Facebook shows friend suggestions based on mutual connections, shared networks, and your activity

Facebook's friend suggestion feature pulls from several sources: people who share your workplace or school, contacts from your phone or email, mutual friends, and people in groups you belong to. You cannot turn off suggestions entirely, but you can remove individual suggestions, limit what information Facebook uses to generate them, and adjust your privacy settings so fewer people appear in the first place.

The goal is to reduce suggestions from people you do not want to connect with — former colleagues, acquaintances from a specific time in your life, or strangers who found you through a data source you did not intend to share. Each control works differently, and combining them gives you the most influence over what you see.

Key Takeaways

  • Remove a single suggestion by clicking the X or "Remove" button next to that person's name; this does not block them, only hides that suggestion.
  • Stop Facebook from using your phone contacts to suggest friends by going to Settings > Apps and Websites > Contacts and removing access.
  • Limit suggestions from your workplace or school by removing or hiding those entries from your profile in the About section.
  • Make your profile harder to find by changing your privacy settings so only friends can see your friends list and contact information.
  • Block specific people if you want to prevent them from ever appearing as a suggestion or viewing your profile.

Remove a single friend suggestion

The fastest way to stop seeing one person suggested is to dismiss that suggestion directly. On the desktop version, go to your profile, click the Friends icon, and look for "People You May Know." Hover over the person's card and click the X button in the top right corner. On mobile, tap the X or the three dots and select "Remove."

Removing a suggestion does not notify the person, does not block them, and does not prevent them from sending you a friend request later. It straightforward takes that suggestion off your list. If the same person appears again weeks later, you can remove them again.

Stop Facebook from using your phone contacts

Facebook can access your phone's contact list if you gave it permission when you first installed the app. These contacts become a source for friend suggestions even if those people are not on Facebook yet. To cut off this data source, go to Settings, tap Apps and Websites, then Contacts. You will see a list of apps with access; find Facebook and tap it, then select "Remove."

On iPhone, you can also revoke this permission through your phone's Settings app: go to Privacy > Contacts, find Facebook, and toggle it off. On Android, go to Settings > Apps > Facebook > Permissions > Contacts and deny access. After you remove access, Facebook cannot pull new contacts, but it may keep using contacts it already imported; you can request deletion through your Facebook privacy settings if you want to be thorough.

Hide your workplace and school information

Facebook uses your listed workplace and school to suggest coworkers and classmates. If you want to reduce suggestions from these groups, you can remove or hide these entries. Go to your profile, click About, and scroll to Work and Education. Click the pencil icon next to any entry and select Delete, or click the privacy icon next to it and change it to "Only Me" so only you can see it.

Hiding this information does not erase it from Facebook's systems — the company still knows where you work or studied — but it prevents other people from finding you through that connection. If you want to keep the information visible to friends but not to strangers, you can set the privacy level to "Friends" instead of "Public."

Adjust your overall privacy settings to limit visibility

The broader your profile is, the more data Facebook has to generate suggestions about you. Tighten your privacy settings so fewer people can see your information in the first place. Go to Settings, click Privacy, and review these three controls: who can see your friends list, who can contact you, and who can look you up using your email or phone number.

Change "Who can see your friends list?" to "Friends" or "Only Me." Change "Who can look you up using the email address you provided?" and "Who can look you up using the phone number you provided?" to "Friends" or "Only Me." These changes make you harder to find through contact information or mutual connections, which reduces the number of suggestions Facebook can generate about you.

Block someone if they keep appearing or you want stronger protection

If one person repeatedly appears in your suggestions and removing them is not enough, you can block them. Go to their profile, click the three dots menu, and select Block. A blocked person cannot see your profile, send you a friend request, message you, or appear in your suggestions. They will not be notified that you blocked them, but they may figure it out if they try to visit your profile.

Blocking is stronger than removing a suggestion because it is permanent and prevents all contact. Use it for people you genuinely do not want to interact with. If you change your mind later, you can unblock them through Settings > Blocking.

Understand what you cannot control

Facebook will continue to suggest people based on mutual friends, groups you both belong to, and pages you both follow. You cannot turn off these sources without leaving the groups or unfollowing the pages. Facebook also uses data from third-party websites and apps that have Facebook tracking pixels or login buttons; you cannot fully opt out of this, but you can limit it by going to Settings > Apps and Websites and removing access for apps you no longer use.

The company does not let you see exactly why someone was suggested to you, and suggestions change based on your activity. The more you interact with certain groups or pages, the more suggestions you may see from people in those spaces. If you want fewer suggestions overall, reduce your activity in groups or pages where you do not want to meet new people.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does removing a friend suggestion block that person?

No. Removing a suggestion only hides it from your "People You May Know" list. The person can still find your profile, send you a friend request, or message you if you allow messages from non-friends. If you want to prevent all contact, you need to block them instead.

Can I see a list of all my removed suggestions?

Facebook does not show you a history of suggestions you have removed. Each removal is final for that moment, but the same person may appear again later if your mutual connections or activity change.

Why do I keep seeing suggestions from people I do not know?

They likely share a group, page, or mutual friend with you, or Facebook found their contact information in your phone or email. Check your group memberships and consider leaving groups where you do not want to meet people. You can also review which apps have access to your contacts and remove access from apps you no longer use.

Will changing my privacy settings stop all friend suggestions?

No. Tightening privacy settings makes you harder to find and reduces suggestions, but Facebook will still suggest people based on mutual friends and shared groups. To stop suggestions entirely, you would have to leave all groups and unfriend everyone, which defeats the purpose of using Facebook.

What happens if I block someone and then unblock them later?

Unblocking removes the block, but it does not restore your friendship or undo any messages you deleted. The person can send you a friend request again, and they may appear in your suggestions again if you share mutual connections.