The first condition to unfriend someone is to be a friend already. Facebook does not let the person know if you have unfriended them. However, sending a friend request again will make it clear that you have unfriended the person previously. Today, we deal with how to unfriend someone on Facebook – or leave their profile forever.
Unfriend on Facebook is always in your hands. It’s a straightforward step-by-step process. You can anytime unfriend someone you don’t want to continue as friends
To help our readers understand better, we have categorized the entire process into three different phases. Each one is important to follow, so do not miss anything.
Phase 1: Pre-Unfriending
Why You Might Want to Unfriend Someone on Facebook
The thought of unfriending comes into the mind when you no longer want to remain friends with someone on Facebook. It’s an unnotified feature, meaning the person whom you unfriend won’t really get to know about this.
The other reasons include, you find the person not relevant enough, especially when it doesn’t match with your interests and ideology.
Moreover, if you find the person is suspicious and can lead to potential threat in future. It’s time to unfriend their profile or remove the account from your profile.
Read Also:- How Can I Contact Facebook For A Hacked Account?
What Happens When You Unfriend Someone?
When a profile is unfriended, the user won’t be able to do what they could when they were friends. Basically, unfriending put a restriction to your profile, if it’s set to private.
Apart from this, the user won’t be able to view, like, comment, and interact with you profile, unless you accept their re-adding request.
The Emotional Impact of Unfriending
Online world binds us with a emotional bond. When we are friends on any social media app, we share emotions, activities, and more that’s filled with human emotions. In contrast, when we defriend or unfriend someone, it might be an emotional breakdown for the person. However, we encourage focusing on your safety and fulfillment on Facebook rather than thinking about others. Ultimately, your safety is everything.
Phase 2: During the Unfriending Phase
Once the reason of unfriending is clear, it’s time to delve into the actual steps. Here is the guide.
Before you initiate, it should be clear that you can unfriend using your mobile or it’s also possible on desktop or browser.
How to Unfriend Someone on Facebook On Mobile
Users access Facebook using Android and ios devices. We provide steps for both to avoid confusion.
On iPhone:
- Open your Facebook app on iPhone and log in.
- After that, visit the search icon and type the particular profile.
- Next, visit their profile.
- Afterwards, tap ‘human-like’ icon or ‘Friends’ option.
- You will see ‘unfriend’ option; tap it.
On Android:
- To unfriend on Android:
- Visit the profile by using the search icon.
- Click ‘friends’ option.
- Complete the process by tapping ‘unfriend’ followed by confirm option.
How to Unfriend Someone on Facebook On Desktop
On desktop:
- Visit facebook.com, sign in.
- Search for the particular profile, and click to open it.
- Now, tap ‘Friends’ icon at the top.
- Then, click ‘unfriend’ after that, confirm
Alternatives to Unfriending
Facebook lets other options instead of unfriending to restrict the user. We can discuss those options here so if you find them interesting, follow them.
Instead of unfriend option, users can unfollow, hide or restrict (block) the profile on Facebook. We will look how each one is executed and what’re the benefits.
Unfollow
- Log in to Facebook account using credentials.
- Next, pick the profile you want to unfollow.
- Now, find ‘three-dots’ option and then following.
- You will successfully unfollow the person.
Impacts of Unfollowing:
- You remain friends, but their posts and updates no longer appear in your News Feed.
- You can still visit their profile to see their posts.
- They are not notified that you have unfollowed them.
Hide
- Visit your FB profile.
- Click menu or three-line icon.
- Open the settings by tapping the gear icon.
- Click settings and privacy and then Privacy Checkup. Here decide who you allow to view your profile’s content.
Impact of Hiding:
- You can hide individual posts from your News Feed without unfollowing or unfriending.
- Facebook may try to hide similar posts in the future.
- Useful for one-off posts that you find annoying or irrelevant.
Restrict
- Visit the profile and tap three-line icon.
- Visit settings and privacy and tap settings.
- You need to tap the How People Can Find and Contact You
- Select the one from the various options:
- Who can see your friends list? Set to Only me.
- Who can look you up using the email address you provided? Set to No one.
- Who can look you up using the phone number you provided? Set to No one.
- Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your profile? Disable this option.
Impacts of Restricting
- They only see posts you make public or posts in which they are tagged.
- They remain on your friends list and are not notified of the restriction.
- Useful for privacy control, especially with colleagues or acquaintances
Difference among Unfollow, Hide and Restrict on Facebook Profile
| Feature | Unfollow | Hide | Restrict |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it does | Stops showing a person’s posts in your News Feed, but you remain friends | Hides a specific post from your News Feed; you can hide individual posts as needed | Limits what a specific friend can see on your profile—they only see public posts |
| Relationship status | Remain friends | Remain friends | Remain friends |
| Visibility of your posts | Unchanged; the person still sees your posts as usual | Unchanged; the person still sees your posts as usual | Restricted person only sees posts set to “Public” or posts they are tagged in. |
| Visibility of their posts to you | You won’t see their posts in your News Feed, but can visit their profile to view them. | Only the hidden post is removed from your feed; future posts still appear unless also hidden or unfollowed. | You still see their posts in your feed as normal. |
| Notification to the other person | No notification | No notification | No notification |
| Use case | For when you want to avoid seeing someone’s updates but don’t want to unfriend them | For when you want to avoid seeing a specific post or topic | For when you want to limit what someone can see about you, like colleagues or acquaintances |
Phase 3: After the Unfriending Phase
Can You Re-friend Someone Later?
It’s possible to reverse your decision anytime you find need. If you have unfriended someone, you need to connect with the person again by sending a friend request. Upon acceptation, you can become friends and share things like you used to.
Similarly, if you have blocked some, consider unblocking from your profile. And se nd a friend request.
Note: Remember as you unfollow, restrict or unfriend someone on Facebook, your profile is also prohibited to access their account. It’s the same application in your case too.
Read Also:- How Do I Delete A Facebook Page?
Conclusion
If you want to declutter your Facebook profile, protect from potential threat or just want to hide a particular profile, consider unfriending. It’s an easy process with no harm to either party. All you need is: open Facebook>locate the profile you want to unfriend>tap friends icon and click unfriend. Moreover, there are many options to restrict a profile on Facebook, including unfollowing and blocking. Read the guide to be equipped with the step guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. How to Unfriend in Facebook easily?
To unfriend, visit the particular profile, click the avatar or friends icon, tap ‘unfriend.’ This will unfriend the profile right away.
Q. Does someone know if you unfriend them on Facebook?
No, the other person does not find out if they’re unfriended on Facebook. Only when you send a friend request, then will they find you’ve unfriended them.
Q. Is it better to block or unfriend someone on Facebook?
If the person is involved in suspicious acts, seems to be a spammer, then blocking is the best option. However, if you want to stay away from a person just because you don’t share a common interest with them, unfriending is the ideal choice.
Q. Can I unfriend someone on FB without them knowing?
Yes, you can unfriend someone on Facebook without them knowing. It’s actually a hidden action, but since the person won’t get updates from your profile for longer, they will find out they have been blocked.