Event match quality tells you how useful your events are to Meta. Each event (Purchase, AddToCart and so on) arrives with some customer information, and the better Meta can match that information to an account, the more reliably it can attribute the sale and learn from it. Events Manager shows a score out of 10 for each event, with a label such as Poor, OK, Good or Great.
Why it matters
An unmatched event is almost invisible to Meta's optimisation. If half your purchases can't be matched, Meta learns from half your buyers, reports fewer conversions and makes weaker predictions in the ad auction. EMQ isn't a lever in the auction itself, but better matching generally means more attributed conversions and a stronger signal.
What improves it
| Parameter | What it is | Hash it? |
|---|---|---|
| em | Email address | Yes, with SHA-256 |
| ph | Phone number, including country code | Yes, with SHA-256 |
| external_id | Your own customer or visitor ID | Recommended |
| fbp | Meta's browser ID, stored in a first-party cookie | No |
| fbc | Click ID, captured when someone arrives from an ad | No |
| client_ip_address, client_user_agent | The visitor's IP address and browser details | No |
First and last name, city, postcode and country help as well, and are hashed like email. Email and phone are strong identifiers because people use them to sign up to Facebook and Instagram. The click ID ties the event directly to an ad click.
How to raise your score
- Send events through the Conversions API as well as the Meta Pixel, so the server can add customer details from the order.
- Include email and phone (hashed) on Purchase and, where you have them, on earlier events, as far as your privacy notice and consent allow.
- Capture fbp and fbc on your site and pass them into server events.
- Normalise before hashing: lowercase and trim emails, and use full international phone numbers without symbols.
- Open each event in Events Manager. Meta lists which parameters are missing and which would help most.
Common mistakes
- Sending email or phone unhashed, or hashing IP address and user agent, which should stay unhashed.
- Hashing values that weren't normalised first, so they never match.
- Watching Purchase only. Poorly matched upper-funnel events weaken optimisation too.
- Chasing the score beyond what consent permits. Better matching never justifies sending data you're not allowed to share.
For a full walkthrough, see our Meta Pixel and Conversions API checklist.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good event match quality score?
Higher is better, and Events Manager labels scores out of 10 as Poor, OK, Good or Great. Aim to move each key event, especially Purchase, into the Good or Great range by sending more customer information through the Conversions API. The thresholds can change, so go by the label Events Manager shows.
How do I improve event match quality on Shopify?
Use Meta's official Shopify integration at the highest data-sharing level your consent setup allows, which adds server events with customer information. Make sure email and phone are collected at checkout and that you aren't running a second, duplicate pixel. Then check the event details in Events Manager for missing parameters.
Does event match quality affect ad performance?
Indirectly. EMQ measures how many events Meta can link to people, and better matching means more conversions attributed and more signal for optimisation, which can improve delivery. It won't fix weak creative or an unprofitable offer.
