Meta is rolling out ad-free subscription options for Facebook and Instagram in the UK, giving users the choice to pay for a service without personalised advertising.

Over the coming weeks, UK users will see notifications outlining the new model, asking them to pay for an ad-free experience if they do not want their data to be tracked.

People can continue to use both platforms for free with personalised ads, or pay £2.99 a month on the web and £3.99 on iOS and Android for an ad-free experience.

The subscription applies across all accounts linked in Meta’s accounts centre, with each additional account incurring an extra charge of £2 on the web or £3 on mobile.

Consent or pay

The move follows discussions with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) around ‘consent or pay’ models.

According to the ICO, consent or pay models allow users either to consent to their personal data being used for targeted advertising in exchange for free access, or to pay a fee to avoid ads altogether. Similar models are already in use across a range of online services, particularly news publishers.

Meta claims the move will give people in the UK a “clear choice about whether their data is used for personalised advertising, while preserving the free access and value that the ads-supported internet creates for people, businesses and platforms”.

The launch comes against a backdrop of scrutiny over Meta’s data practices. In March, the company agreed to stop targeting ads for direct marketing purposes at British human rights campaigner Tanya O’Carroll following a legal battle.

In 2022, O’Carroll alleged Facebook’s targeted ad system had breached UK data laws by failing to respect her right to demand that Facebook stop collecting and processing her data in order to target her with adverts.

Meta outlines vision for ‘superintelligence’

Users of Facebook and Instagram in the EU have been able to pay to avoid adverts on their feeds since October 2023, initially launching its ad-free subscriptions at a cost of €9.99 a month.

In November 2024, it reduced its prices and said it would provide a way for users not willing to pay to opt-in to see ads that are “less personalised”, in response to regulatory concerns.

In a statement released today (26 September), Meta said: “EU regulators continue to overreach by requiring us to provide a less personalised ads experience that goes beyond what the law requires, creating a worse experience for users and businesses.”

“In contrast, the UK’s more pro-growth and pro-innovation regulatory environment allows for a clearer choice for users, while ensuring our personalised advertising tools can continue to be engines of growth and productivity for companies up and down the country.”

The business claims that in 2024, Meta’s advertising technologies were linked to £65bn in economic activity and over 357,000 jobs in the UK.