My lead form says 'connected' but nothing's arriving — is it broken?

Probably. 'Connected' describes that the link was set up, not that leads are flowing today. A sync can pass its initial test, run for months, then stop silently while the badge stays green. Don't trust the label — submit a live test lead and trace it hop by hop through Meta, the connector, and your CRM until you find where it stops.

Why does Facebook say connected if no leads are coming through?

Because 'connected' is a status about the link existing, not about leads moving through it right now. Integrations fail silently through expired tokens or revoked permissions, a form or page change that leaves the automation pointed at the wrong form, a turned-off or task-limited Zap/webhook, a CRM-side rejection for a mapping error, or a lapsed plan on the automation tool. In each case the badge can stay green while leads stop.

How do I test if my Facebook lead form is delivering to my CRM?

Prove the flow instead of auditing settings. Submit a real test lead through your live ad's form and watch your CRM for it to appear, noting how long it takes. If it arrives, the pipe works and you may have a leakage or lag issue instead. If it doesn't, trace the hops: check Meta's Leads Center, the connector's run history, tokens and permissions, the form mapping, and the CRM's inbound log — the first hop where the test lead disappears is your break.

Can I recover Facebook leads lost while my CRM connection was broken?

Often, partly. Facebook lead-form leads can be downloaded from Meta's Leads Center or Forms Library for a limited retention window, so leads captured while the sync was down may still be recoverable — but only for a while, which is why testing now matters. Recover what you can from Meta, then fix the pipe so it can't break silently again.

Your Lead Form Says "Connected" but Nothing's Arriving — Here's How to Tell If It Broke

"Connected" only describes the setup — it does not promise leads are still flowing today. A lead sync can pass its initial test, run fine for months, and then silently stop while the dashboard still shows a green "connected" badge. When that happens, real people are submitting your form, Meta is capturing them, and every one is sitting unworked in a place you're not looking. The short version: don't trust the "connected" label — send a live test lead, then trace it hop by hop until you find where it stops.

This is the the pipe is broken question — zero (or near-zero) leads arriving. If some are getting through but you suspect you're losing a slice or getting them late, that's a leakage-and-lag problem, covered in (#).

Why does it say "connected" if nothing's coming through?

Because "connected" is a status about the link existing, not about leads moving through it right now. Integrations fail silently for reasons that never flip the badge to red:

An expired token or permission. The most common cause: a token behind the connection expires or a permission is revoked, and the sync stops — often with no visible error.
A page or form change. You duplicated the ad, launched a new form, or changed a field, and the automation is still pointed at the old one.
A silent third-party failure. A Zap/webhook turned off, hit its task limit, errored on one bad record and paused, or the connector had an outage.
A CRM-side rejection. The lead reaches the CRM but is rejected for a mapping or required-field error, so it never appears.
A billing or plan lapse on the automation tool that quietly disables the connection.

In every case the "connected" badge can stay green while the leads stop. That's what makes it dangerous.

Are my hot leads really "rotting"?

Yes — and that's the part that costs money. The people filling your form are your warmest prospects: they raised their hand right now. If they land in a queue nobody checks, they cool off, forget they inquired, or buy from the competitor who called back. A broken sync doesn't just lose data — it lets your best, most expensive-to-generate leads go stale while you keep paying to create more. Meta still has them (lead-form leads are retrievable there for a limited window), but only if you go looking before that window closes.

How do I test whether it's actually delivering? (2 minutes)

Don't audit settings first — prove the flow end to end:

Submit a real test lead through your live ad's form (use the form preview or the actual ad).
Watch your CRM for it to appear, and note how long it takes.
If it arrives: the pipe works — you likely have a leakage/lag problem (#), not a break.
If it doesn't: you've confirmed a break. Now trace the hops.

Where do I look when the test lead doesn't arrive?

Follow the lead's path and find the first place it stops:

Meta's Forms Library / Leads Center — is your test lead there? If yes, Meta captured it and the break is downstream. If no, the problem is the form/ad itself.
The connector (native CRM integration, Zapier/Make, or webhook) — check its run history for errors, "turned off," or task-limit warnings.
Tokens and permissions — re-authorize the connection; expired access is the single most common silent killer.
Form mapping — confirm the automation points at the current live form, not a duplicate or an old version.
The CRM's inbound log — did a lead arrive and get rejected for a required field? Fix the mapping and re-test.

The first hop where your test lead disappears is your break. Fix it, submit a second test to confirm, and then recover any leads stranded in Meta's leads download for the affected dates.

How do I make sure it never silently breaks again?

A one-time fix isn't enough — silent failures come back:

Re-test on a schedule (a monthly live test lead beats discovering a month of silence).
Alert on zero-arrivals — get notified when new leads stop landing, instead of noticing when a customer complains.
Prefer a direct, monitored sync over a long chain of automations — fewer hops, fewer silent points of failure.
Set a reminder to re-authorize before tokens expire.
Assign an owner — "connected" tools with no human watching them are exactly how weeks of leads rot unnoticed.

Can I get back the leads I already lost?

Often, partly. Facebook lead-form leads can be downloaded from Meta's Leads Center / Forms Library for a limited retention window, so leads captured while your sync was down may still be recoverable — but only for a while, which is why testing now matters. Anything past the window, or captured somewhere Meta doesn't retain, is gone. Recover what you can, then fix the pipe so there's no next time.