How Do You Unfollow Someone on Facebook in 2024? The Complete Guide

Do you ever get annoyed seeing certain posts from friends in your Facebook News Feed? Or maybe you just want to limit updates from some people without fully disconnecting. With over 2 billion monthly active users, Facebook provides tools to tailor your feed by "unfollowing" people while remaining friends.

But how exactly does unfollowing work? What happens when you unfollow someone on Facebook? And is it possible to unfollow but stay Facebook friends?

In this detailed guide, we‘ll explore everything you need to know about unfollowing on Facebook, including:

• What unfollowing means and what happens
• If you stay Facebook friends after unfollowing
• Step-by-step instructions to unfollow
• How to follow someone again after unfollowing
• When to use the Snooze feature instead
• How to remove a Facebook friend completely
• Ways to hide your posts from friends without unfriending
• Tips for managing your News Feed moving forward

By the end of this guide, you‘ll feel empowered to customize your Facebook experience through strategic unfollowing andmore. Let‘s get started!

The Rise of Unfollowing on Facebook

With over 2.6 billion monthly active users as of Q4 2022, Facebook remains the biggest social media platform globally.

But with such a massive user base, comes great diversity in the types of content people post. From random rants and political takes to vacation pics and baby updates, not everything may interest you.

That‘s where unfollowing comes in.

Back in 2013, Facebook introduced the ability to "follow" public figures, news outlets, brands, and more. This expanded people‘s feeds beyond just friends and family.

Unfollowing emerged as a way to clean up your feed from follows you lost interest in. It then became an option for Facebook friends too as a middle ground between seeing everything and fully unfriending someone.

According to 2021 data from Socialinsider, over 50% of Facebook users unfollow people, pages, or groups to improve their News Feed experience.

Unfollowing allows you to stay Facebook friends with someone while choosing not to see their public posts in your highly personalized feed.

Now let‘s explore exactly how unfollowing works and how to use it effectively.

What Happens When You Unfollow Someone on Facebook?

When you unfollow a Facebook friend, their public posts and activity simply stop appearing in your News Feed. It‘s a way to mute their updates without fully disconnecting.

Here are key things to know about what happens when you unfollow someone:

• Their future posts will not show up in your News Feed
• You remain Facebook friends and can still message each other
• You can visit their profile anytime to view their posts
• They will not be notified that you unfollowed them
• Your posts will still be visible to them unless you block them too

Essentially, unfollowing is like snoozing or muting their profile from your feed. You won‘t see their posts, but the friendship itself stays intact if you choose.

Next let‘s look at how exactly to unfollow on Facebook.

Step-by-Step: How to Unfollow Someone on Facebook

You can unfollow a Facebook friend right from their profile, posts, or your News Feed settings. Here are the simple steps for each method:

From their profile

1. Visit the profile of the person you want to unfollow
2. Click "Following" below their cover photo
3. Select "Unfollow" in the pop-up menu

From their posts

1. Click on any post from the person you wish to unfollow
2. Select the three dots in the top right corner
3. Choose "Unfollow"

From your News Feed preferences

1. Click the down arrow at the top and choose "News Feed Preferences"
2. Select "Unfollow People and Groups"
3. Click on the profile of the person you want to unfollow
4. Click "Done"

And you‘re all set! Going forward, that person‘s public posts will no longer pop up in your News Feed.

As you can see, Facebook makes it super easy to quickly unfollow people to take control of your feed.

Can You Unfollow but Stay Facebook Friends?

Absolutely, unfollowing does not affect your friendship or connection on Facebook in any way.

When you unfollow someone, here is what stays the same:

• You both remain friends on Facebook
• You can still message each other privately
• You can visit their profile and see all their posts
• Your posts are still visible to them by default

The only change is their public posts stop appearing in your personal News Feed. Think of unfollowing more as "muting" than totally disconnecting from someone.

Overall, unfollowing is about shaping the content you see from friends rather than removing connections. It‘s a personal curation tool for your News Feed.

Next let‘s look at how to start seeing posts again after unfollowing someone.

How to Follow Someone Again After Unfollowing

What if you change your mind and want to see posts again from someone you unfollowed? Re-following them is simple:

1. Go to your Facebook account
2. Click the down arrow and select "News Feed Preferences"
3. Choose "Reconnect with people and groups"
4. Pick the person you want to follow again
5. Click "Next"

Their public posts will now start appearing in your News Feed again.

One thing to note is the person won‘t be notified you re-followed them unless they have an analytics app connected. So you can easily follow again without any awkwardness.

When to Use Facebook‘s Snooze Feature Instead

If you just need a short break from someone‘s posts, try Facebook‘s Snooze feature instead of fully unfollowing:

• Snoozing hides posts from a person for 30 days
• After 30 days, their posts automatically appear again
• People are not notified when you snooze them

Here are the steps to snooze someone temporarily:

1. Click the three dots above their post
2. Select "Snooze [name] for 30 days"

Snoozing is handy for taking a quick breather from someone without formally unfollowing them in your feed. The posts will come back after a month.

How to Remove a Facebook Friend Completely

If you wish to fully disconnect from someone on Facebook, you can unfriend them to remove them from your friends list:

1. Go to their profile page
2. Click "Friends" below their cover photo
3. Select "Unfriend"

Here are impacts of fully unfriending someone:

• Removes them from your friends list entirely
• They will no longer see any of your posts
• You won‘t see any of their profile posts either
• You can still view comments they make on mutual friends‘ posts

Unfriending is more permanent than unfollowing. Use it sparingly for people you truly wish to disconnect from on Facebook.

Hiding Your Posts from Specific Friends

Beyond unfollowing people, you can also hide your own posts from certain friends without unfriending them.

Putting someone on your Restricted List means they‘ll no longer see your posts in their own News Feed, even public ones visible to friends.

Here‘s how to restrict someone:

1. Go to "Settings & Privacy"
2. Click on "Settings"
3. Select "Blocking"
4. Choose "Edit List"
5. Select friends to restrict

People won‘t get notified if you restrict them. It simply removes your public posts from their News Feed privately on your end. They can still message you directly.

Restricting is great for limiting your sharing with acquaintances or friends you‘ve grown apart from over time.

Tips to Curate Your Ideal Facebook News Feed

Beyond unfollowing, here are some bonus tips to curate your perfect Facebook feed:

• Prioritize Close Friends. Use Facebook‘s "Close Friends" list to share certain posts with your inner circle first.
• Follow Interesting Pages. Discover and follow Facebook pages related to your hobbies, causes, sports teams, and more.
• Join Engaging Groups. Become a part of Facebook groups where you can connect over shared interests.
• Snooze Annoying Friends. Don‘t hesitate to hit snooze on friends who temporarily clog your feed.
• Give New Follow Suggestions a Try. Facebook suggests new friends and pages to follow based on your activity. Give them a chance!
• Re-Follow Old Friends. Every now and then, re-follow someone you unfollowed before to rediscover them.

Final Thoughts

We hope this guide gives you clarity and confidence for unfollowing on Facebook moving forward. While fully unfriending someone removes your connection, unfollowing allows you to shape your News Feed experience without impacting your friendship.

Don‘t hesitate to use Facebook‘s tools like unfollow, snooze, and restrict to take control for a personalized feed. Social media works best when it brings you joy!