Facebook’s privacy settings allow users to control who can see certain information on their profiles, including the pages and people they follow. By default, your list of followers is visible to anyone who visits your profile. However, you can change this setting to limit the visibility to only your friends or even just yourself.
Can people see all the pages I follow?
Yes, by default, anyone can see the full list of pages that you follow on Facebook. This allows people visiting your profile to get a sense of your interests and what kind of content you engage with on the platform.
To view the pages someone follows, go to their profile and click on the “Following” tab below their cover photo. This will show a list of all the Facebook pages that user currently follows.
Changing page follow visibility settings
If you want to limit who can see the pages you follow, you can adjust the settings via your profile:
- Click on the arrow in the top right corner and select “Settings & Privacy”
- Go to the “Settings” tab and click on “Privacy”
- Under the “Your Activity” section, click on “How people can find and contact you”
- Look for the “Who can see the pages you follow” setting and click on “Edit”
- Change the visibility to “Friends”, “Only Me”, or custom to exclude certain people
Once you save these settings, only people you allow will be able to see your page follows. Others visiting your profile will just see a message saying you’ve chosen to hide that information.
Are my friends’ follows visible to me?
Yes, you can see all the pages and profiles your Facebook friends follow. This allows you to discover new interests, brands, influencers, and more based on what your connections are engaging with.
To see what pages a friend follows:
- Go to your friend’s profile
- Click on the “Following” tab below their cover photo
- Scroll through the list to see pages and public figures they follow
You can also discover page recommendations on your News Feed based on what your friends have recently followed.
Can I hide my page follows from specific people?
If you don’t want certain people like coworkers, acquaintances, or family members seeing the pages you follow, Facebook allows you to customize exactly who can view your following list.
To hide page follows from specific people:
- Go to “Settings & Privacy” > “Settings” > “Privacy”
- Click on “How people can find and contact you”
- Next to “Who can see the pages you follow” select “Custom”
- Type in the names or friend lists you want to hide your follows from
- Click “Save Changes”
With this custom setting, you can exclude certain people while still allowing your other friends to see what pages you follow.
Does following a private account reveal it to others?
No, following a private Facebook account does not expose that account to anyone else. Your list of follows under the “Following” tab only shows public pages and profiles that anyone can visit. Private and friend-only accounts you follow will not show up here.
Can people see who I follow on Instagram?
Instagram does not have a “Following” tab, so there is no public list of accounts you follow. The only follows visible to others are the ones shown under “Following” on your main profile. Your full follow list remains private.
Making Instagram follows public
You can choose to make your Instagram follows public by switching your account to a Professional Account and turning on the “Show Followers and Following Lists” setting. However, for personal accounts this remains private by default.
Is my Twitter following list public or private?
On Twitter, your list of accounts you follow is always public. Anyone who visits your profile can see the complete list of users you follow on the “Following” tab.
Twitter does not have a way to hide follows or make this list private. The visibility of follows allows people to better understand your interests and community on the platform.
Can I see who someone follows on LinkedIn?
No, LinkedIn does not make follow lists public. You cannot see who someone follows, except for the small selection they choose to showcase as their “Following” on their profile.
This is to maintain professional privacy and prevent inappropriate solicitations based on someone’s follows. The only visibility is for pages and interests they actively choose to promote publicly.
Does YouTube show my channel subscriptions?
No, YouTube does not have a public list of the channels you are subscribed to. This data remains private and is not visible to other users.
YouTube focuses more on allowing you to publicly showcase your likes and dislikes on individual videos. But your full list of subscriptions stays private.
Can I see someone’s subscribers on YouTube?
Yes, the list of subscribers for any YouTube channel is public information. To see who subscribes to a channel:
- Go to the channel’s page
- Click on “Subscribers” below the channel’s banner
- This will show a list of all public subscribers
Channel owners can also access analytics to view subscriber data like locations, demographics, and viewing habits.
Is my TikTok following list visible to others?
No, TikTok does not make your list of follows public to other users. There is no way to see who someone follows on TikTok, even if you visit their profile.
The only follows that are publicly visible are the selected few accounts a user chooses to showcase on their profile as “Following.” But the full detailed list remains private.
Can I hide my followers on social media?
Most social platforms allow you to make your own list of followers private if you want to limit that visibility:
- Facebook – Adjust follower visibility in Settings & Privacy
- Instagram – Switch account to Professional to hide followers
- Twitter – Not possible to hide followers
- LinkedIn – Your followers are always private
- YouTube – Not possible to hide subscribers
- TikTok – Followers are always private
Should I be concerned about who can see my follows?
It depends on your comfort level with sharing information publicly on social media. If you are concerned about:
- Professional connections seeing your interests/fandoms
- Acquaintances or strangers making assumptions based on pages you follow
- Following controversial figures or topics
- Seeing recommendations based on follows you intended to be private
Then adjusting your follow visibility settings can help take control of what you share publicly versus what remains private. Understand the defaults, risks, and options you have across each platform.
Conclusion
Facebook and Twitter allow follows to be publicly visible by default, while other platforms like Instagram, LinkedIn, and TikTok keep this information private. You can customize visibility settings on some sites if you want to limit what follows are publicly viewable.
Understanding these defaults and how to change them gives you control over your privacy and public persona on social media. Consider both your comfort level and the culture of each platform to determine what follow visibility makes sense for your goals and preferences.
| Platform | Follows Public by Default? | Can Follow Privacy Be Changed? |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | Yes | |
| No | Yes (requires Professional account) | |
| Yes | No | |
| No | No | |
| YouTube | No | No |
| TikTok | No | No |