Where to find and edit your birthday
Your birthday lives in your Facebook profile under a section called "Basic Information." To change it, open Facebook and click your profile picture in the top right corner, then select "Profile" from the menu. On your profile page, look for the "About" tab — it sits between your cover photo and your posts.
Once you click "About," you'll see several categories listed on the left side of the screen. Click "Basic Information" to expand that section. Your current birthday appears here, along with your gender, relationship status, and other personal details. If your birthday isn't showing yet, scroll down — Facebook sometimes hides it until you add one.
Next to your birthday, you'll see a pencil icon or an "Edit" button. Click that to open the editing window. Facebook will show you three dropdown menus: one for the month, one for the day, and one for the year. Change any or all of them to match your correct birthday, then click "Save Changes" or the checkmark button to confirm.
Key Takeaways
- Your birthday is stored in the "Basic Information" section of your "About" tab, not in your main settings.
- You can change your birthday as many times as you want, but Facebook limits how often you can hide it from your timeline.
- If you set your birthday to under 18, Facebook will automatically restrict certain features and ads on your account.
- Your birthday is visible only to people you've chosen to share it with — you control who sees it when you edit it.
Controlling who sees your birthday
When you edit your birthday, Facebook shows you a privacy dropdown next to the date fields. This dropdown controls who can see your birthday on your profile. The most common options are "Public" (everyone can see it), "Friends" (only your friends can see it), or "Only Me" (nobody else can see it at all).
Choose the privacy level that matches what you want. If you select "Only Me," Facebook will still use your birthday internally — for example, to send you birthday reminders and to show you age-appropriate ads — but nobody visiting your profile will see the date. If you leave it on "Public," anyone on Facebook, even people who aren't your friends, can see when you were born.
You can change this privacy setting separately from the birthday itself. If you've already saved a birthday but want to hide it, go back to "Basic Information," click the pencil icon next to your birthday, and adjust only the privacy dropdown without changing the date.
What happens if you change your birthday frequently
Facebook allows you to change your birthday, but the platform has built-in limits to prevent misuse. You can change it as many times as you want throughout the year. However, Facebook restricts how often you can hide your birthday from your timeline — if you've hidden it recently, you may need to wait a while before hiding it again.
If you set your birthday to a date that makes you under 18 years old, Facebook automatically restricts your account. You won't be able to use certain features like creating ads, and your profile becomes more private by default. If you later change your birthday to show you're 18 or older, these restrictions lift.
Changing your birthday doesn't affect your friends' ability to see past birthday wishes on your timeline. Those posts stay visible according to their original privacy settings, even if you change the date later.
Fixing a birthday you entered incorrectly
If you made a typo when you first created your account — for example, you entered 1985 instead of 1995 — the process to fix it is the same as changing it intentionally. Go to "About," click "Basic Information," and use the dropdown menus to correct the year, month, or day. Facebook doesn't require you to prove your identity or provide documentation; it trusts that you know your own birthday.
The one exception is if your account is flagged for suspicious activity. If Facebook suspects someone else has access to your account or that you're trying to circumvent age restrictions, the platform may ask you to verify your identity before allowing changes to your birthday. This usually means uploading a photo of your ID.
Why Facebook asks for your birthday in the first place
Facebook collects your birthday for several reasons. First, it uses the date to send you a birthday notification and to remind your friends that it's your birthday — this is why you see birthday wishes on your timeline. Second, Facebook uses your age to determine which ads you see; advertisers can target people by age range, and Facebook needs to know your actual age to enforce laws about age-restricted products like alcohol.
Third, your birthday helps Facebook detect fake accounts. If someone creates multiple accounts with the same birthday, Facebook's systems flag it as suspicious. Finally, if you're under 18, your birthday determines which privacy protections explore to your account automatically.
Removing your birthday entirely
You cannot completely delete your birthday from Facebook — the platform requires it during account creation and won't let you leave the field blank. However, you can hide it from your profile by setting the privacy to "Only Me," which means nobody else will see it when they visit your page.
If you want to hide your birthday from your friends' notifications, there's no direct way to do that. Facebook will still send birthday reminders to your friends on your birthday, even if your birthday is set to "Only Me." The only way to prevent this is to set your birthday to a fake date, though this will affect the accuracy of age-based features on your account.
Troubleshooting birthday changes that won't save
If you've tried to change your birthday but it keeps reverting to the old date, first try logging out of Facebook completely and logging back in. Sometimes the page doesn't refresh properly, and logging out clears the cache. After you log back in, go to "About" and "Basic Information" again and attempt the change.
If it still won't save, try using a different web browser or the Facebook mobile app instead of the website. Facebook's mobile app sometimes handles profile edits differently than the website, and switching platforms can resolve the issue. Clear your browser's cache and cookies if you're using the website — old data stored on your computer can interfere with saving new information.
If none of these steps work, the problem may be on Facebook's end. Wait a few hours and try again. If the issue persists for more than a day, you can report it through Facebook's "Help & Support" section, though Facebook support for profile issues is typically limited to account security problems.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I change my birthday on the Facebook mobile app?
Yes. Open the app, tap your profile picture, go to "About," tap "Basic Information," and tap the pencil icon next to your birthday. The process is identical to the website version, just with mobile-specific buttons and menus.
Will my friends be notified if I change my birthday?
No. Changing your birthday doesn't send a notification to your friends. However, if you change it to a date that's coming up soon, your friends may see a birthday reminder for the new date when it arrives.
What if I don't remember my real birthday?
You'll need to enter something to create or maintain a Facebook account. If you genuinely don't know your exact birth date, enter your best estimate. You can always change it later if you remember the correct date. Facebook doesn't verify birthdays against government records unless your account is flagged for suspicious activity.
Does changing my birthday affect my Facebook memories or old posts?
No. Your old posts and memories stay exactly where they are. Changing your birthday only affects how Facebook displays your age going forward and when birthday notifications are sent to your friends.
Can I hide my birthday from specific people instead of everyone?
Facebook's privacy settings for birthday don't allow you to hide it from specific people. You can only choose between "Public," "Friends," or "Only Me." If you need finer control, you'd have to set it to "Only Me" and accept that nobody will see it.