It is absolutely possible to manage two or more Facebook accounts on a single phone. With multiple accounts and profiles now being common, Facebook has made it relatively easy to use more than one account on the same mobile device.
Why would you want multiple Facebook accounts on one phone?
There are a few common reasons why someone may want to access multiple Facebook accounts from their phone:
- Maintaining separate personal and business profiles
- Managing pages or groups you admin in addition to your personal profile
- Having multiple personal profiles for different facets of your identity or social circles
- Overseeing a profile for your child or family member
The core Facebook app makes it simple to stay logged into multiple accounts at the same time and switch between them. You can also use secondary apps like Facebook Pages Manager and Facebook Local to access specialized account types.
How to set up multiple Facebook accounts on iOS
Setting up multiple Facebook accounts on an iPhone or iPad takes just a few steps:
- Download the latest version of the Facebook app from the App Store if you don’t already have it.
- Open the Facebook app and log into your main Facebook account as usual.
- Tap the dropdown menu in the top right corner and select “Log Out.”
- Log into your second Facebook account with the email/phone and password.
- Once logged in, tap the dropdown menu again. You should now see both accounts listed.
- Tap the account you want to switch to. Repeat to toggle between accounts.
Once you’re logged into both, you can easily access either profile simply by selecting the account you want from the dropdown menu. You’ll then be switched over to see notifications, messages, and feeds for that particular account.
Staying logged into multiple accounts
Whenever you force quit the Facebook app, it will log you out of all accounts. To stay persistently logged into both:
- Enable the “Background App Refresh” setting on your device.
- Make sure push notifications are enabled for the Facebook app.
This will keep you logged into both accounts in the background and reconnect you instantly when launching the app again.
How to set up multiple Facebook accounts on Android
Managing multiple Facebook accounts works very similarly on Android as well:
- Install the latest version of the Facebook app if needed.
- Open the app and log into your main Facebook account.
- Tap the hamburger menu and choose “Log Out.”
- Log into your other Facebook account next.
- Once logged in, open the hamburger menu again to see both accounts.
- Tap the account profile pic to switch between accounts.
After following these steps, you’ll be able to toggle between each Facebook account right from the handy hamburger menu. Tap the profile icon for the account you want to use.
Persistent login on Android
To stay logged into all accounts even when force closing the app on Android:
- Enable “Background data” for the Facebook app.
- Allow notifications from the Facebook app.
This will keep you logged into both profiles in the background and reconnect you instantly when relaunching Facebook.
Using Facebook Pages Manager
If you need to manage one or more Facebook Pages in addition to your personal profile, the official Facebook Pages Manager app can make it easier.
Once installed, Facebook Pages Manager will let you:
- Switch between and post to multiple Pages
- View notifications and messages for each Page
- Monitor comments and activity on your Pages
While Pages Manager is dedicated specifically to Pages, you can still access your personal profile from the hamburger menu. This provides a streamlined way to oversee all your accounts and Pages from one place.
Adding multiple users to your device
If you need to regularly switch between entirely separate Facebook accounts belonging to different users, you can set that up as follows:
On iOS
- Go to Settings > Facebook.
- Tap “Add Account” to add another user.
- Enter their Facebook login credentials.
- Switch between users from Settings anytime.
On Android
- Go to device settings > Users & accounts > Add account.
- Tap Facebook.
- Enter the email and password for the other Facebook account.
- Toggle between users by opening device settings.
This effectively allows complete multi-user support for Facebook on your phone. Each user will stay persistently logged into their own account for quick access.
Using multiple Facebook accounts on desktop
It’s also easy to manage multiple Facebook accounts from your desktop browser:
- Visit Facebook.com and log into your first account.
- Click your profile picture > Log Out.
- Log into your other account next.
- Use the dropdown menu on the top bar to switch between accounts.
One limitation here is that you’ll get logged out of all accounts if you close the browser. Using multiple browsers or Incognito/Private browsing windows can let you stay logged into multiple accounts simultaneously.
Third-party apps for easier account switching
If toggling between accounts via the mobile Settings or website navbar isn’t convenient enough, third-party utilities like Sideloadly, Parallel Space, and Island offer another way.
These apps let you clone your existing Facebook install into separate spaces. Each one can stay logged into its own account for fast parallel access. While convenient, they do add some bulk and overhead compared to the first-party options.
Limits on using multiple Facebook accounts
There are a couple caveats to keep in mind when using multiple Facebook accounts:
- Facebook restricts the number of accounts you can create to 4 per person.
- Accounts must represent real identities and adhere to Facebook’s naming policies.
- Fake or duplicate accounts are against Facebook’s terms of service.
As long as you use real identities and don’t exceed the 4 account limit, accessing multiple accounts from one device is perfectly fine per Facebook’s policies.
Conclusion
The Facebook mobile apps and website provide handy built-in tools for using multiple accounts and profiles from one phone or computer.
On mobile, you can log into separate accounts and switch between them using the dropdown menu. Staying logged into all of them in the background is just a matter of enabling the right permissions.
For managing Pages and other specialized accounts, the complementary Pages Manager and Local apps can help. And for separate user accounts, iOS and Android settings provide system-level support.
On desktop, you can toggle between logged in accounts using the top navigation bar. Using multiple browsers in parallel lets you stay logged into separate accounts at the same time.
With the right techniques, juggling multiple Facebook profiles and accounts on one device is smooth and convenient.