order it.
two more fall flavors to crave
CTA: See menuHook: A straw stirs a glass of iced latte over caramel-coloured ice, with "on a fall flavor train" in small text.
The close-up of ice and syrup is a texture shot that makes you thirsty. The caption names two drinks, iced pecan crunch latte and iced banana bread latte, so it sells the whole lineup.
It’s officially spooky story season
Make every fall read even more fall with a cozy cup of Starbucks® Smoked Butterscotch.
CTA: Shop nowHook: A woman reads by candlelight holding a drink topped with caramel cold foam.
It sells a feeling, cosy autumn reading, with the drink as part of it. "It's officially spooky story season" names a moment people look forward to, which gives the product a reason to exist right now.
Give the gift of fall flavor
An afternoon meeting that’s actually better than an email? It’s possible. Gift Starbucks Cards to the whole team and watch the magic happen.
CTA: Shop nowHook: A table full of Starbucks cups with signs reading "Let's pumpkin" and a banner, "TREAT THE WHOLE TEAM".
It sells gift cards to the person who buys for the office, a different customer from the one buying their own latte. The copy makes the case with a light joke about an afternoon meeting that is better than an email.
Starbucks® Fall Flavors
Fall’s favorite flavor is back. Craft your perfect fall cup with Starbucks® Pumpkin Spice Latte Inspired Flavor Creamers today.
CTA: Learn moreHook: A hand opens a stainless steel fridge door under "IT'S OFFICIALLY PUMPKIN SPICE SEASON".
Fans wait for pumpkin spice season, so the announcement alone is the hook. Setting it at the home fridge points to the creamers you can buy in a store, not only the café drink.
Starbucks Sweet Cream
Easy to fall in love with. Your new favorite creamer. Simple, smooth Starbucks Sweet Cream, now in your home.
CTA: Shop nowHook: A carton of Sweet Cream being poured into iced coffee under the words "Simple ingredients".
It moves a café favourite into the kitchen: the copy says "now in your home", and the pour shot shows exactly how to use it. "Simple ingredients" answers a common worry about bottled creamers.
Sip on a classic
Your 3pm fog met its match. Nothing a Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew can’t fix.
CTA: Order nowHook: A hand holds a layered Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew under the headline naming it.
The copy names a moment, "Your 3pm fog met its match", which gives people a specific time to think of the drink. The product, the name and the Order now button are all on one screen.
Give a Starbucks Gift Card
Picked just for them. Send a Starbucks Gift Card to that friend who’s been waiting all year for fall.
CTA: Shop nowHook: A hand holds a pumpkin-print gift card over a pile of pumpkins, with "PICKED JUST FOR THEM".
The card design matches the season, so it feels like a thoughtful gift and less like a voucher. The copy names a specific friend, the one "waiting all year for fall", which makes the gift easy to picture.
Savor the season
Catch up over rich pecan flavor and smooth espresso. Try the Pecan Cortado while it's here.
CTA: Order nowHook: A foamy Pecan Cortado on a burnt-orange background, with "Try it for a limited time".
One drink shot straight on keeps the ad simple. "Limited time" adds urgency, and the warm orange matches the pecan flavour.
Skip the blender
Helping you reach your macros, plus a coffee boost. Vanilla Protein Cream Cold Brew works as hard as you do.
CTA: Order nowHook: A top-down look into an empty blender with "PUT YOUR BLENDER AWAY" curved around the rim.
It calls out people who make protein shakes at home and tells them they can stop. The headline "Skip the blender" sells convenience, often the real reason people buy a ready-made drink.
A switch that adds up
things i'm owed: my regular order, doing more for me. +15g protein per Grande, no drama.
CTA: See menuHook: Three iced drinks under the serif line "A little switch that does a lot more", with a "15g protein" tick.
It asks for a small change to your usual order, which is an easy yes. The copy "things i'm owed: my regular order, doing more for me" is written in the customer's own voice.
Pumpkin, but she lifts now
Your fall order, exactly how you like it. Add +15g of protein per Grande, because fall deserves the most.
CTA: See menuHook: A pumpkin cold brew with "pumpkin protein cold foam" and "15g of protein" handwritten on the cup.
It puts both campaigns, pumpkin and protein, into one drink. The handwritten labels look like a barista's note, and "Pumpkin, but she lifts now" is a joke the gym crowd will get.
Not your usual shake
Sweet vanilla, handcrafted cold brew, creamy cold foam, 17g of protein per Grande. Hitting your goals never tasted this good.
CTA: See menuHook: A tall cold brew with "CRAFTED WITH MORE PROTEIN" and arrows to "slow steeped cold brew" and "creamy cold foam".
The arrows break the drink into parts, so you know what you're getting. "Not your usual shake" sets coffee against protein shakes, and that comparison pulls in people who never thought of cold brew that way.
Mostly short vertical videos and clean product photos of seasonal drinks, new menu items, at-home creamers and gift cards. The captions are short and often lowercase, so they blend in with organic posts.
It builds a scene around the season and then puts the drink in it. Pumpkin patches, a fridge door opening on "it's officially pumpkin spice season" and a cosy library all signal autumn before the product shows up.
Tie each ad to a moment in the year your customers feel, keep captions short and casual, and label what's special about the drink right on the photo. A simple gift-card ad is also easy to run around holidays.
Yes. They come from Starbucks' page in the public Meta Ad Library, and each card links to the original listing.
Ads are from the public Meta Ad Library and belong to their respective brands. They are shown here for study and commentary. We do not know any advertiser’s spend or results, so we never quote them.