Tags let other people link your name to their posts, and Facebook gives you control over whether those tags show up on your profile
When someone tags you in a Facebook post, photo, or comment, that tag doesn't automatically appear on your profile or in your timeline. Instead, it goes into a pending tags queue where you can review it first. You decide whether to approve the tag so it stays visible, or reject it so the tag is removed. This is Facebook's way of letting you control what gets associated with your name.
The tag itself still exists — the person who posted it can still see it — but other people won't see you connected to that post unless you approve it. This matters because tags can show up in your profile, in search results, and in other people's feeds, so Facebook assumes you want to look at them before they go live.
Key Takeaways
- Pending tags sit in a separate queue and don't appear on your profile until you approve them.
- You can review pending tags by going to your profile, clicking the three dots next to your name, and selecting "Review tags on profile."
- Approving a tag makes it visible on your profile and in feeds; rejecting it removes the tag from your profile but the post still exists.
- You can also turn on tag review in your privacy settings so all tags require your approval before they appear anywhere.
- Rejecting a tag does not delete the post or notify the person who tagged you — it only hides your name from that post.
Find your pending tags queue
Open Facebook and go to your profile by clicking your name in the top left corner or your profile picture. Once you're on your profile page, look for the three horizontal dots (the menu icon) next to your name and cover photo. Click those dots and a dropdown menu will appear.
Select "Review tags on profile" from that menu. This opens a list of all the tags people have added to posts that are waiting for your approval. You'll see the post, who tagged you, and what the post says. If you have no pending tags, this option may not appear or the list will be empty.
Approve or reject each tag one at a time
For each pending tag, you'll see two buttons: Approve and Remove Tag. Click Approve if you want the tag to show up on your profile and in feeds. The tag becomes public and people can see you're connected to that post. Click Remove Tag if you don't want your name linked to it.
When you remove a tag, your name disappears from that post on your profile, but the post itself stays up. The person who tagged you can still see the post and the tag — removing it only hides it from your profile and from other people's view of you. You won't get a notification saying you rejected the tag, and neither will the person who posted it.
Work through the list one tag at a time. There's no rush — tags stay pending until you deal with them, and you can come back to this list whenever you want.
Turn on automatic tag review in your settings
If you want every tag to require your approval before it appears anywhere — not just on your profile — you can turn on tag review in your privacy settings. Go to your profile, click the three dots next to your name, and select Settings and privacy, then Settings.
On the left side, click Privacy. Look for the section called Who can tag you in posts? and click the dropdown next to it. Select Friends or Only me depending on how restrictive you want to be. Then find Review tags people add to your own posts before the tags appear on Facebook and toggle it on.
Once this setting is on, every tag — whether it's on your own posts or someone else's — will wait for your approval. This gives you the most control but also means you'll get more notifications asking you to review tags.
Understand what happens when you reject a tag
Rejecting a tag is not the same as reporting a post or asking Facebook to take it down. The post stays exactly where it is. The person who posted it can still see it, and their friends can still see it. You're only removing your name from it on your end.
If the post itself violates Facebook's rules — if it's harassment, spam, or something else that shouldn't be there — you can report the post separately by clicking the three dots on the post itself and selecting Report post. But rejecting a tag just hides your connection to it.
Check your tag review setting if tags keep appearing
If you're seeing tags on your profile that you never approved, your tag review setting may be turned off. Go back to Settings and Privacy, then Settings, then Privacy, and check whether Review tags people add to your own posts before the tags appear on Facebook is toggled on or off.
If it's off, tags will appear immediately without waiting for your approval. Turning it on won't remove tags that are already there — you'll need to go to your pending tags queue and remove those manually. After you turn it on, all new tags will require your approval first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the person who tagged me know if I reject the tag?
No. Rejecting a tag is silent — the person who posted it won't get a notification. They can still see the tag on their own post, but other people won't see your name attached to it.
Can I approve a tag on someone else's post?
No. You can only approve or reject tags on posts where you are the one being tagged. If someone tags you in their post, you control whether it appears on your profile. The person who posted it controls whether it stays on their post.
What if I want to remove a tag that's already been approved?
Go to your profile, find the post with the tag, click the three dots on that post, and select Remove tag. This works the same way as rejecting a pending tag — your name disappears from your profile, but the post stays up.
Can I turn on tag review for only certain people?
No. Tag review is all or nothing — either all tags require your approval, or none do. You can't set it to only review tags from specific people. Your only option for controlling tags from certain people is to unfriend them or adjust their privacy level.
If I reject a tag, can the person tag me again in the same post?
No. Once you remove a tag from a post, that tag is gone. The person would have to create a new post and tag you in that one if they wanted to try again.