The basic steps to send a friend request on Facebook
To add a friend on Facebook, find their profile by searching their name in the search bar at the top of your screen, click on their profile, and then click the "Add Friend" button. Facebook will send them a friend request notification. They can accept, decline, or ignore it — until they respond, you are not connected as friends yet.
If you already have their profile open and do not see an "Add Friend" button, it may mean they have already sent you a request (in which case you will see "Respond to Request"), you are already friends, or they have restricted who can add them. Some people change their privacy settings to allow friend requests only from people who share a mutual friend or went to the same school.
On mobile, the process is identical: search for the person, open their profile, and tap "Add Friend" or the person-with-a-plus icon.
Key Takeaways
- When you add someone as a friend, they can see the posts and photos you have marked as visible to friends, and you can see theirs.
- Facebook shows your friend list to other people by default, though you can hide it in your privacy settings.
- Accepting a friend request from someone you do not know gives them access to information you may not have intended to share.
- You can unfriend someone at any time without notifying them, though they may notice if they look for your profile.
What happens to your information when someone becomes your friend
Once someone accepts your friend request, the visibility of your posts and photos changes for them. Any post you have set to "Friends" will now appear in their feed. This includes photos you have tagged, status updates, life events, and anything else you marked as visible to friends only. If you have set a post to "Public," they could see it anyway — friendship does not change that.
They also gain access to information on your profile itself: your birthday, your relationship status, your work and education history, and any other details you have filled in. They can see your full friend list unless you have hidden it. They can message you directly. They can tag you in their own posts and photos, which may then appear on your timeline and in other people's feeds.
The reverse is also true: you now see their friend-only posts, their profile details, and their activity. Facebook also uses your friendship to show you ads — advertisers can target people based on their friends' interests and behaviors.
How to control what friends can see about you
Before you add someone, or if you have already added them and want to limit what they see, you can adjust your privacy settings post by post or across your whole profile. To hide your friend list from everyone or from specific people, go to Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then Privacy, and change "Who can see your friends list?" to "Only Me" or "Custom."
For individual posts, you can click the audience selector (usually showing "Friends" or "Public") before you post and choose who sees it. You can also go back to old posts and change who can see them. If you want to let someone stay on your friends list but prevent them from seeing certain posts, you can use the "Custom" audience option and exclude specific people by name.
Another option is to "Restrict" someone instead of unfriending them. A restricted person remains on your friends list but can only see posts you have marked as public. They cannot see when you are online, and their messages go to a separate folder. This is useful if you want to stay connected loosely without giving them full access to your information.
Removing a friend or blocking someone
If you want to stop being friends with someone, go to their profile, click the three dots next to their name, and select "Unfriend." They will not receive a notification that you unfriended them, but they may notice if they visit your profile and the friendship is gone. Your posts will no longer appear in their feed, and theirs will no longer appear in yours.
Blocking is stronger than unfriending. When you block someone, they cannot see your profile, send you messages, or find you in search. You will not see their posts either. To block someone, go to their profile, click the three dots, and select "Block." You can unblock them later if you change your mind.
If someone is harassing you or you feel unsafe, blocking is the right choice. If you straightforward do not want to stay in touch but do not feel threatened, unfriending or restricting is usually enough.
Understanding friend request notifications and pending requests
When you send a friend request, the other person gets a notification. They can accept it when ready, leave it pending (which means they have seen it but not responded), or decline it. If they decline, you will not be able to see that they declined — the request straightforward disappears from your sent requests. You can send another request after a few days, but sending multiple requests to someone who has declined may feel like pressure.
You can see all your pending friend requests by going to your Friends section and looking for "Friend Requests." You can cancel a request you sent by clicking the X next to their name. If someone sends you a request and you are not sure about accepting, you can leave it pending indefinitely — there is no time limit, and they will not know you have ignored it.
Why someone might not be able to add you as a friend
If you try to add someone and do not see an "Add Friend" button, several things could be happening. They may have already sent you a request (check your pending requests). They may have set their privacy settings so that only friends of friends or people from their school can add them. They may have blocked you, in which case you cannot see their full profile at all. Or they may have deactivated or deleted their account.
If you think someone has blocked you, try searching for their name from a different account or asking a mutual friend if they can still see that person's profile. If the person has restricted who can add them, you can ask a mutual friend to introduce you, or you can send them a message if you are already connected in some way.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can someone see that I viewed their profile?
No. Facebook does not tell people when you look at their profile, with one exception: if you use the "See First" feature or visit their profile very frequently, they may infer it from your activity. But there is no notification or counter that shows profile views.
What if I add someone by mistake?
You can unfriend them when ready by going to their profile and clicking the three dots next to their name, then selecting "Unfriend." They will not be notified. If you sent a request and they have not accepted yet, you can cancel the request instead.
Do they know when I unfriend them?
Facebook does not send a notification, but they may notice if they visit your profile or look through their friends list. There is no way to unfriend someone without them potentially finding out, but most people do not check frequently enough to notice.
Can I add someone if they have not added me back?
Yes. You can send a friend request to almost anyone on Facebook. They can accept, decline, or ignore it. If they decline, you can send another request after some time, but repeated requests may feel unwelcome.
What is the difference between a friend and a follower?
A friend is someone you have a mutual connection with — you both accepted the request. A follower is someone who follows your public posts without being your friend. You can follow someone without them following you back, and followers see only what you have marked as public.