What’s the difference between Signals Gateway and Meta CAPI Gateway?
Updated Apr 29, 2025
Meta Conversions API Gateway and Signals Gateway have a lot of similarities, so it’s no wonder that users may find it unintuitive which one to choose. Let’s identify their main differences.
What is Meta Conversions API Gateway?
Meta Conversions API Gateway (CAPIG) is Meta’s “plug-and-play” bridge between your website and Facebook Ads. You connect a Pixel, and the Gateway starts sending the same purchase, lead, or add-to-cart events to Meta’s servers. It requires no extra tagging or code. Pricing is low (starting from $10 per Pixel/month) and setup takes under a minute on Stape.
What is Signals Gateway?
Signals Gateway is a newer, bigger hub for first-party data. It pulls events from Pixel, SDKs, offline files, or Stape CRM apps, then pushes them to Meta, Google BigQuery, or (with some coding) to endpoints of your choosing, such as TikTok, Snapchat, or even your own API. The idea behind Signals Gateway is: one place to collect, clean, and route data. Plans start at about $17 for one million events, with a free tier for smaller sites.
How Meta CAPIG and Signals Gateway differ
| Key difference | Meta CAPIG | Signals Gateway |
| Where data can go | Only to Meta Dataset. | To Meta, BigQuery, and (with extra coding) custom endpoints, such as TikTok, Snapchat, your own DB, etc. |
| Feature overlap | You cannot run a Signals Gateway pipeline inside Meta CAPIG; you're limited to Meta-only connections. | You can create a Meta CAPIG-like pipeline in Signals Gateway, since Signals Gateway supports connecting to Meta and other destinations. |
| Attention of ad blockers | Widely used, so more often listed in popular ad-block filters. | Still new and rare. Fewer blocklists target its domains and script names, for now. |
| Cost | Generally cheaper. Starts at $10 per Pixel or $100 for 100 Pixels. | More expensive. Starts at $17 per 1 million events; total cost is higher for the same traffic volume. |
What Meta CAPIG and Signals Gateway have in common
Basically, everything else! Meta CAPIG and Signals Gateway operate very similarly outside of the four differences listed above. Some of the biggest similarities are:
- Server-side by default - both move conversion data from the browser to a cloud server first, cutting signal loss.
- Better attribution - because events come from the server, ad platforms see more conversions and optimize faster.
- Custom domains - each tool lets you use your own sub-domain to improve match rates and bypass some tracking blocks.
Bottom line
- Pick Meta CAPIG if you only need Facebook data, want the cheapest option, and value a two-click setup.
- Choose Signals Gateway if you need one hub to feed Meta and other platforms, and don’t mind a slightly higher bill and setup complexity.