The Captain’s Log

No fluff, ever. Every entry here helps you make a sharper ad decision this week — or it walks the plank.

PirateAds · every shelf brandFreeForeplay Workflow · Spyder$175/moForeplay Agency · Spyder$459/mo
FOREPLAY ALTERNATIVE
Foreplay is the finest swipe file on the seven seas. If what you want is a dated record of every ad a rival ever ran, read this before you pay for Spyder.
September 29, 2026 · 8 min read

The Foreplay Alternative for Plundering Competitor Ads

Looking for a Foreplay alternative? Foreplay's $59–$459 plans compared with PirateAds, the free competitor ad tracker that keeps…

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Creative & copyshownStart dateshownImpressionssort order onlySpend & ROASnever
FIELD GUIDE
Finding a rival’s ads takes two minutes. Knowing which ones fill their chest is the real skill. Here is the routine the crew runs every week.
September 29, 2026 · 9 min read

How to See Your Competitors' Facebook Ads (and Spot the Ones Worth Plundering)

See any competitor's Facebook and Instagram ads in the Meta Ad Library, then read which ones make them money: run duration,…

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HEAD TO HEAD
Motion is built for big spenders with a creative strategist in the room. If you're the captain, the cook and the media buyer, here's what you'd give up, and what you'd get.
August 9, 2026 · 8 min read

PirateAds vs. Motion: A Motion Alternative for Lean DTC Crews

Motion creative analytics starts at $750/mo and scales with ad spend. PirateAds starts free. An honest, dated Motion alternative…

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One practical competitor-research idea per week — what's public, what it means, what to do with it. No fluff, ever.