Removing a friend from Facebook stops them from seeing your posts and profile
When you delete someone on Facebook, they can no longer see your posts, photos, or personal information unless your profile is set to public. They won't receive a notification that you removed them, but they may notice if they try to visit your profile or search for you. The person remains able to message you unless you block them separately — deletion and blocking are two different actions.
The process takes about 10 seconds and works the same way on phones, tablets, and computers. You can undo a deletion by sending a new friend request, but there's no "undo" button when ready after you delete.
Key Takeaways
- Deleting someone removes them from your friends list but does not prevent them from messaging you or seeing public posts.
- The person you delete will not be notified, but they may realize it if they try to visit your profile.
- You can delete someone from your friends list on any device in under a minute using the same steps.
- If you want to prevent someone from messaging you or seeing anything at all, you need to block them instead of just deleting them.
How to delete someone on a computer
Open Facebook in your web browser and go to your friends list. You can reach this by clicking your name at the top left, then clicking "Friends" in the left menu. Find the person you want to remove and hover your mouse over their name or profile picture — a three-dot menu button will appear.
Click the three-dot menu and select "Remove Friend" from the dropdown. Facebook will ask you to confirm. Click "Remove" again, and the person is deleted from your friends list when ready. They will no longer appear in your friends list, and they won't see your future posts unless your profile is public.
How to delete someone on your phone or tablet
Open the Facebook app and tap the menu icon (three horizontal lines) at the bottom right of the screen. Tap "Friends," then find the person you want to remove. Tap their name to open their profile.
At the top of their profile, you'll see a button that says "Friends" with a checkmark. Tap that button, and a menu will appear. Select "Remove Friend" and confirm when Facebook asks. The deletion happens right away, and you'll return to their profile page.
What the other person sees after you delete them
The person you delete will not see a notification saying you removed them. However, if they visit your profile, they'll notice they can no longer see your posts or personal details — they'll see a message saying they can't view your profile or that you're not friends. If your profile is set to public, they can still see posts you've marked as public.
If they search for you in their friends list, your name won't appear there anymore. Some people notice the deletion because they were looking at your profile or trying to message you, but Facebook doesn't announce it the way it announces when someone unfriends you on other platforms.
The difference between deleting, unfriending, and blocking
Deleting and unfriending mean the same thing on Facebook — both remove the person from your friends list. The term "unfriend" is older and less commonly used now, but the result is identical. Neither action stops the person from messaging you or seeing your public posts.
Blocking is different and much stronger. When you block someone, they cannot message you, see your profile, find you in search, or see your public posts. Blocking also removes them from your friends list automatically. If you want to prevent someone from contacting you at all, blocking is the option to choose. You can block someone by going to their profile, clicking the three-dot menu, and selecting "Block."
What happens to old conversations after you delete someone
Your message history with the person stays in your Facebook Messenger inbox even after you delete them from your friends list. You can still read old messages and see what you both wrote. However, the person's name may appear differently — sometimes as just a phone number or username rather than their full name with a profile picture.
If you want to remove the conversation entirely, you can delete the message thread from your inbox. This removes it from your view but does not affect what the other person sees in their inbox. Deleting a friend does not delete your shared message history unless you manually delete the conversation.
Reasons people delete friends and when to consider it
People delete friends for many reasons: they no longer talk to the person, they want to limit who sees their posts, they're cleaning up their friends list, or they've had a disagreement. You don't need a reason to delete someone — your friends list is entirely your choice.
If you're unsure whether to delete someone, consider unfollowing them instead. When you unfollow someone, they stay on your friends list but their posts stop appearing in your feed. This is less noticeable to them and gives you space without a permanent removal. You can unfollow someone by visiting their profile, clicking "Following," and selecting "Unfollow."
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the person know I deleted them?
Facebook does not send a notification when you delete someone. However, they may figure it out if they try to visit your profile or look for you in their friends list. There's no way for them to know for certain unless they check, so most people won't realize it happened.
Can I delete someone and then add them back later?
Yes. After you delete someone, you can send them a new friend request whenever you want. They'll receive the request like any other, and if they accept, you're friends again. Your old message history will still be there.
What's the difference between deleting someone and blocking them?
Deleting removes them from your friends list but they can still message you and see your public posts. Blocking prevents them from messaging you, seeing your profile, or finding you in search. Blocking is stronger and more private. Use blocking if you want no contact at all.
If I delete someone, do they see my old posts?
They cannot see posts you made while you were friends, unless those posts are set to public. Posts you marked as "Friends Only" or "Private" become invisible to them after deletion. Posts marked as public remain visible to anyone, including people you've deleted.
Does deleting someone remove me from their friends list too?
No. When you delete someone, you're removed from their friends list, but they remain on theirs until they delete you separately. They can still see that you were friends and can send you a new friend request if they want to reconnect.