How to delete your Facebook account permanently

Before you delete: a quick checklist

1. Download your information: photos, posts, messages and friends list.
2. Check apps and websites where you use Log in with Facebook. Switch them to an email login first, or you could lose access.
3. Hand over admin rights for Pages and groups you run.
4. Remove any payment methods in Accounts Center › Meta Pay.
5. Tell close contacts how to reach you, since Messenger will stop working.
6. Cancel any Meta Verified or Facebook subscriptions through the store you used to pay.

Delete your Facebook account on iPhone or Android

1. Open the Facebook app and tap the menu (your profile picture on iPhone, three lines on Android).
2. Tap the gear icon for Settings & privacy › Settings.
3. Tap Accounts Center at the top.
4. Tap Personal details › Account ownership and control › Deactivation or deletion.
5. Choose the Facebook profile, select Delete account and tap Continue.
6. Pick a reason or skip, then enter your password and tap Continue to finish.

Delete Facebook from a computer

Go to facebook.com, click your profile picture › Settings & privacy › Settings › Accounts Center › Personal details › Account ownership and control › Deactivation or deletion. The steps match the app. A computer is easier for downloading your information, because the archive can be large and is easier to save and unzip there.

Download your photos and posts first

In Accounts Center, open Your information and permissions › Download your information. Choose the Facebook profile, pick what to include and the date range, and choose HTML to browse it or JSON to import into other services. Choose high media quality for photos. Meta emails you when the file is ready, which can take hours for a big account. You can also transfer photos straight to Google Photos or another service with Transfer a copy of your information.

What happens after you delete

Facebook keeps the account in a pending state for 30 days. During that time your profile is hidden. If you log in, deletion is canceled. After 30 days the deletion starts and cannot be undone. Meta says it can take up to 90 days to remove everything from its systems, and copies may stay in backups for a while. Messages you sent stay in other people's inboxes, and posts in groups may show as from a deleted account. Some information may be kept for legal reasons.

How to cancel the deletion

Log in to Facebook within 30 days with your email or phone and password, then tap Cancel Deletion on the screen that appears. Everything comes back as it was. Be careful with apps that log in automatically, such as a smart TV or a game, since they can cancel the deletion without you noticing. Remove those apps first.

What about Messenger and Instagram?

Deleting Facebook removes your Messenger account too. Deactivating does not: you can keep using Messenger with a deactivated profile. Instagram, Threads and WhatsApp are separate accounts and stay. If you want to leave Instagram as well, follow our Instagram deletion steps. Threads profiles tied to Instagram have their own delete option in Threads settings.

Pages, groups and Marketplace

Pages need at least one admin. Add someone you trust as an admin in the Page settings before you delete, or the Page may be removed. Groups get a new admin automatically when possible, but it is better to choose one. Close any open Marketplace listings and finish ongoing sales, since buyers will not be able to message you.

Can't delete because of a login problem?

If you are locked out, use Forgot password from the login page and reset with your email or phone. If the login code never arrives, see Facebook not sending the login code. If someone hacked the account and changed the email, go to facebook.com/hacked to recover it first. Meta cannot delete an account for you without access, except for accounts of people who have died.

Deleting the account of someone who died

Family members can ask Meta to memorialize or remove the account of a person who has died. Use the special request form in the Facebook Help Center and include proof such as a death certificate or obituary. If the person set a legacy contact, that contact can manage the memorialized profile.

Not ready to delete?

If privacy is the worry, there are smaller steps. Limit past posts to Friends, turn off face recognition, remove old apps from your account and review who can find you by phone number. You can also lock your Facebook profile where that option is available, or deactivate for a break. Deactivation keeps everything and you can return any time by logging in.

Deactivate Facebook instead: step by step

1. Open Accounts Center › Personal details › Account ownership and control › Deactivation or deletion.
2. Choose your profile and select Deactivate account.
3. Pick a reason and choose whether to keep using Messenger.
4. Optionally set Facebook to reactivate automatically after a number of days.
5. Tap Deactivate account and confirm.

While deactivated, people cannot see your timeline or search for you, but some things, like messages you sent, stay visible. Log in any time to come back.

Delete Facebook but keep Messenger?

That is not possible with deletion. Messenger needs a Facebook account. If you want to keep chatting but leave the main app, deactivate Facebook and choose to keep Messenger during deactivation.

Delete a second or fake account

If you have two profiles in Accounts Center, choose the right one on the Deactivation or deletion screen. For a fake profile pretending to be you, you cannot delete it yourself. Report it from that profile: tap the three dots › Report profile › Pretending to be someone. Ask friends to report it too.

Remove Facebook from your phone

Deleting the account does not uninstall the app. Delete the Facebook and Messenger apps after the account is gone, and remove the Facebook account from Settings › Passwords on iPhone or Google Password Manager on Android if it is saved there. Clear any Facebook logins in apps that used it.

Will my friends know?

Facebook does not send friends a notice. They will notice you are missing from their list and that your name appears as Facebook User in old chats.

How long does deleting Facebook take?

The steps take about five minutes. Downloading your information can take hours to prepare. After you confirm, the account is hidden right away and is removed for good after 30 days, unless you log in. If you want it gone sooner, there is no faster option, so make sure nothing logs in during that month.

Delete Facebook on a tablet or iPad

The app on tablets has the same menus. If the layout looks different, open facebook.com in a browser instead, which always has Accounts Center under Settings & privacy.

Once the 30 days pass, the decision is final. If you are unsure, deactivate first, live without Facebook for a few weeks, and delete later if you do not miss it.

Take your time with the download step. Once deletion finishes, nothing can be recovered.