Where to find the date of birth setting on Facebook
Your date of birth lives in your Facebook profile settings, not in your main profile page. Open Facebook, click the downward arrow in the top right corner, and select Settings and privacy, then Settings. On the left side, click Personal information. Your date of birth appears in this section alongside your email, phone number, and gender.
The exact location shifts slightly depending on whether you use Facebook on a phone or computer, but the path is the same: Settings and privacy → Settings → Personal information. If you are on a phone, the downward arrow becomes a menu icon (three horizontal lines) in the bottom right corner of the screen.
Key Takeaways
- Your date of birth is stored in Personal information under Settings, not on your visible profile page.
- You can change your birth date once every 60 days, and Facebook limits how many times you can change it in a year.
- If you entered your birth year wrong during signup, you may need to contact Facebook support if you have hit your change limit.
- Changing your date of birth does not affect your account security, login, or password.
The steps to change your birth date
Once you are in Personal information, find the line that shows your current date of birth. Click on the date itself or the pencil icon next to it. A box will open where you can type or select a new month, day, and year. Facebook usually shows a calendar picker on phones and a text field on computers, but both work the same way.
After you enter the new date, click Save or Done depending on your device. Facebook will confirm the change when ready. You will see the updated date in your Personal information section. The change takes effect right away and does not require you to log out or restart the app.
The 60-day waiting period between changes
Facebook enforces a rule: you can change your birth date only once every 60 days. If you just changed it, you will see a message saying when you can change it again. This limit exists to prevent account takeovers, since birth date is sometimes used to verify your identity if you lose access to your account.
If you made a mistake and need to change it again before 60 days have passed, you will have to wait. There is no way around this limit through the settings menu. Your only option is to contact Facebook support and explain the situation, though they may or may not override the restriction depending on the reason.
What happens if you have changed it too many times in one year
Facebook also limits the total number of times you can change your birth date in a calendar year. The exact number is not published, but users typically report hitting a yearly cap after four to six changes. Once you reach this limit, the change button disappears from your Personal information section, and you will see a message saying you have reached your limit.
If this happens, you will need to wait until January 1st of the next calendar year for the counter to reset. Alternatively, you can contact Facebook support and request a manual change, though approval is not may provide. When you contact them, explain why you need the change and provide any documents that support the correct date, such as a government ID.
Why Facebook restricts birth date changes
Birth date is one of the pieces of information Facebook uses to verify your identity if your account is locked or compromised. Someone who gains access to your account might try to change your birth date to lock you out further or to make the account harder to recover. The 60-day waiting period and yearly limit make it harder for attackers to use this method.
The restrictions also prevent people from using fake birth dates to bypass age-related settings. Facebook uses your birth date to determine whether you see age-restricted content and ads, and to enforce rules about who can contact you. Frequent changes would make these protections unreliable.
Changing your birth date does not affect your account or privacy
Updating your birth date does not change your password, login email, phone number, or any other account security setting. You will not be logged out, and you will not need to re-enter your password. Your friends will not be notified of the change unless your birth date is set to visible on your profile, in which case they will see the updated date the next time they visit your profile.
By default, your birth date is hidden from your profile and visible only to you and Facebook. You can control this in the same Personal information section by clicking the privacy icon next to your birth date and choosing Only me, Friends, or Public. Most people leave it set to Only me for privacy reasons.
What to do if you cannot change your birth date
If the change button is greyed out or missing, you have either hit the 60-day waiting period or the yearly limit. Check the message Facebook shows to see which one applies. If it is the 60-day wait, you will see the exact date when you can change it again.
If you have hit the yearly limit or if you believe the restriction is an error, go to the Facebook Help Center and search for "change date of birth". At the bottom of the help article, you will find a link to contact Facebook support. Describe your situation clearly and include the date you need your birth date to be. Response times vary, but Facebook usually replies within a few days to a week.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I change my birth date on the Facebook app instead of the website?
Yes. The steps are identical on the app and the website. Open the menu (three lines in the bottom right on iPhone, or the downward arrow in the top right on Android), go to Settings and privacy → Settings → Personal information, and click your birth date to edit it. The app version is often faster on phones because it uses a calendar picker instead of typing.
Will my friends see that I changed my birth date?
Only if your birth date is set to visible on your profile. By default it is hidden, so your friends will not see it or any changes you make to it. You can check your privacy setting by going to Personal information and clicking the privacy icon next to your birth date. If it says Only me, no one but you can see it.
What if I entered the wrong birth year when I signed up?
You can change it the same way as any other birth date, as long as you have not hit the 60-day or yearly limit. If you have, contact Facebook support and explain that you entered an incorrect year during signup. They are more likely to override the restriction for a genuine error than for other reasons.
Does changing my birth date affect my age on Facebook?
Yes. Facebook uses your birth date to calculate your age for content restrictions, ad targeting, and privacy settings. If you change your birth date to a year that makes you under 18, Facebook may restrict certain features or change who can contact you. If you change it to over 18, those restrictions lift.
Can I delete my birth date instead of changing it?
No. Facebook requires a birth date on every account. You cannot leave the field blank or remove it entirely. You must enter a valid month, day, and year. If you do not want anyone to see your birth date, set the privacy to Only me instead of trying to delete it.