Where to find Facebook privacy settings

Facebook privacy settings live in one place: the Settings & Privacy menu in the top right of your screen. Click the downward arrow or three horizontal lines (depending on whether you're on desktop or mobile), then select Settings & Privacy, then Settings. This opens your account settings page. On the left sidebar, click Privacy. Everything you need to control who sees your posts, your profile, and your information is on this one page.

The privacy page is organized into sections. Each setting has a dropdown menu showing your current choice — usually "Public," "Friends," "Friends Except," or "Only Me." Click any dropdown to change it. Facebook saves changes automatically, so you don't need to hunt for a save button.

Key Takeaways

  • Privacy settings are in Settings & Privacy > Settings > Privacy on the left sidebar, and changes save automatically.
  • Your "Who can see your posts?" setting controls whether new posts go to everyone, friends only, or a custom list you create.
  • The "Who can contact you?" and "Who can see your friends list?" settings are separate from post visibility and need to be changed individually.
  • You can limit past posts all at once using "Limit past posts," which changes all old posts to friends-only without deleting them.
  • Profile visibility settings let you hide your profile picture, cover photo, or entire profile from specific people or groups.

Controlling who sees your new posts

The first setting on the privacy page is "Who can see your posts?" This controls the default audience for anything you post going forward. The three main options are Public (anyone on or off Facebook can see it), Friends (only people you've added as friends), and Private (only you). You can also choose Custom to create a specific list — for example, "friends except coworkers" or "only family."

This setting does not change posts you've already made. If you posted something as Public last month and then change this setting to Friends, that old post stays Public unless you edit it individually. That's why the "Limit past posts" option exists — it's a separate setting that changes all your old posts to friends-only in one action.

Limiting all your old posts at once

Scroll down the privacy page until you see "Limit past posts." Click it. A popup appears asking "Limit past posts?" with a description: "This will change the audience of posts you've shared with friends of friends or Public to friends only. It will not change posts shared with only friends." Click Limit Past Posts to confirm.

This action changes every post you've ever made that was set to Public or Friends of Friends to Friends only. It does not delete the posts — they stay on your timeline, just with a smaller audience. If you want to delete old posts instead, you have to do that manually or use Facebook's archive feature, which is a different tool.

Controlling who can contact you and see your friends list

Two other privacy settings sit below the post visibility options: "Who can contact you?" and "Who can see your friends list?" These are independent of post visibility. You might allow everyone to message you but only show your friends list to friends, or vice versa.

The "Who can contact you?" setting controls messages and friend requests. Options are usually Public (anyone), Friends (friends only), or Friends of Friends. The "Who can see your friends list?" setting is separate — it controls whether people can see the list of people you're connected to. Most people set this to Friends only to keep their social network private.

Hiding your profile from specific people

If you want to hide your profile from one person or a small group without blocking them entirely, scroll to "Who can look you up?" and "Do you want other search engines to link to your profile?" Below those, you'll find "Block users." This lets you block specific people from seeing your profile, posts, and contacting you.

Blocking is different from unfriending. When you unfriend someone, they can still see your public posts and profile (unless you've changed other settings). When you block someone, they cannot see your profile, posts, or find you in search. They won't be notified that you blocked them, but if they try to visit your profile, they'll see a message saying the profile isn't available.

Controlling who sees your profile picture and cover photo

Your profile picture and cover photo have separate privacy controls from your posts. Go to your profile by clicking your name or profile picture anywhere on Facebook. Click the three dots on your profile picture, then select Edit. A menu appears with options including Who can see this? Click that option to change visibility for just that image.

You can set your profile picture to Public, Friends, Friends Except (friends minus a specific list), or Only Me. The same options explore to your cover photo. These settings do not affect the privacy of photos you post in albums — those follow the post privacy rules you've set.

Managing app and website access to your information

Below the main privacy settings, you'll see "Apps and websites." This controls which apps and websites can see your Facebook information. Click "Apps and websites" to see a list of apps you've connected to Facebook. You can remove access for any app by clicking it and selecting Remove.

You can also control what information apps see by clicking "Edit" next to an app. Options usually include whether the app can see your email, friends list, birthday, or other profile details. Removing an app's access does not delete your account on that app — it just disconnects it from Facebook. You may need to log in using a different method if you were using Facebook Login.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I set different privacy levels for different posts?

Yes. When you create a post, click the audience dropdown (it shows "Friends," "Public," or whatever your default is) and choose a different audience for that single post. This overrides your default setting for just that post. Old posts can be edited individually by clicking the three dots on the post and selecting Edit privacy.

What does "Friends Except" mean?

Friends Except lets you post to all your friends except a specific list you create. For example, you could post to "Friends Except Coworkers" so your coworkers don't see it but your other friends do. Create the list first in your privacy settings, then select it when posting.

If I block someone, can they still see my old posts they already liked or commented on?

No. When you block someone, they lose access to your entire profile and all your posts, including ones they previously interacted with. Their likes and comments remain in the database but are hidden from view.

Does changing my privacy settings affect photos other people posted of me?

No. Your privacy settings only control content you post or create. Photos someone else posted of you follow their privacy settings, not yours. You can ask them to change the privacy of the photo, or you can untag yourself from it, but you cannot force it private unilaterally.

What happens if I set my profile to private but someone screenshots my posts?

Facebook's privacy settings control who can see your content on the platform, but they cannot prevent someone from taking a screenshot or recording their screen. If you post something, assume anyone who can see it might save it.