How to Deactivate Facebook Messenger Properly

Most people are aware of the difference between deleting and deactivating a Facebook account. If you deactivate Facebook you’re temporarily deleting your account and can reactivate it at any time. If you delete Facebook you’re permanently removing your data.

However, you might not realize that deactivating your Facebook account does not deactivate Facebook Messenger. People will still be able to see you and can attempt to contact you. With that in mind, here’s how to deactivate Facebook Messenger.

How to Deactivate Facebook Messenger

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Before you can deactivate Facebook Messenger, you need to deactivate your Facebook account. We’ve previously explained how to deactivate your Facebook account. If you’ve not yet done so, you need to go and do it before continuing.

Remember that deactivating Facebook and deleting Facebook mean different things for your privacy. If you want to learn more, read the linked article before proceeding.

Once you’re ready to move forward, follow the simple step-by-step instructions below:

Open the Messenger app.
Tap on your profile picture in the upper left-hand corner.
Scroll down and select Legal and Policies.
On the next screen, choose Deactivate Messenger.
Enter your password.
Tap on Continue.

To reactivate Facebook Messenger, just log back into the Messenger app using your username and password.

Also, remember that you can still appear offline on Facebook Chat without taking the drastic step of deactivating your Facebook account.

What Happens When You Deactivate Messenger?

Now that you know how to deactivate Facebook Messenger, no one will be able to see your profile in the app or send you messages in existing conversations.

Reactivating Messenger will also reactivate your main Facebook account. If you only want to keep the Messenger service, you will need to deactivate your Facebook account for a second time.

And keep in mind that if you delete your Facebook account completely, you will lose access to Messenger as well. Sadly, there is no way to keep Messenger without maintaining a Facebook profile.

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Dan Price
(1569 Articles Published)

Dan joined MakeUseOf in 2014 and has been Partnerships Director since July 2020. Reach out to him for inquires about sponsored content, affiliate agreements, promotions, and any other forms of partnership. You can also find him roaming the show floor at CES in Las Vegas every year, say hi if you’re going. Prior to his writing career, he was a Financial Consultant.

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