{"id":134128,"date":"2019-04-16T19:51:48","date_gmt":"2019-04-16T17:51:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sftarticles.wpenginepowered.com\/en\/?p=134128"},"modified":"2025-07-01T22:06:20","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T05:06:20","slug":"delete-facebook-keep-messenger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/delete-facebook-keep-messenger\/","title":{"rendered":"Can I delete Facebook and still keep my Messenger account?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Facebook<\/p>\n

According to Pew Research<\/a>, just over half of Facebook users 18 and older have scaled back the amount of time spent on the platform<\/strong>. Maybe it’s a sign that we’re collectively growing weary of the social media giant.<\/p>\n

\r\n
\r\n
\r\n
\r\n \"Facebook\"\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n Facebook<\/span>\r\n Download NOW \u25ba<\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n <\/path><\/path>7<\/text><\/svg>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n <\/span>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n

Perhaps you\u2019re outraged following the Cambridge Analytica scandal<\/a>. Maybe you\u2019re sick of all the notifications. Or, thanks to Facebook, you now know you come from a family of monsters with fringe political views.<\/p>\n

Whatever the case, deleting Facebook has never looked so good.<\/strong><\/p>\n

But, one of the most powerful ways good old FB keeps users hooked is the connection to its massively popular chat app, Messenger.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\r\n
\r\n
\r\n
\r\n \"Messenger\"\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n Messenger<\/span>\r\n Download NOW \u25ba<\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n <\/path><\/path>7<\/text><\/svg>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n <\/span>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n

Which brings us to this \u2014 can you delete Facebook and still keep your Messenger account<\/strong>? The answer is… kind of.<\/em><\/p>\n

Best bet: Deactivate your Facebook, keep Messenger<\/h3>\n

\"Delete<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll say this outright; you need to technically keep your Facebook account if you want to continue using Messenger as is.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Deactivation is almost the same thing, except, well, Facebook still hangs onto your data. You know, for later<\/em>.<\/p>\n

To do this, head over to your account settings.<\/strong> From there, navigate to the section on the left labeled, “Your Facebook Information.”<\/strong> Click\u00a0“Delete Your Account Information.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Delete<\/p>\n

There, you’ll see two options. One is to deactivate your account<\/strong> and the second is to download a copy of your information before you delete your account.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Next time you log into the app, you\u2019ll see the following screen:<\/p>\n

\"Keep<\/p>\n

There are a couple of downsides associated with deactivating your account over deleting it. If you just don\u2019t like the platform but want to keep using Messenger, there shouldn\u2019t be a problem.<\/strong><\/p>\n

If privacy and data breaches<\/a> are your primary motivator for getting rid of your account, deactivation isn\u2019t a full-blown cleanse. Facebook saves all of your photos, posts, and associated data<\/strong> in case you decide to come back.<\/p>\n

Photos of you that appear on other peoples\u2019 accounts may still exist, as will any tagged comments or photos. They just won\u2019t link to your profile anymore.<\/p>\n

To be honest, if you want a good messaging app, you can always just download WhatsApp.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\r\n
\r\n
\r\n
\r\n \"WhatsApp\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n WhatsApp Messenger<\/span>\r\n Download WhatsApp \u25ba<\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n <\/path><\/path>8<\/text><\/svg>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n <\/span>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n

You can’t officially delete Facebook without deleting Messenger<\/h2>\n

\"Facebook<\/p>\n

If you do decide to delete your account, Facebook will delay the actual deletion for up to 14 days<\/strong>. If you log in at any point during the interim, Facebook will reactivate your account.<\/p>\n

According to the website, some data may remain in the system for up to 90 days<\/strong>. However, your information will not be available to other Facebook users.<\/p>\n

As far as Messenger is concerned, Facebook is pretty clear. If you click the option to delete your account permanently, you\u2019ll have the option to keep Messenger deactivated instead.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the difference between deleting Facebook and deactivating?<\/h2>\n

\"Deactivate\"<\/p>\n

Deactivation means you\u2019ll disappear from the timeline<\/a> and you won\u2019t have access to the site or any built-in apps (aside from Messenger, of course).<\/p>\n

But, as Facebook says, you can always come back.<\/p>\n

When you delete your account, you\u2019ll need to start from scratch<\/strong> if you change your mind. That said, erasing yourself from the platform means that you\u2019ll be giving up your Messenger access.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Download your Facebook data before you go<\/h2>\n

Before you delete your account, Facebook will give you the option to download your personal data file. You may want to do this if you\u2019ve been using Facebook to store photos<\/strong> or want to hang onto other information.<\/p>\n

Downloading your data can also function as a reality check of sorts. Facebook, as well as others like Google and Apple, know a ton about you and make tons of money off of these revelations.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\r\n
\r\n
\r\n
\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n

Delete this app now, it is selling your data<\/p>\r\n Read Now \u25ba<\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n

So, what happens to your data after<\/em> you delete Facebook?<\/p>\n

According to the Facebook help center, it could take up to 90 days to delete your entire record.<\/strong> After those 90 days are up, a few traces of your online past will live on.<\/p>\n

Things like Messenger records may still exist in your friends\u2019 accounts well after you\u2019ve closed up shop.<\/p>\n

Keep in mind that deleting your Facebook account doesn\u2019t mean that your information will be pulled from elsewhere, either. FB\u2019s business model depends on selling data to third-party vendors<\/strong>, so it\u2019s possible some of your information will continue to float around the web.<\/p>\n

You don’t need a Facebook account to use Messenger, anyway<\/h2>\n

When Facebook initially debuted Messenger, people thought that the separate app was somewhat unnecessary.<\/p>\n

That was back in 2015. The 2016 election and subsequent privacy breaches had yet to change the public\u2019s view of the platform.<\/p>\n

The real benefit of the app is, you don\u2019t need to have a Facebook account to use it at all. So, why not download the app, update your friends, and say goodbye to the Facebook scene once and for all?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\r\n

More on Messenger<\/p>\r\n

\r\n \r\n
\r\n
\r\n
<\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n

How to read messages on Facebook Messenger without the sender knowing \u25ba<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n

\r\n
\r\n
\r\n
<\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n

10 Facebook Messenger tricks and secrets that will amaze your friends \u25ba<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n \r\n

\r\n
\r\n
<\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n
\r\n

How to see your chat history on Messenger \u25ba<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tired of Facebook drama, but you want to keep Messenger? You can have your cake and eat it, too! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9161,"featured_media":134584,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","wpcf-pageviews":1},"categories":[2518,2441],"tags":[2353,1059,1946],"usertag":[],"vertical":[],"content-category":[],"class_list":["post-134128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guides","category-how-to","tag-app-subdomain-redirectionfacebook","tag-facebook","tag-messenger"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9161"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134128"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134128\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":326251,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134128\/revisions\/326251"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134128"},{"taxonomy":"usertag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/usertag?post=134128"},{"taxonomy":"vertical","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vertical?post=134128"},{"taxonomy":"content-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content-category?post=134128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}