TL;DR
Yes, it is possible to delete every comment you’ve made on Facebook, but it requires some manual work. There is no automated way to mass delete all of your comments at once. You’ll have to go through your activity log and delete comments individually or in batches. Some tips to make it easier:
- Use the activity log filter to only show comments.
- Sort comments from newest to oldest.
- Go back through your history year by year.
- Delete in batches – select all then delete.
Completely removing comments requires digging into old posts, but it can be done with some patience. Comments made in Facebook groups may require leaving each group to remove them.
What options are available for deleting my comments?
Facebook provides a few different options for removing your own comments:
Delete Individual Comments
The easiest way to delete a comment is to go to the post it’s on and select “Delete” under that specific comment. This removes it instantly. However, this only works one comment at a time.
Bulk Delete Comments
On your own posts, you can bulk delete by selecting Comments below the post, then choosing which comments to remove and deleting them all at once. However, this only works on your own posts.
Activity Log Filters
The best way to mass delete comments is using filters in your Activity Log. You can filter to only show comments you’ve made in the past. Select a date range, click the comments, then delete them in batches.
This still requires going through and deleting batches manually using the log. There’s no “delete all” comments feature.
Step-by-Step Guide to Deleting All Facebook Comments
Here is a step-by-step walkthrough on how to find and mass delete all of the comments you’ve ever made on Facebook:
1. Go to Your Activity Log
– On Facebook, click on the arrow in the top right and select “Activity Log” from the dropdown menu.
2. Filter Comments
– Once on your activity log, click on the “Filters” dropdown menu near the top left.
– Select “Comments” to show only comment activity.
3. Select Date Range
– Next to the filters, choose a date range to view comments made during that time period.
– Start with the most recent year and work backwards.
4. Sort Comments
– Use the “Sort” dropdown to sort comments from newest to oldest.
5. Select Comments
– Scroll through your history and click the checkbox beside each comment to select it.
6. Delete in Batches
– Once you’ve selected a batch of comments, click the “Move to Trash” button at the top to delete them.
7. Repeat the Process
– Return to step 3 and repeat the process for earlier date ranges year by year. Delete comments in batches as you scroll through your history.
This tedious process is the only way currently available to mass delete all Facebook comments you’ve made over the years. There is no “delete all” option.
Tips for Deleting Hundreds or Thousands of Comments
It can be time consuming to mass delete a lot of comments built up over many years on Facebook. Here are some tips to make it a bit easier:
- Set aside time to tackle this in chunks. Don’t rush.
- Work backwards year by year to get newest comments first.
- Delete big batches of 50-100 comments at a time.
- Consider using a third party tool like Social Book Post Manager which allows mass selecting and deleting comments.
If you’ve been active on Facebook for over a decade, you could have thousands of comments to remove. Be patient and methodical. Work through your history section by section.
What About Comments in Groups?
While your main news feed comments can be mass deleted from your activity log, comments made within Facebook groups require an extra step.
When you want to remove all your comments from a group:
- Go to the group and choose to Leave Group
- This will delete all your comments in that group
- To remain a member, rejoin the group after leaving
Leaving and rejoining is the only way to bulk remove all comments made in groups over time.
Can I Retrieve Deleted Facebook Comments?
No, once you delete a Facebook comment it is permanently removed. There is no trash or archive where deleted comments are stored. They are erased from Facebook’s servers.
Some key facts about deleted Facebook comments:
- They cannot be retrieved with the account holder
- They are completely erased from Facebook’s system
- Not even Facebook admins can get them back once deleted
- There is no temporary holding area or trash – they are permanently deleted
The only record that a deleted comment ever existed may remain in email notifications or screen captures. But the comment itself will be impossible to retrieve once removed from Facebook.
Does Deleting Comments Also Remove Metadata?
Deleting a Facebook comment removes the text contents of the comment. However, some metadata about the comment may remain in Facebook’s system:
- Date and time the comment was posted
- Page or post the comment was on
- Usernames involved
- Which account posted the comment
While the actual text and contents of the comment disappear, the metadata showing comment activity occurred may remain in server logs and analytics data.
This is similar to how deleting a post keeps metadata like date, time, and poster – but removes the actual contents.
Can You Delete All Comments At Once?
Many people want to know if there’s a way to mass delete or erase all Facebook comments they’ve ever made all at once. Unfortunately this is not possible.
Reasons you cannot mass delete all Facebook comments instantly:
- No native Facebook tool exists to delete all comments
- You must manually filter and delete batches with date ranges
- Comments are tied to posts and require individual removal
- Group comments require leaving then rejoining each group
- Facebook wants manual labor to delete large amounts of data
Because each comment is tied to a post or page, there’s no easy way for Facebook to let you remove them all globally. You’ll have to put in the work filtering and mass deleting batches from your log history.
Mistakes to Avoid When Deleting Comments
It’s easy to make mistakes when trying to remove a lot of old Facebook comments. Here are some pitfalls to avoid:
- Deleting too fast and skipping some comments
- Not carefully filtering activity log to just show comments
- Trying to bulk delete from other user’s posts
- Forgetting to leave and rejoin Facebook groups to remove those comments
- Accidentally deleting posts/photos instead of just comments
Rushing the process can lead you to miss comments or delete more than intended. Work slowly with activity log filters to only delete comments.
Double check each batch before clicking delete. And be aware of group comment removal needing an extra step.
Third Party Tools to Delete Facebook Comments
The manual activity log method is tedious for deleting thousands of Facebook comments. Some third party tools exist to help automate part of the process:
Social Book Post Manager
– Browser extension to manage posts and comments
– Bulk select comments from your history
– Delete up to 100 comments at once
FB Comment Delete Chrome Extension
– Browser tool for deleting comments in bulk
– 50 comments at a time
– Claims to save 80% of time over manual method
FacePager Chrome Extension
– Scrapes your data to CSV files
– Lets you mass delete comments from the files
– More tech savvy process
These tools still require manual inputs and filtering, but can speed up mass deleting big batches of comments. Handle your Facebook data cautiously when using third party software.
Should You Delete Facebook Comments?
Here are some pros and cons to weigh when considering mass deleting your old Facebook comments:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| – Removes embarrassing/inflammatory remarks | – Time consuming without bulk delete option |
| – Disassociates your name from certain posts/pages | – You lose context in conversations or groups |
| – Limits public profile content about you | – Difficult to remove every trace of comments |
| – Can help create a fresh start on Facebook | – Metadata like dates and usernames may remain |
Overall it depends on your comfort with past comments and time available to put in the work. Delete individual inappropriate comments first then decide if you want a clean slate.
What Happens When You Delete Facebook Comments?
Here’s an overview of key things to know about what happens when comments are deleted:
- Comment text is permanently erased from Facebook
- Empty space left where comment existed in thread
- Author name changed to “Facebook User”
- Timestamp remains but date changes to deletion date
- Analytics data may still show activity, just not content
- In groups, comments completely disappear after leaving then rejoining
The comment itself vanishes – but some traces in the form of metadata remain. Comment deletion removes content, not all records of activity.
Understand that privacy is increased by removing comment text, but some data likely persists in Facebook’s systems.
Conclusion
It is possible, but laborious, to mass delete every Facebook comment you’ve ever made. The activity log provides tools to filter and bulk remove comments in batches. This requires patience and manually working through your history.
Third party browser extensions can speed up the process, but still involve filtering comments yourself. There is no “delete all” option to instantly erase every Facebook comment at once. Be strategic in deleting inappropriate comments and weigh the time investment to remove all old remarks. Understand metadata persists even when comment text is deleted.