With over 2.8 billion monthly active users, Facebook is one of the most widely used social media platforms in the world. People use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, join special interest groups, promote their businesses, and more. Because so many people have Facebook accounts tied to their personal email addresses, a common question is whether you can use someone’s email address to find their Facebook profile.
Can you search Facebook by email address?
Unfortunately, there is no direct way to search for someone’s Facebook profile using only their email address. Facebook does not provide a search feature that allows you to input an email and pull up associated Facebook accounts. This is likely due to privacy concerns and Facebook’s desire to allow users control over how much personal information is publicly visible.
So while there is no official email lookup option, this does not mean it is impossible to find someone’s Facebook using their email address. There are a few indirect methods and third-party tools that may enable you to make the connection between an email and Facebook profile.
Check if the email is the Facebook account username
Many Facebook users will create an account using their personal email address as the username. So if you have an email like [email protected], there’s a good chance there could be a Facebook account with the username [email protected].
To check this, simply enter the email address into the Facebook search bar as if it were a name. If an account exists with that username, it should pop up in the search results. You can then send a friend request or follow the profile to confirm it belongs to the person you are looking for.
Pros of checking for matching username
- Easy and fast to test out
- Works if the user signed up with their email
Cons of checking for matching username
- Many people don’t use their email as their username
- The email might belong to a different person with the same name
Use the Facebook email lookup tool
Facebook provides an email search tool that allows you to input an email address to see if there is an associated Facebook account. Here’s how to use it:
- Go to https://www.facebook.com/search/people/
- Enter the email address in the search bar
- Click on the profile picture result that appears
- This will show a preview of the Facebook profile linked to that email
If no profile shows up, it likely means there is no Facebook account associated with the email you searched. Or the user may have chosen to not display their profile in search results.
Pros of using the email lookup tool
- Official Facebook search method
- Easy way to directly check for associated accounts
Cons of using the email lookup tool
- Doesn’t work if the user has privacy settings enabled
- Email may be linked to old or inactive account
Use Facebook graph search
Facebook graph search allows you to construct detailed searches to find specific people, pages, groups, photos, places and interests. Here is an example graph search query to find profiles linked to an email address:
@email.com
Just enter the @ symbol followed by the email address you want to search for. This will display all Facebook users who have the entered email connected to their account in some way. You can then browse the results and see if the profile you’re searching for appears.
Pros of graph search
- Allows very targeted email search
- May surface associations email has with other accounts
Cons of graph search
- Harder to use and construct search queries
- Restricted profiles may not show up
Use a people search website
There are many online people search services that scrape data from social networks, public records, and other sources to allow looking up people by name, email, phone number, and more. Sites like Spokeo, PeekYou, and PeopleFinder can be used to find Facebook profiles connected to an email.
To use, simply input the email address you want to search and see if any associated Facebook accounts come up in the results. Some sites may require you to pay a fee for unlimited searches.
Pros of using people search sites
- Specialized databases for connecting emails to profiles
- May find connections Facebook search misses
Cons of using people search sites
- Results depend on the site’s data quality
- Some sites charge for unlimited searches
- Linked profiles could be out of date
Search Facebook for other contacts
If you have access to some of the person’s other personal contacts like their phone number, full name, workplace, school, etc. you can search for this info on Facebook to surface associated accounts.
For example, searching their name on Facebook may show profiles of family members and friends who may have the person as a contact. Looking up their place of work could reveal a Facebook page or group they are linked to. Digging through these types of public contacts on Facebook can sometimes lead back to finding the person’s profile.
Pros of searching other contacts
- Allows piecing together connections to build to profile
- Searches public data not linked to email directly
Cons of searching other contacts
- Requires access to additional personal details
- Indirect method without guarantee of finding profile
Ask people who know the person
One of the most effective ways to find someone’s Facebook profile is by simply asking people who know them. Mutual friends and contacts are likely already connected with the person on Facebook and can share the profile details.
If you have phone/email contacts for family, coworkers, classmates or acquaintances of the person, reach out and ask if they can share a link to the person’s Facebook profile. This human intelligence and word-of-mouth approach can succeed where automated searches fail.
Pros of asking contacts
- Get exact profile from real connections
- Bypasses privacy settings
Cons of asking contacts
- Requires known contacts to reach out to
- No guarantee contacts will share private profile info
Search Facebook groups and pages they belong to
Most Facebook users are members of multiple groups and like various pages related to their interests, schools, jobs, hobbies, etc. If you know details about the person’s affiliations, you can search Facebook for related groups and pages.
Join the groups yourself and browse the member lists. Look at who has liked or followed related pages for possible matches. The person’s profile may show up through their participation in these public Facebook entities.
Pros of searching groups and pages
- Finds accounts through public interests and affiliations
- Doesn’t require direct contact details
Cons of searching groups and pages
- Need to know the groups/pages to search through
- Manual process of browsing lots of profiles
Enter Facebook giveaways and promotions
Signing up for Facebook giveaways, sweepstakes, and special promotions often requires providing an email address. If you have access to the person’s email, you can use it to enter contests on their behalf.
If they already have an active Facebook account associated with that email, it will prevent creating a duplicate account during entry. This error response indicates the email is already tied to a profile.
Pros of trying giveaway entries
- Direct way to check if email tied to Facebook
- Error responses reveal existing accounts
Cons of trying giveaway entries
- Unethical to access someone’s email
- No guarantee of finding active promotions
Search Facebook advertisements
Facebook allows targeting ads to specific email lists and customer databases. You can search for ads placed by advertisers who may have your email address on file.
The “Why am I seeing this?” dropdown on Facebook ads shows targeting details. Look for any that mention targeting your email domain or advertisers you’ve given your email to. This indicates your email exists in a database tied to Facebook accounts.
Pros of searching ads
- Shows which advertisers have your email
- Surfaces new targeters to investigate further
Cons of searching ads
- Time consuming manual ad browsing
- Just indicates email is in some database, not specific account
Get access to account recovery emails/texts
If you can get access to the recovery phone number or backup email listed on someone’s Facebook account, you can use Facebook’s account recovery process to gain control of the profile.
Reset the password through the recovery options and you will be able to log into and view the full account. However, accessing someone’s account without consent is unethical and against Facebook’s policies.
Pros of accessing recovery options
- Direct access to view full profile
- Works if you have backup contact details
Cons of accessing recovery options
- Unethical and violation of privacy
- Facebook will restore rightful account ownership
Hire a professional investigator
For a fee, you can hire a professional private investigator experienced in online profiling and social media investigations. They have access to paid databases and investigative techniques that may be able to connect an email to a Facebook account.
Make sure to verify investigators’ credentials and expertise in ethical online searching. Cost will also be greater than free public search methods.
Pros of hiring a professional
- Experts with access to proprietary search tools and data
- Able to employ advanced investigative techniques
Cons of hiring a professional
- Can be expensive depending on fees
- No guarantees and requires trusting third-party
Conclusion
While there is no direct method for viewing a private Facebook profile using only an email address, there are several creative techniques you can try. Checking for matching usernames and using Facebook’s internal search tools can surface associated accounts.
Third-party people search services may also uncover connections missed by Facebook’s own platform. And networking through mutual contacts can provide the exact details needed to find the profile.
However, keep in mind that repeatedly searching for accounts without permission could be considered stalking and harassment. Make sure you have a legitimate, ethical reason for wanting to connect an email to a Facebook profile before accessing any private information.