Targeting types at a glance
Note on catalog (shopping) ads: Shopping campaigns don't use keyword or interest targeting the same way. Pinterest reads your product feed titles and matches products to searches automatically. The targeting levers for catalog campaigns are product groups, bid amounts, and audience exclusions — not keyword lists. See the catalog ads guide for shopping campaign targeting →
Keyword Targeting
Use itTarget users who search for specific terms or have saved pins with those keywords. Works like search ads — intent-based, not demographic-based.
Best for: Mid-funnel. Users actively searching "walnut dining table" or "modern floor lamp" have clear purchase intent.
For home decor
- Broad match: furniture, rugs, lighting, home decor
- Category: dining table, sofa, area rug, pendant light
- Style: mid-century modern furniture, boho rug, industrial lighting
- Material: solid wood furniture, wool rug, brass pendant light
- Room: living room furniture, bedroom lighting, entryway rug
Tip
Use phrase match as default. Broad match on Pinterest is very broad — can waste budget on irrelevant impressions. Negative keywords matter: add "DIY", "free", "cheap" if you sell premium product.
Interest Targeting
Use carefullyPinterest assigns interest categories based on what users pin and engage with. You select categories relevant to your brand.
Best for: Top-funnel awareness. Reach people interested in interior design, home decor, and your product category — but they may not be in buying mode.
For home decor
- Home Decor (broad — very large audience)
- Furniture → Bedroom Furniture / Living Room Furniture
- Interior Design → Modern Interior Design / Minimalist Interiors
- Rugs and Carpets
- Lighting Design
- Bathroom Design
Tip
Interest targeting alone rarely drives ROAS > 3× for home decor. Combine with keyword or use as the audience expansion layer around your retargeting campaigns.
Actalike Audiences
Strong for scaleSimilar to Facebook Lookalikes. Pinterest finds users who behave like your existing customers (from your customer list or tag-based audiences).
Best for: Scaling efficiently beyond your keyword reach. Best when based on purchasers or high-value customers — not just site visitors.
For home decor
- Source: Customer purchase list (upload email list of past buyers)
- Source: Checkout tag events (Pinterest tag → checkout events)
- Source: Add-to-cart events (if not enough purchases)
- Audience size: 1%–5% similarity (smaller = more similar)
Tip
Minimum 100 people in source audience. 500+ is better. Actalike from purchasers outperforms actalike from all visitors by 2×–3× in ROAS. Update customer lists monthly.
Retargeting Audiences
Highest ROASRe-engage users who have already interacted with your brand — visited your site, viewed a product, added to cart, or engaged with your pins.
Best for: Bottom-funnel conversion. These users already know you — close the sale.
For home decor
- Website visitors: all visitors 30/60/90 days
- Product page viewers: viewed specific product categories
- Add-to-cart: highest intent (next to checkout abandonment)
- Engaged pins: saved or interacted with your pins
- Customer list: exclude past purchasers from prospecting
Tip
Exclude purchasers from retargeting campaigns to avoid wasting budget. If retargeting pool is < 500 people, the audience is too small to run effectively — build traffic first.
Auto-Targeting (Expanded)
Use cautiouslyPinterest's algorithm automatically expands targeting beyond your specified parameters to find additional relevant users.
Best for: New accounts with no data. Lets Pinterest learn faster. Useful when your manual targeting is too narrow and you're underspending.
For home decor
- Enabled by default on most campaign types
- Can be toggled off at ad group level
- Shopping campaigns have separate "Audience" setting
Tip
Turn off auto-targeting when you have enough data (3+ months, 50+ conversions). It often expands to audiences that click but don't buy — ROAS looks bad versus actual intent-based targeting.
Targeting Layering Strategy
The most common mistake: running all targeting types in one ad group. You can't optimize what you can't isolate.
Each layer lives in its own ad group. This lets you see ROAS by layer and allocate budget to what converts.
Home Decor Keyword Starter List
These keyword categories consistently work for home decor Pinterest advertisers. Use phrase match:
Furniture
- dining room furniture
- living room sofa
- solid wood furniture
- mid century modern furniture
- coffee table ideas
- sectional couch
Rugs
- area rug living room
- boho rug bedroom
- wool rug
- 8x10 rug
- washable rug
- vintage rug
Lighting
- pendant light kitchen
- floor lamp living room
- chandelier dining room
- brass light fixture
- table lamp bedroom
- modern ceiling light
Tile / Bath
- bathroom tile ideas
- subway tile
- floor tile bathroom
- shower tile ideas
- kitchen backsplash tile
- hexagon tile
Frequently Asked Questions
What targeting method works best for home decor brands on Pinterest?
Retargeting past visitors and product viewers delivers the highest ROAS — often 10×–20×. For prospecting, keyword targeting outperforms interest targeting because it captures active purchase intent. Actalike audiences built from your past purchaser list work well for scaling once you have 500+ buyer records to upload as a source audience.
Should I use interest targeting or keyword targeting for Pinterest shopping campaigns?
For catalog shopping campaigns, neither applies directly — Pinterest matches your products to searches automatically using your feed titles. For standard pin campaigns, keyword targeting reaches users with active purchase intent while interest targeting reaches a larger audience with general category affinity. Use interest targeting for awareness, keyword targeting for mid-funnel conversion.
When should I add actalike audiences to my Pinterest campaigns?
Add actalike audiences when you have at least 100 past purchasers to upload as a source audience (500+ is better). Build actalike from your purchaser list, not all site visitors — purchaser-sourced actalike audiences outperform visitor-sourced by 2×–3× in ROAS. Run actalike in a separate ad group from keyword campaigns so you can compare ROAS independently.
47-point audit — account setup, catalog connection, tag verification, creative assets, and targeting. Catch setup errors before they cost you budget.