Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms, with billions of users worldwide. On Facebook, users can post status updates, share photos and videos, and interact with friends and family. One common question that comes up is whether your Facebook friends get notified when you edit an existing post.
The Short Answer
In most cases, no, your Facebook friends will not get notified when you edit a post. The edits you make will be visible to anyone who views the post, but Facebook does not send a notification to your friends list every time you tweak the wording or correct a typo.
When Friends Might Get Notified of Post Edits
There are a couple exceptions where editing a Facebook post might trigger notifications:
- If you tagged someone in the original post, they will get notified if you later untag them from an edited version.
- If you delete the post entirely, any reactions or comments from friends on that post will also be deleted. They will not get a specific notification, but it may be apparent the post is gone.
- If you turned your post into a Facebook ad using the “Boost Post” option, people who reacted or commented will get notified if you then edit or delete the boosted post.
In most normal cases of editing regular Facebook posts, though, the edits go unseen by your friends unless they happen to revisit the post and notice the changes.
Why Edits Go Unnoticed
There are a few reasons why Facebook does not notify your friends of post edits by default:
- It would lead to a lot of unnecessary notifications cluttering up people’s feeds.
- Minor typo fixes and wording tweaks are usually not important enough to warrant a notification.
- Notifying people of edits could disclose that a post was changed after their initial reactions and comments.
- Facebook wants to encourage users to freely edit and improve their posts without worrying about notifying all of their friends.
The idea is that edits should seamlessly appear in the updated version of the post. The only time Facebook needs to notify anyone is if their interaction with the post is directly impacted, like being untagged or having comments deleted.
How to Tell If a Post Has Been Edited
Since edits are not announced, you may be wondering how to tell if a Facebook post has been edited after initial posting. There are a couple of ways:
- Look for the word “Edited” in small print next to the timestamp showing when the post was made. This will only appear if the edit happened after people started engaging with the post.
- If you have previously viewed or reacted to the post, check if the wording or photos are different than you remember.
- Toggle between the mobile and desktop versions of Facebook – edits may show the “Edited” indicator on one platform but not the other.
- Use the Facebook history log, which shows some information about post edits and other changes made to your profile and activity.
The Exception: Editing in Facebook Groups
The one place where Facebook does notify others of post edits is in private groups. When you edit a post in a Facebook group:
- Group members who have commented on the post will get a notification.
- The group’s admins and moderators will get a notification.
The reason is that discussions in groups are more focused, with smaller audiences. Edits are more likely to be substantive and change the context of a conversation, so Facebook allows group members to be aware.
Editing Posts After Commenting Reopens Notifications
Here is one other scenario where editing a post can trigger notifications. If a friend comments on your post, then you edit the post, it will reopen notifications so that friend will get alerted to further reactions and comments even if they have turned off notifications.
Facebook considers an edit significant enough to warrant re-engaging people who have participated in that post already. So editing essentially resets and continues the notification stream for those who have previously commented.
Bottom Line
In summary, the default behavior in most cases is that Facebook does not notify your friends when you edit posts. The changes will be visible to anyone viewing the post, but without an announcement. The exceptions are when you untag people, delete posts entirely, boost posts to ads, or edit posts in groups or after receiving comments. Outside of those cases, you can comfortably tweak and polish posts knowing it happens silently without bombarding people’s feeds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you edit a Facebook post without anyone knowing?
Yes, in most cases you can edit a Facebook post without your friends being notified. The edited post will look updated to anyone who views it, but it will not trigger notifications to your friends list. The exception is if you edit a post in a group or after getting comments, which does notify people.
Does Facebook notify when you edit or delete a post?
Facebook will not notify your friends when you edit or delete a regular post. The only notifications sent are if you delete or edit a boosted post, untag someone from a post, or change a post within a group. Routine edits and deletions of normal posts do not trigger notifications.
Can you tell if a Facebook post has been Edited?
You can tell if a Facebook post was edited if you see the word “Edited” in small print next to the timestamp of when it was posted. This indicator only appears if the edit happened after reactions and comments began on the post. You can also tell if the wording or photos appear different than you remember.
Why did a Facebook post show Edited?
The “Edited” indicator shows up on a Facebook post if the author made changes to the post after people started interacting with it. It signals to viewers that the current version they are seeing may be different from the original.
Do all friends get notified of post edits on Facebook?
No, Facebook does not notify all of your friends when you edit a regular post. The only time edits trigger notifications are if it is a group post, a boosted post, or a post you commented on that gets edited. Routine editing of normal posts does not alert your friends list.
Summary
Facebook is designed to let you freely edit and improve posts without bombarding your friends with notifications every time. In most cases, edits appear silently without any announcement. The rare exceptions are when edits affect other users, like untagging them or deleting their comments. While edits are not secret, Facebook avoids unnecessary notifications about routine changes to keep the experience focused on meaningful connections.