[Bug] Sponsored Ads Algorithm Fails to Target Users, Resulting in Mathematically Broken CTR (0.01%)

Bug Reports Creator Hub (create.roblox.com) Bugs
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Description of the Bug:
The targeting algorithm for UGC Sponsored Ads on the Creator Hub is fundamentally broken. When sponsoring items, the system generates hundreds of thousands of impressions, but the CTR and conversion rates suggest these ads are being shown to completely irrelevant audiences, bots, or are suffering from ghost impressions that users never actually see. The algorithm completely fails to optimize delivery based on user intent or relevance.

Reproduction Steps:

  1. Go to the Creator Hub and create a Sponsored Ad for any UGC item (tested across 9 different items).
  2. Set a daily budget and run the campaign.
  3. Observe the post-campaign analytics regarding Impressions vs. Clicks and Attributed Purchases.

Actual Behavior:
Across a controlled test of 9 different items with a combined budget of nearly 2,000 Robux:

  • The system generated over 1.7 million combined impressions.
  • The CTR consistently hard-stuck between 0.01% and 0.09%.
  • Total attributed purchases across all 9 campaigns were less than 5.
  • One specific campaign generated over 511,000 impressions with exactly 0 conversions.

This mathematical impossibility indicates a systemic bug in how and where impressions are delivered. The system is operating as a complete Robux sink, failing its primary function of targeted advertising.

Long-Standing Systemic Issue (Over 1 Year):
This is not a temporary or recent glitch. This algorithmic and placement flaw has been actively draining creator resources for well over a year. Similar structural complaints regarding non-existent UGC ad visibility and broken ROI were heavily documented as early as November 2024 (Reference: Make UGC item sponsors placement actually visible). The fact that the system still operates as a complete Robux sink with near-zero conversion in 2026 proves that this is a chronic, unresolved regression in the Creator Hub advertising platform that has been neglected for over 18 months.

Expected behavior
The ad algorithm should target demographics likely to engage with the item, yielding an industry-standard CTR (at least 0.5% to 1%) and a realistic Cost Per Purchase (CPP). For example, real-world e-commerce micro-budgets often yield 3x-10x sales multipliers because of functional targeting.

A private message is associated with this bug report

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Bumping this thread as there has been no official acknowledgment or response from the engineering team yet.

The issue remains critical and actively drains creator resources with zero conversion. To provide an update: after further monitoring, the campaign metrics are still completely stagnant, hard-stuck at a microscopic 0.01% - 0.09% CTR. Millions of impressions are being distributed with absolutely no user intent or functional targeting, proving that this is an ongoing systemic bug in the ad delivery system.

I would appreciate any official update or confirmation that this regression is being looked into.

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I wanted to add another detail to help narrow this down: has anyone else noticed if this issue is more prominent on specific platforms?

Since mobile and desktop have entirely different UI layouts for the Creator Hub and the in-game ad placements, I am wondering if the algorithm is miscalculating impressions by displaying ads on viewport sizes where the ad isn’t actually rendered or visible to the player (which would explain the extremely high impression count but nearly zero CTR).

If anyone has run campaigns targeted specifically to one platform (Console/Mobile/PC) and saw different results, please share them here.

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To further contribute to this report while awaiting an official review: has anyone analyzed if this broken delivery scales based on active player hours or specific regional traffic?

I am starting to wonder if the algorithm is dumping ad budgets and inflating impressions during low-activity windows or targeting regions where purchasing power (or Robux availability) is practically non-existent. If the system treats all impressions equally without filtering for active consumers, it completely breaks the efficiency of the campaign.

If anyone has data comparing ads run strictly during weekends versus weekdays, please drop your insights below.

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