Turn on birthday notifications in your notification settings

Facebook can send you notifications when your friends have birthdays, but the setting is off by default. You need to turn it on in your notification preferences — it takes about one minute. Once you do, you'll get a notification on the day of each friend's birthday, and you can also see upcoming birthdays in the sidebar of your Facebook home page.

The steps are the same whether you use Facebook on a computer or phone, though the exact location of buttons differs slightly. The notification will arrive the way you've set up other Facebook notifications — as a push notification on your phone, an email, or both, depending on your device and settings.

Key Takeaways

  • Birthday notifications are turned off by default, so you must manually enable them in your notification settings.
  • On a computer, go to Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then Notifications, then find Birthdays and toggle it on.
  • On a phone, open the menu, tap Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then Notifications, then Birthdays.
  • Once enabled, you'll see a notification on each friend's birthday and can view upcoming birthdays in your home page sidebar.
  • You can turn birthday notifications off the same way you turned them on if you no longer want them.

Enable birthday notifications on a computer

Open Facebook in your web browser and look for the downward-pointing arrow or three horizontal lines in the top right corner of the page. Click it to open a menu. Select Settings and Privacy, then click Settings.

On the left side of the page, you'll see a list of options. Click Notifications. Scroll down until you find the section labeled Birthdays. You should see a toggle switch next to it. Click the toggle to turn it on — it will change color (usually to blue) when it's active. That's all you need to do. Facebook will now send you birthday notifications.

Enable birthday notifications on your phone

Open the Facebook app and tap the three horizontal lines (called a menu icon) in the bottom right corner of the screen. On an iPhone, this may be in the bottom right; on Android, it's usually in the bottom right as well. Scroll down and tap Settings and Privacy, then tap Settings.

Scroll down the settings page until you see Notifications and tap it. Look for Birthdays in the list. Tap it to open the birthday notification options. You'll see a toggle switch — tap it to turn birthday notifications on. The toggle will change color when it's active, confirming the setting is now enabled.

Where to find upcoming birthdays on Facebook

Once you've turned on birthday notifications, Facebook shows upcoming birthdays in two places. On a computer, look at the right side of your home page — you'll see a section labeled Birthdays that lists friends with birthdays coming up in the next few days. On a phone, you may need to scroll down on your home page to find this section, or it might appear as a separate card.

Clicking or tapping on a friend's name in the Birthdays section takes you to their profile, where you can write on their wall or send them a message. This is useful if you want to wish someone a happy birthday but haven't received the notification yet, or if you want to plan ahead and see whose birthday is coming next week.

Adjust how you receive birthday notifications

After you turn on birthday notifications, Facebook sends them to you the same way it sends other notifications — through push notifications on your phone, email, or both. If you want to change how you receive birthday notifications specifically, you can do that in the same Notifications settings where you turned them on.

When you're in the Birthdays section of your Notifications settings, you'll see options for how to be notified. You might see choices like Push Notifications, Email, or In-App Notifications. Toggle each one on or off based on your preference. For example, you could turn on push notifications but turn off email if you don't want birthday reminder emails cluttering your inbox.

Turn off birthday notifications if you change your mind

If you decide you don't want birthday notifications anymore, the process is identical to turning them on. Go back to Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then Notifications, find Birthdays, and toggle the switch off. The toggle will return to its inactive state (usually gray), and you'll stop receiving birthday notifications.

You can turn this setting on and off as many times as you want. Some people turn it off during busy periods and turn it back on later. There's no penalty or waiting period — the change takes effect immediately.

Troubleshooting: Not receiving birthday notifications

If you've turned on birthday notifications but aren't receiving them, check a few things. First, make sure the toggle in your Notifications settings is actually on — sometimes it looks like it's on but isn't fully activated. Toggle it off and back on again to be sure. Second, check that you haven't muted notifications from Facebook entirely on your device. On a phone, go to your device's settings (not Facebook's settings) and look for notifications from the Facebook app — make sure they're not blocked.

Third, if you're expecting an email notification, check your spam or promotions folder. Sometimes email notifications from Facebook end up there instead of your inbox. If you still aren't receiving notifications after checking these things, try logging out of Facebook and logging back in, then checking your notification settings again. This often fixes notification problems that are caused by temporary glitches.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my friends know I got a birthday notification about them?

No. Facebook doesn't tell your friends whether you received a birthday notification. Your friends only know you remembered their birthday if you write on their wall, send them a message, or interact with their birthday post in some other visible way.

Can I get birthday notifications for only certain friends?

No. Facebook's birthday notification setting is all-or-nothing — you either get notifications for all friends' birthdays or none. You can't select specific friends to get notifications for. However, you can always check the Birthdays section on your home page to see whose birthday is coming up and choose who to reach out to.

What time of day will I get a birthday notification?

Facebook typically sends birthday notifications early in the morning on the day of the birthday, but the exact time varies. It depends on your time zone and Facebook's servers. You're not may provide to get it at a specific time — just sometime during that day.

If I turn off birthday notifications, will I still see birthdays in the sidebar?

No. When you turn off birthday notifications, Facebook also stops showing the Birthdays section on your home page. If you want to see upcoming birthdays, you need to have birthday notifications turned on.