In this quick tutorial, I will walk you step by step how to delete Facebook account permanently. Also, I will share a method on how to remove any facebook account for that matter. And I will explain the difference between erasing your account entirely or just deactivating your FB profile is. I will start with deleting vs. deactivating. In case you realize that what you need or want is just deactivating your profile. Also, at the end of the article, there will be a quick tutorial on how to uninstall the facebook app of your phone if you are also interested in that.
What happens when you permanently delete facebook account and the difference between deactivating it
To technically to get your FB account of the internet are two ways. First, we will talk about deactivating your account and what it means.
Deactivating FB profile
If you decide to deactivate your profile, you will be able also to reactivate your account whenever you like. If the account is deactivated, no one will be able to look at your profile & timeline, even if they have saved URL to your profile. And no one will be able to find you in facebook search.
What data is stored when you deactivate your account
If you deactivate your account, the only visible things will be the messages you have sent out to others. This is the only noticeable thing after deactivation. But in case you decide to reactivate your FB profile, facebook has to store info from your profile, like your friendliest, your interests, your groups, and pages.
Deleting Facebook account
If you decide to delete your account, you can, and Facebook will delete all the data. But they will store a lot of your data for several days and in some cases, weeks.
What happens after sending a request for deleting facebook account
First of all, Facebook will delay the deletion of your account for a few days. If you log in to your profile within the period of your request for termination of your account and the actual facebook deleting the account, your account deletion will be canceled instantly. After the waiting period is done, you won’t be able to log in to your account ever again, since it is deleted.
What is facebook storing after deleting an account
All the things that are not directly stored in your account, like private messages, will remain active. And they are also saving some log records, but they claim that these data are not associated with any personal identifiers.
How long does it take to delete facebook account
It takes only a few clicks to do it. But the whole process of removing the account can take up to 3 months or even more because you will have the “grace” period, where if you log, the deletion will be canceled. And after that, Facebook is claiming that they can store your data up to 90 days in their backup systems. But I have to say that during this period, your profile and data are not accessible anymore online. But they are stored somewhere.
Updated info: I have just found out that the so-called “grace” period used to be two weeks. But now, in 2019, they have changed it to 30 days. So now, you have up to 30 days to change your mind about erasing your account on Facebook. And the data will be stored by Facebook for up to 120 days. The first 30 days are the grace period, and another up to 90 days, your data can be stored on their back up servers.
If you ask me, if I were in your shoes I would deactivate my account on facebook for a few days or maybe even weeks. Test it how it feels, if you can live without it, or if it does not interfere with your day to day life. And if you are ok with that, you can reactivate the account for the sole purpose of deleting it forever.
How to erase the Facebook account on the desktop
I should mention this again. If you want to delete your facebook account, I won’t stop you. Hey, I wrote a guide on how to do it. But you might think about it again if this is a thing that you genuinely want to do. You don’t have to like it or even enjoy it, but social media became a big part of our lives and our society. Facebook is not only for funny videos and photos of babies of your close friends. But facebook can lead to new job opportunities or find out about nearby events that you might like. If your concern is privacy, you can set it up in your profile settings, heck if this is your main concern, I will write a guide for it.
Ok, enough talking.
How to permanently delete Facebook account in few seconds
Go to https://www.facebook.com/help/delete_account or you can follow these few steps:
Find it via arrow down next to your notifications and quick help
select settings
Then choose the third option “Your Facebook Information” in the left column
And then you need to go to the last option “Deactivation and Deletion,” click on it
A new page will load up, and now you have to choose the second option, “Permanently Delete Account” and confirm it by clicking on the blue button “Continue to Account Deletion.”
Then just click on “Delete Account.”
Do this before you click on delete
If you have clicked on the link I have posted in the paragraph above, you should see the option of downloading your personal information. You can back up this way very quickly all the photos that you have uploaded to your profile, and it will also automatically download all your Facebook posts. I highly suggest you do this, in case that you will change your mind. Plus, it is way easier than downloading your photos one by one. But keep in mind that the file you will download will contain your profile information, so if I were you, I would keep it in a very safe place.
In case you want to deactivate your account, you can follow the tutorial above, and instead of deleting your profile, disable it. But if you have skipped ahead, here is the tutorial in these seven easy steps.
Log in to your FB account
Click on the arrow at the top of the facebook website next to your notifications
Select “settings.”
In the left column, choose the third option, “Your Facebook Information.”
Click on last option, “Deactivation and Deletion.”
Choose Deactivate Account and click on “Continue to Account Deactivation.”
Type your password and click on “Continue”
Viola and your account are deactivated.
How to delete facebook app from your smartphone
If you have decided instead deactivate your account, then deleting it, and you want to get rid of the temptation of logging in, you should remove it from your phone. Or, if you are trying to spend less time on FB, here is a quick tutorial for you on how to get rid of this app from your mobile device.
How to delete facebook application from Android phone
Go to “Settings”
Go to “General”
Choose “Downloaded”
Scroll down till you find Facebook
Tap on FB
Tap on “Uninstall” or “Uninstall updates.”
How to delete FB app from iPhone or iPad
Visit settings Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.
Tap on “General.”
Choose “Storage.”
Tap on Settings -> tap “General” -> tap “Device Storage”
Select the facebook app.
Tap on “Delete the app.”
Tap on “Delete to confirm that you want to delete the app.”
How to erase the account on behalf of others
If you have found out that someone is clearly under 13 years old, you should report their account. If facebook can verify with enough reason that someone under 13 years of age uses the account, they will delete the account right away, without informing others.
The other way how to delete someone else’s account from this platform. Is to request removal of account of someone who is medically incapacitated. For this request to be approved, you must prove that you are the guardian of that person, for which you are asking to erase the account from this social media site. But you will also need an official statement from a medical doctor or facility, that spells out his incapacitation. But you should redact any info like numbers, address, etc. to keep some privacy of that person.
And the last option how to delete someone else profile is in case that the user has passed away. But to be able to do this, you will have to be listed as a legacy contact of that person on facebook. If you have that, you should have access to that user’s timeline. To delete that user’s account, you will have to upload proper documentation like a death certificate.
How to set up a legacy contact
This is again quite simple.
Go to settings
Click on “General”
Click on “Manage Account”
Choose Your Legacy Contact
Once this option is set up, you will receive a notification yearly from FB to double-check if that person should remain the same.
My last thoughts
If there was anything unclear in this tutorial on how to delete facebook account and what are other ways to disable or remove your account from this platform. Just contact me, and I will try to help you with your issue. Or I only might edit it in this article.
![How to Unblock someone on Instagram in [Year] on PC & Smartphone](https://olivias-blog.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/How-to-Unblock-someone-on-Instagram.jpg "How to Unblock someone on Instagram in [Year] on PC & Smartphone")
