You can't delete followers, but you can remove them from seeing your posts
Facebook doesn't have a button that says "delete follower." What you're actually looking for is the ability to stop someone from following your public posts without unfriending them. The distinction matters: unfriending removes them as a friend entirely, while removing a follower just stops their feed from showing your public content.
If someone follows your public profile and you want them to stop seeing your posts, you remove them as a follower. If someone is your friend and you want to end that friendship, you unfriend them instead. Most people mix these up because Facebook uses both "friends" and "followers" depending on your account settings.
The process takes about 30 seconds per person and doesn't notify them that you've done it.
Key Takeaways
- Removing a follower stops them from seeing your public posts in their feed, but they can still find your profile if they search for you.
- You can remove followers one at a time from your followers list, or you can change your privacy settings to stop accepting new followers altogether.
- Removing someone as a follower is different from unfriending them — unfriending ends the friendship entirely, while removing a follower only stops them from seeing your public content.
- The person you remove will not receive a notification that you've removed them.
How to remove a single follower from your profile
Open Facebook and go to your own profile by clicking your name or profile picture. On your profile, look for the "Friends" button near the top. Next to it, you should see a number with the word "Followers" — click on that number to open your followers list.
Scroll through the list until you find the person you want to remove. Hover your mouse over their name or profile picture, and a three-dot menu icon will appear. Click those three dots, then select "Remove Follower" from the menu that pops up. That's it — they're no longer following you.
On a phone or tablet, the process is nearly identical. Go to your profile, tap "Followers," find the person, tap the three dots next to their name, and tap "Remove Follower."
How to stop accepting new followers entirely
If you're tired of removing followers one by one, you can turn off the ability for people to follow you at all. This is a privacy setting that affects your entire account, not individual people.
On a computer, click the down arrow in the top right corner of Facebook and select "Settings and Privacy," then "Settings." On the left side, click "Privacy." Look for the section that says "Who can follow you?" and click the dropdown next to it. You'll see three options: "Public," "Friends," or "Friends except..." Choose "Friends" if you want only your friends to see your posts, or "Friends except..." if you want to allow friends but block specific people from seeing your content.
On a phone, go to Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then scroll down to Privacy and look for "Who can follow you?" The steps are the same — choose the option that matches what you want.
The difference between removing a follower and unfriending someone
These two actions do different things, and it's important to know which one you actually want to do. Removing a follower means they stop seeing your public posts in their feed, but they can still visit your profile and see anything you've marked as public. They remain your friend if you were friends before.
Unfriending someone removes them as a friend entirely. They can no longer see any of your posts unless you've made them public to everyone on Facebook. If you unfriend someone, they also can't message you unless you allow messages from people outside your friends list.
Most people who ask about "deleting followers" actually want to remove followers, not unfriend. But if you want to end a friendship completely, unfriending is the right choice. To unfriend someone, go to their profile, click the "Friends" button, and select "Unfriend."
What happens when you remove a follower
The person you remove will not get a notification saying you've removed them. They won't see a message, alert, or any indication that it happened. However, they may eventually notice that they're no longer seeing your posts in their feed, especially if they were actively following your content.
They can still find your profile by searching for your name, and they can still see anything you've posted publicly. If your profile is set to public, they can view your posts even without following you. If your profile is set to friends-only, they won't be able to see your posts at all.
Removing a follower doesn't prevent them from following you again in the future. If you want to permanently block someone from following you, you need to block them entirely, which is a stronger action that prevents them from finding your profile, messaging you, or seeing your posts under any circumstances.
When to block someone instead of just removing them as a follower
Removing a follower is the right choice when you straightforward don't want someone to see your posts anymore, but you're not concerned about them visiting your profile. Blocking is stronger and should be reserved for situations where you want to cut off all contact.
Block someone if they're harassing you, if you feel unsafe, or if you want to make sure they can't contact you at all. When you block someone, they can't see your profile, message you, find you in search results, or see your posts anywhere on Facebook. To block someone, go to their profile, click the three dots in the top right, and select "Block."
If you're just annoyed by someone's presence in your feed but don't feel threatened, removing them as a follower is usually enough. You can always block them later if their behavior escalates.
How to manage who sees specific posts
Another option beyond removing followers is to control who sees individual posts. This lets you keep followers but hide certain content from them. When you create a post, look for the privacy icon — it usually shows a globe, a group of people, or a lock. Click that icon to choose who can see that specific post.
You can set a post to "Public" (everyone), "Friends" (only your friends), "Friends except..." (friends except specific people), or "Specific friends" (only certain people you choose). This approach is useful if you want to share some things with your followers but keep other content private.
This method takes more effort than removing a follower because you have to do it for each post, but it gives you more control over what different people see.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the person know I removed them as a follower?
No. Facebook does not send notifications when you remove a follower. They may eventually notice they're not seeing your posts in their feed, but they won't receive an alert or message telling them you removed them.
Can I remove someone as a follower but keep them as a friend?
Yes. Removing a follower and unfriending are two separate actions. You can remove someone as a follower and they'll stay as your friend — they just won't see your public posts in their feed anymore. They can still message you and visit your profile.
What's the difference between blocking and removing a follower?
Removing a follower stops them from seeing your posts in their feed, but they can still find your profile and see public content. Blocking prevents them from finding your profile, messaging you, or seeing any of your posts. Blocking is much stronger and should be used only when you want complete separation.
If I change my followers setting to "Friends only," will current followers be removed?
No. Changing your followers setting to "Friends only" only affects new followers going forward. People who are already following you will continue to follow you. You'll need to manually remove existing followers if you want them gone.
Can someone follow me again after I remove them?
Yes. Removing a follower doesn't prevent them from following you again. If you want to permanently stop someone from following you, you need to block them instead.