Stop Facebook notifications in three places

Facebook sends notifications through three separate channels: your phone's lock screen and home screen, the Facebook app itself, and your email inbox. To stop them completely, you need to turn them off in all three places, because turning off one does not affect the others. Most people find notifications pile up because they only disabled one channel and forgot about the rest.

The fastest route is your phone's settings, where you can block all Facebook notifications at once. But if you want to keep some notifications and silence only certain types — like friend requests or group activity — you will need to go into the Facebook app instead. Email notifications require a separate step in your Facebook account settings.

Key Takeaways

  • Phone settings let you turn off all Facebook notifications instantly, but you lose the ability to pick and choose which types you want to see.
  • The Facebook app's notification settings let you silence specific types of alerts while keeping others, like messages from close friends.
  • Facebook sends notifications through your phone, the app, and email — turning off one does not stop the others.
  • If you turn notifications back on later, they default to the loudest setting, so you will need to adjust them again.

Turn off all Facebook notifications on your phone

This is the quickest way to stop every Facebook notification from reaching your lock screen and home screen. On an iPhone, go to Settings, then Notifications, scroll down to Facebook, and tap it. Toggle off "Allow Notifications" at the top. On Android, go to Settings, then Apps or Application Manager, find Facebook, tap Notifications, and toggle off "Allow notifications".

The downside is that you will not see any notifications from Facebook at all — not messages, not friend requests, nothing. If you want to keep notifications for messages but silence everything else, skip this step and use the Facebook app settings instead.

Choose which Facebook notifications to receive in the app

Open Facebook and tap the three horizontal lines at the bottom right (iPhone) or top right (Android). Scroll down and tap Settings & Privacy, then Settings. Tap Notifications. You will see a list of notification types: Messages, Friend Requests, Comments, Likes, Group Activity, and others. Tap each one to see your options.

For each notification type, you can choose "On", "Off", or sometimes "Muted" or "Vibrate Only". If you want messages from close friends to come through but silence group notifications, turn Messages on and Group Activity off. You can also choose whether notifications make a sound, vibrate, or show a badge on the app icon. Adjust each type to match what actually matters to you.

This method takes longer than blocking all notifications at once, but it gives you control. You might turn on Messages and turn off everything else, for example, so you only hear from people who message you directly.

Stop Facebook email notifications

Facebook also sends emails about activity on your account, friend requests, group posts, and suggested content. To stop these, open Facebook in a web browser on your computer or phone, click the downward arrow at the top right, and select Settings & Privacy, then Settings. On the left side, click Emails. You will see a long list of email types.

Each email type has a checkbox. Uncheck the ones you do not want to receive. Common ones to turn off are "Suggested for you", "Group notifications", "Event invitations", and "Friend activity summaries". If you want to keep only messages and nothing else, uncheck everything except "Messages". Click Save after each change, or Facebook will not register it.

Silence notifications from specific people or groups

If you want to keep Facebook notifications on but silence one particular person or group, you do not need to change your settings. Instead, go to that person's profile or the group page, tap the three dots at the top right, and select "Mute" or "Mute notifications". You can choose to mute them for 30 days or indefinitely. The person will not know they are muted.

This is useful when a friend or group posts constantly but you still want notifications from everyone else. You can unmute them anytime by going back to their profile or group and tapping the three dots again.

What to do if notifications keep coming back

Sometimes after you turn off notifications, they reappear after a Facebook update or if you reinstall the app. This happens because app updates can reset your notification settings to the default. If notifications return, go back through the steps above — phone settings, app settings, and email settings — and turn them off again.

If you find yourself constantly re-disabling notifications, consider uninstalling the Facebook app and using Facebook through your phone's web browser instead. The browser version sends fewer notifications and does not use your phone's notification system, so you will only see alerts when you open Facebook yourself.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will people know I turned off notifications from them?

No. Turning off notifications only affects what your phone shows you — it does not change anything on Facebook's servers or anyone else's account. People cannot see your notification settings, and messages will still reach your inbox even if you do not get a notification about them.

Can I turn off notifications for just one type, like group posts?

Yes. In the Facebook app, go to Settings & Privacy, then Settings, then Notifications. Tap "Group Activity" and toggle it off while leaving other notification types on. You can customize each type separately.

Why do notifications come back after I turn them off?

App updates sometimes reset notification settings to the default. If this happens, go back to your phone settings or the Facebook app and turn them off again. Reinstalling the app will also reset your settings, so adjust them after you reinstall.

What is the difference between muting someone and turning off notifications?

Muting a specific person or group silences only their posts and activity, while turning off notifications affects all of Facebook. Muting is useful when one friend posts too much but you want alerts from everyone else.

If I turn off notifications, will I still see messages?

If you turn off all notifications in your phone settings, you will not see message notifications. But messages will still arrive in your inbox — you just will not get an alert. If you want to keep message notifications, use the Facebook app settings instead and turn off only the notification types you do not want.