You can delete Facebook messages one at a time, or delete entire conversations at once

Facebook lets you remove messages from your inbox without deleting them from the other person's account. When you delete a message, it disappears from your view only — the person you were talking to still sees it on their end. If you want to erase a message from both sides, you need to use the "unsend" feature instead, which works only if you delete within 10 minutes of sending.

The steps differ slightly depending on whether you're on a phone or computer, and whether you want to delete one message or an entire conversation. Both methods take less than a minute once you know where to look.

Key Takeaways

  • Deleting a message removes it from your inbox only; the other person still sees it unless you unsend it within 10 minutes of sending.
  • On a phone, open the conversation, press and hold the message, then tap "Delete" from the menu that appears.
  • On a computer, hover over the message, click the three dots that appear, and select "Remove".
  • To delete an entire conversation, long-press the conversation name on your phone or right-click it on your computer, then choose "Delete".
  • Unsending a message removes it from both your inbox and the recipient's, but only works within 10 minutes of sending.

Delete a single message on your phone

Open Facebook Messenger and find the conversation containing the message you want to delete. Press and hold your finger on the specific message until a menu appears with several options. Tap "Delete" or "Remove" — the exact wording depends on your phone's operating system and which version of Messenger you have installed.

The message vanishes from your view when ready. If you change your mind within a few seconds, look for an "Undo" option that may appear at the bottom of the screen. After that window closes, the deletion is permanent on your end, though the other person's copy remains.

Delete a single message on your computer

Go to Facebook Messenger in your web browser and open the conversation. Move your mouse over the message you want to remove. Three dots should appear to the right of the message — click them to open a small menu.

Select "Remove" from that menu. The message disappears from your conversation thread. Like the phone version, this only affects your view. The recipient still has the message in their conversation unless you unsend it instead.

Delete an entire conversation

If you want to remove a whole conversation rather than individual messages, the process is faster. On your phone, open Messenger, find the conversation you want to delete, and press and hold the conversation name or thumbnail. A menu appears — tap "Delete" to remove the entire thread from your inbox.

On a computer, right-click the conversation name in your message list on the left side of the screen. Select "Delete" from the menu. The conversation disappears from your inbox, but again, the other person still has their copy of all the messages.

Unsend a message to remove it from both sides

Unsending is different from deleting because it removes the message from the other person's inbox too. However, you can only unsend a message within 10 minutes of sending it. After that window closes, unsend is no longer an option.

On your phone, press and hold the message and look for "Unsend" in the menu — it may be labeled differently depending on your version of Messenger. On a computer, hover over the message, click the three dots, and select "Unsend". The message disappears from both your conversation and theirs, though they may have already seen it or taken a screenshot.

What happens when you delete or unsend

When you delete a message, Facebook keeps a copy on their servers as part of your account data, even though you can't see it in your conversation. This is standard practice for social media platforms. If you're concerned about a message for privacy reasons, unsending within the 10-minute window is more effective because it removes it from the recipient's view as well.

Neither deleting nor unsending notifies the other person that you removed a message. They won't see a notification or a placeholder saying "this message was deleted." If they saw the message before you deleted it, they already know what it said.

Clearing your entire message history

If you want to remove all your messages at once rather than one conversation at a time, you'll need to delete conversations individually — Facebook doesn't have a "clear all" button for Messenger. The fastest approach is to delete conversations in batches: select multiple conversations by long-pressing on your phone or shift-clicking on your computer, then delete them together.

Keep in mind that deleting your messages doesn't delete the conversation thread itself if the other person has sent you messages. The conversation reappears in your inbox the next time they send you something. If you want to avoid seeing a conversation entirely, you can also choose to "Ignore" it instead of deleting it, which hides it from your main inbox without removing the messages.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the other person tell if I deleted a message?

No. Deleting a message doesn't send them a notification, and it doesn't leave a placeholder in the conversation. If they saw the message before you deleted it, they remember what it said, but they won't know you removed it from your inbox.

What's the difference between delete and unsend?

Delete removes the message from your inbox only. Unsend removes it from both your inbox and the recipient's inbox, but only works within 10 minutes of sending. After 10 minutes, unsend is no longer available and you can only delete.

If I delete a conversation, can I get the messages back?

No. Once you delete a conversation from your inbox, those messages are gone from your view permanently. Facebook stores a copy on their servers, but you cannot recover it yourself through Messenger. The other person still has their copy of the conversation.

Does deleting messages free up storage space on my phone?

Deleting Messenger conversations may free up a small amount of phone storage if Messenger has cached the messages locally, but the main copy lives on Facebook's servers. Clearing your Messenger cache through your phone's app settings is more effective if storage is your concern.

Can I delete messages from a group chat?

Yes, the same delete and unsend options work in group conversations. Your message disappears from your view, but all other group members still see it unless you unsend within 10 minutes. Unsending in a group chat removes the message from everyone's view.