Facebook does not tell you who has viewed your profile

Facebook does not provide a built-in feature that shows you a list of people who have looked at your profile. This is a common misconception, partly because third-party apps and websites claim to offer this service — they do not work, and many are designed to steal your login information or data.

What Facebook does track is different: you can see who has viewed your Stories, who has reacted to your posts, and who has visited your profile photo or cover photo in the last 30 days. But a general "profile view" counter or list does not exist on the platform, and no legitimate way to access one exists outside Facebook either.

Key Takeaways

  • Facebook does not show you a list of people who have viewed your profile, and no third-party app can retrieve this information.
  • You can see who viewed your Story, who reacted to individual posts, and who visited your profile photo or cover photo in the past 30 days.
  • Apps claiming to show profile viewers are scams designed to harvest your login credentials or personal data.
  • Your profile visibility is controlled by your privacy settings, which determine who can see your posts, photos, and basic information in the first place.

What Facebook actually tracks about your profile activity

Facebook keeps detailed records of certain interactions, but not of passive profile browsing. When someone views your Story — the temporary photos or videos you post that disappear after 24 hours — Facebook shows you their name. You can see this list by opening your Story and tapping the eye icon at the bottom of the screen.

For individual posts, you can see who has reacted (liked, loved, laughed, etc.) and who has commented. You can also see who has viewed your profile photo or cover photo within the last 30 days by clicking on the photo itself and looking for a viewer count. This is the closest Facebook comes to showing you who has looked at your profile, but it only covers those specific images, not your overall profile.

Facebook does not track or display views of your timeline, your "About" section, your friends list, or your photo albums. If someone visits your profile to read your posts or look at your photos, you will not know it happened.

Why third-party apps claiming to show profile viewers are dangerous

Dozens of apps and websites promise to reveal who has viewed your profile. None of them work. Facebook's privacy rules prevent third-party developers from accessing the data needed to create such a list, even if you give the app permission to access your account.

What these apps actually do is ask you to log in with your Facebook credentials. When you do, you are handing over your username and password to a third party. The app then either sells your login information to scammers, uses your account to spam your friends, or harvests your personal data to sell to data brokers. Some apps install malware on your device or redirect you to phishing pages designed to steal more of your information.

If you have already used one of these apps, change your Facebook password immediately. Go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Password and create a new one that is at least 16 characters long and includes numbers, symbols, and both uppercase and lowercase letters. Then review your active login sessions by going to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Security and login > Where you're logged in, and log out of any sessions you do not recognize.

How to control who can see your profile in the first place

Rather than worrying about who has viewed your profile, focus on controlling who can see it. Your privacy settings determine whether strangers, friends of friends, or only your friends can access your profile at all.

To adjust these settings, go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Privacy. Under "Who can see your posts?", you can choose "Public" (anyone on or off Facebook), "Friends" (only people you have added), or "Friends except..." (everyone except specific people). Under "Who can contact you?", you can limit messages to friends only. Under "Who can look you up?", you can control whether people can find you by email or phone number.

You can also make your profile completely private by setting "Who can see your profile?" to "Friends only" or "Me only". This prevents anyone outside your chosen audience from seeing your timeline, photos, or basic information. Keep in mind that your name, profile picture, and cover photo are always visible to anyone on Facebook, regardless of your privacy settings.

What you can control on your profile page itself

Beyond account-wide privacy settings, you can hide specific content from your profile. When you post something, you can choose its audience before you post it — click the audience selector (usually showing "Friends" or "Public") and pick who sees that particular post.

You can also hide old posts from your timeline without deleting them. Go to your profile, find the post, click the three dots in the corner, and select "Hide from profile". The post still exists and your friends can find it if they search for it, but it no longer appears on your timeline for people browsing your profile.

For photos, you can untag yourself from photos you do not want associated with your profile. Find the photo, click the three dots, select "Report photo" or "Remove tag", and choose the option that fits. You can also ask the person who posted the photo to take it down or change its privacy settings.

Understanding Facebook's actual data collection practices

While Facebook does not track profile views, it does collect enormous amounts of other data about you. Facebook tracks which posts you pause on while scrolling, which links you click, which ads you hover over, and which videos you watch — even if you do not click "like". This data is used to build a detailed profile of your interests, which Facebook sells to advertisers.

Facebook also tracks your activity off the platform through the Facebook Pixel, a piece of code that websites install on their pages. When you visit a website with the Pixel installed, Facebook knows you were there, what you looked at, and whether you made a purchase. This happens whether you are logged into Facebook or not.

If you want to limit this tracking, go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Apps and websites and review what apps have access to your account. Remove any you no longer use. You can also turn off off-platform tracking by going to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Ads > Ad preferences and adjusting your settings, though this does not stop Facebook from collecting the data — it only limits how it is used to target ads to you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I see who viewed my profile on mobile?

No. Facebook does not show profile viewers on mobile, desktop, or any device. The only viewer information available is for Stories (tap the eye icon) and for profile photos or cover photos (tap the photo and look for a viewer count). These features work the same way on both mobile and desktop.

What if someone told me they can see who viewed my profile?

They are either mistaken or trying to scam you. No one — not even Facebook employees — can see a list of people who have viewed your profile. If someone is offering to show you this information, they are trying to get your login credentials or money.

Does Facebook notify people when I view their profile?

No. When you visit someone else's profile, they are not notified. The only exception is Stories — if you view someone's Story, they can see your name in their viewer list. For everything else on their profile, your visit is invisible to them.

If I make my profile private, can people still see my posts?

It depends on your settings. If you set your profile to "Friends only", only people you have added as friends can see your posts and photos. If you set it to "Me only", no one else can see anything on your profile. However, your name, profile picture, and cover photo are always visible to anyone on Facebook.

Can I hide my profile from specific people without unfriending them?

Yes. Go to your profile, click the three dots next to your name, select "Privacy", and choose "Limit past posts". This hides all your old posts from that person. For new posts, you can exclude specific people by clicking the audience selector before posting and choosing "Friends except..." to name people who should not see it.