Deactivating or Deleting Your Account
If you deactivate your account:
- You can reactivate whenever you want.
- People can't see your Timeline or search for you.
- Some info may remain visible (ex: messages you sent).
- We save your account info (ex: friends, interests), in case you reactivate.
If you delete your account:
- We delay deletion a few days after it's requested. If you log in during this time, deletion is canceled.
- You can't regain access once it's deleted.
- It may take up to 90 days to delete data stored in backup systems. Your info isn't accessible on Facebook during this time.
- Some things aren't stored in your account. For example, a friend may have messages from you after deletion.
- Copies of some material (ex: log records) may remain in our database but are disassociated from personal identifiers.
You can deactivate your account temporarily and choose to come back whenever you want.
To deactivate your account:
- Click the account menu
at the top right of any Facebook page - Select Settings
- Click Security in the left column
- Choose Deactivate your account then follow the steps to confirm
If you deactivate your account your profile won’t be visible to other people on Facebook and people won’t be able to search for you. Some information, such as messages you sent to friends, may still be visible to others.
If you’d like to come back to Facebook anytime after you’ve deactivated your account, you can reactivate your account by logging in with your email and password. Your profile will be restored in its entirety (ex: friends, photos and interests). Remember that you'll need to have access to the login email address for your account to reactivate it.
If you can't get into your account, you can reset your password.
To permanently delete your account:
Permanently deleting your account means you won't ever be able to reactivate or retrieve any of the content or information you've added. If you'd like to permanently delete your account with no option for recovery, please contact us.
If you've deactivated your account, you can reactivate it at any time just by logging in. If you can't remember your password, you can request a new password. Learn more about how to reactivate your account if you can't access the email address you listed on it.
If you don't think you'll use Facebook again, you can request to have your account permanently deleted. Please keep in mind that you won't be able to reactivate your account or retrieve anything you've added. Before you do this, you may want to download a copy of your info from Facebook. Then, if you'd like your account permanently deleted with no option for recovery, log into your account and let us know.
When you delete your account, people won't be able to see it on Facebook. It may take up to 90 days from the beginning of the deletion process to delete all of the things you've posted, like your photos, status updates or other data stored in backup systems. While we are deleting this information, it is inaccessible to other people using Facebook.
Some of the things you do on Facebook aren’t stored in your account. For example, a friend may still have messages from you even after you delete your account. That information remains after you delete your account.
If your friend or family member is irreversibly mentally or physically unable to maintain their Facebook account, we may be able to help you remove it.
- For a child under 13: We require our members to be at least 13 years old. If you believe there is a child under the age of 13 using Facebook, please report the account to us.
- For someone over 13: Please submit a request here. We'll review the information you provide and let you know what action we can take. Keep in mind this form should only be used to report medically incapacitated users. Learn what to do if you've lost access to your account, or how to report a hacked account or deceased user.
Note: We don't consider someone who is in rehab or prison to be incapacitated. If you're a member of law enforcement and would like to report someone on Facebook who is currently imprisoned, please submit a request.