In this article
Key takeaways
- Video makes up 80% of health and supplement ads, more than the Gulf average (69%).
- Cash on delivery appears in 29% of the category's ads, nearly double the Gulf average (16%), and a discount or an offer in 54%.
- Oman leads relative to its size: 15% of Oman's ads are in this category, against 8% in Saudi Arabia.
- No promises of cures and no "before and after" for a health condition: write what is in the pack and how to use it, and leave medical claims out.
What falls in health and supplements?
This category gathers the ads that use words such as supplement, vitamin, protein, collagen, slimming, diet, joints, measuring device and massage (in Arabic). It makes up 10% of the newest 160,000 Arabic ads in the library, one of the big Gulf categories next to fashion, hair and electronics (the full Gulf picture).
One ad can fall in two categories: 29% of health ads also fall in hair care (hair vitamins, for example), and 20% in skincare (collagen, for example). Measuring and massage devices sit close to electronics and gadgets.
Where supplement ads run
By count, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are close (29% and 27% of the category's ads), then Oman (21%) ahead of Kuwait (18%). Relative to each market's size, Oman clearly leads: 15% of all Omani ads are health and supplements, against 10% in the UAE and 8% in Saudi Arabia.
In Oman, cash on delivery is mentioned in 45% of the category's ads, and a discount or an offer in 67%: a market that buys supplements on an offer with payment at the door. Details in Trending in Oman. In Saudi Arabia we found 4,347 ads from 995 pages, with cash on delivery in 23% of them.
How they sell: video, offers and gifts
Video in 80% of the ads: the buyer wants to see the pack, how it is used and who talks about it. A discount or an offer in 54%, "limited time" or "hurry" in 32%, a gift in 13% (a second pack or a companion product). Instalments are nearly absent (2%) because the price is within reach of a direct purchase. To compare with the offers of other categories, read Ad offers in numbers.
The copy in this category is longer than average: the median ad is 94 words, against 60 for all ads. Advertisers explain a lot, and that is exactly where the claims to avoid creep in (section five). The button is "Shop now" on 62% of the ads and "WhatsApp message" on 17%.
Prices and stores
Only a small part of the category's ads state a price: 703 ads. In those, the lower quartile goes up to SAR 78, the median is 180 and the upper quartile starts at SAR 299: a direct-purchase product, often sold with a quantity offer (two or three packs).
Selling over WhatsApp without a store comes first (18%), then Shopify (8%) and LightFunnels (6%), the single-product page platform many dropshippers use (the GCC dropshipping market). Salla carries only 3%.
Responsible wording: what not to write in a supplement ad
A supplement is not a medicine, and advertising it like one hurts the buyer and exposes your ad to rejection. Meta's advertising policies restrict health claims and weight-loss content, and can reject the ad or restrict the account; read their current version before you launch. General rules that protect you:
- No "treats", "cures" or "replaces your medicine": do not promise to treat a disease or a health condition, whatever the reviews say.
- No "before and after" for a health condition: and no promises of a number of kilos in a number of days for slimming products.
- Do not address the viewer's flaws: "Struggling with your weight?" makes them feel targeted; talk about the product, not their body.
- No invented endorsements: no "doctors recommend" and no reviews that did not happen.
- Write facts: ingredients, how to use it, pack size, registration with the relevant authority where it exists, and "ask your doctor" where it applies.
In Saudi Arabia, supplements often need registration with the Saudi Food and Drug Authority: check the official requirements before you sell.
| Angle | Copy (ours) |
|---|---|
| Ingredients | "[Product]: [ingredient] at [amount] per capsule, [count] capsules for [period]. Registered with [authority]." |
| Use | "One capsule a day with food. Part of your routine, with balanced meals and movement." |
| Offer | "Two packs for SAR [price] instead of [price], free delivery to [cities]. Offer ends [date]." |
| Trust | "Cash on delivery, and the expiry date is printed on every pack. Ask us anything on WhatsApp." |
More templates in Arabic ad copy.
Practical steps before your next ad
- Search the library with one word ("مكملات", "كولاجين", "فيتامين") and your country filter, sorted by longest running.
- Open the store pages behind the first five ads: the price, the quantity offer, the payment method and what they say about registration.
- Notice what the ads that lasted for weeks avoid: they usually talk about ingredients and use, not about treatment.
- Write your ad with a short video, a clear offer, and cash on delivery if your market is Oman or Saudi Arabia.
