What making your account private actually does
Making your Facebook account private means changing who can see your posts, photos, and friend list without your permission. When your account is private, only people you have accepted as friends can see most of what you share. Strangers cannot search for your profile in the public directory, cannot see your posts in their feed, and cannot message you unless you have already connected with them.
Facebook gives you two main routes: you can make your entire account private, or you can keep your account public but control individual posts one at a time. Most people choose the first route because it is faster and applies to everything you have already posted.
Private does not mean invisible. Your name, profile picture, and cover photo remain visible to anyone who searches for you by name. Facebook still shows your account exists — it just hides the content inside it.
Key Takeaways
- Go to Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then Privacy, and change "Who can see your posts?" from Public to Friends Only.
- Change "Who can contact you?" to Friends Only so strangers cannot message you or send friend requests.
- Review your past posts by going to your profile and clicking the privacy icon on each one to change who sees it.
- Your name and profile picture stay visible to everyone; only your content and contact options become private.
- You can make your account private on mobile by opening the menu, tapping Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then Privacy.
Step-by-step: making your account private on desktop
Open Facebook and click the downward arrow in the top right corner. Select Settings and Privacy, then click Settings. On the left side, click Privacy.
Look for the section labeled "Who can see your posts?" Click the dropdown next to it and select Friends Only. This applies to all new posts you make from this point forward.
Below that, find "Who can contact you?" and change it to Friends Only as well. This stops strangers from sending you messages or friend requests. If you want to allow messages from people outside your friends list but still want to review them first, you can select "Friends" for posts but leave messaging open — Facebook will sort non-friend messages into a separate folder you can ignore.
Scroll down to "Who can look you up?" and make sure both options are set to Friends Only. This prevents your profile from appearing in public search results.
Step-by-step: making your account private on mobile
Open the Facebook app and tap the three horizontal lines (the menu) in the bottom right corner. Scroll down and tap Settings and Privacy, then tap Settings.
Tap Privacy. You will see the same options as on desktop: "Who can see your posts?", "Who can contact you?", and "Who can look you up?" Tap each one and change it to Friends Only.
The mobile app works the same way as desktop, but the buttons are arranged vertically instead of in a sidebar. If you cannot find a setting, scroll down — Facebook sometimes hides less common options below the fold.
Changing privacy on posts you already shared
Making your account private only affects new posts. Posts you shared before changing your settings stay at their old privacy level unless you change them individually.
Go to your profile and find a post you want to make private. Click or tap the three dots in the top right corner of that post. Select Edit Privacy and choose Friends Only. Repeat this for any old posts you want to hide from strangers.
If you have years of public posts, changing them all one by one takes a long time. Facebook does not offer a bulk-change tool. Some people choose to leave old posts public and simply make all new posts private going forward. Others delete old posts they no longer want visible. There is no right answer — it depends on how much of your history you want to hide.
What stays visible even when your account is private
Your profile picture, cover photo, name, and username remain visible to anyone, even strangers. Facebook treats these as part of your public identity. You cannot hide them without deactivating or deleting your account entirely.
Your friend list also stays visible to friends, though you can hide it from strangers by going to Privacy settings and changing "Who can see your friends list?" to Friends Only. This is a separate setting from post privacy.
Comments you make on public pages, groups, or other people's posts may still be visible depending on those pages' privacy settings. Making your own account private does not hide your activity on public content.
The difference between private and deactivating
Private and deactivated are not the same thing. A private account keeps your profile active — you can still post, message friends, and use Facebook normally. A deactivated account hides your entire profile temporarily and stops you from using Facebook until you reactivate it.
If you want to stay on Facebook but just do not want strangers seeing your content, make your account private. If you want to step away from Facebook entirely for a while, deactivate instead. Deactivation is temporary; deletion is permanent.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can people still find me if my account is private?
Yes. Your name and profile picture remain searchable. People who already know you can find your profile — they just cannot see your posts or message you unless you accept their friend request. If you want to be completely unsearchable, you need to deactivate or delete your account.
What happens to old messages when I make my account private?
Your existing messages stay in your inbox. Making your account private only affects who can send you new messages going forward. Strangers cannot message you, but friends can still see your old conversations with them.
If I make my account private, can I still see other people's public posts?
Yes. Your privacy settings only control who sees your content, not what you can see. You can still browse public pages, groups, and other people's public posts normally.
Do I need to make my account private on both desktop and mobile?
No. Privacy settings sync across all devices. If you change your settings on desktop, they automatically apply to the mobile app and vice versa. You only need to change them once.
What if I want some friends to see certain posts but not others?
You can set custom privacy for individual posts. When you create a post, click the audience selector (usually shows "Friends") and choose "Custom". You can then select specific friends or exclude certain people from that single post.