When you change your relationship status on Facebook, it can generate a lot of attention, especially if you have a lot of friends and followers. People are naturally curious and many will want to know if you are single again or off the market. Facebook’s news feed algorithm also highlights major life events like relationship status changes, so your update is likely to be broadcasted to more people. However, there are ways to control who sees your new relationship status.
What happens when you change your relationship status on Facebook
When you change your relationship status on Facebook a few key things occur:
- Your new relationship status is displayed publicly on your profile page. Anyone who visits your profile will be able to see your updated relationship status.
- A story about your new relationship status may be published in some of your friends’ News Feeds. Facebook’s algorithm determines who will see the story based on how often you interact with people.
- If you changed from being “in a relationship” to “single,” your past relationship will no longer be publicly displayed on your profile.
- Any posts or photos you’re tagged in with your old relationship partner will remain on Facebook but will no longer be linked to your profile.
- You will have the option to notify your relationship change to specific friends via News Feed stories. These notifications about your new status will be sent directly to your selected friends.
So in summary, your new relationship status is displayed publicly, may be shown to some friends in their News Feeds, and you can choose to actively notify other friends as well. This means a lot of people could potentially see your update, but not always everyone.
Factors that determine who sees your new relationship status
There are a few key factors that influence who will see your updated relationship status on Facebook:
- Your privacy settings: Your profile and posts privacy settings control who can see your relationship status. If you limit visibility, then less people will see your new status.
- News Feed algorithm: Facebook’s algorithm controls what posts people see in their News Feeds. Friends you interact with more often tend to see your posts more frequently.
- Notifications: Any friends you actively notify about your new relationship status will be guaranteed to see it.
- Profile views: Anyone who visits your profile page will see your new status.
- Likes and comments: Friends who engage with your new relationship status post will also be showing it to their own networks, expanding the visibility.
- Mutual friends: If someone is friends with your old relationship partner, they are more likely to be shown your status change.
So your privacy settings, friend interactions, notifications, profile views, likes/comments, and mutual connections can all play a role in who becomes aware of your updated relationship status.
Relationship privacy settings
The main way to control who sees your relationship status change is to adjust your privacy settings. Facebook allows you to choose your preferred audience for your profile information:
- Public: Anyone including people off Facebook can see your info.
- Friends: Your friends can see your info.
- Friends except… Friends except specific people you exclude.
- Specific friends: Only friends you select can see your info.
- Only me: Only you can see your info.
Setting your relationship status visibility to “Friends” or stricter limits who can view your new relationship status. You can also exclude specific friends from seeing your update using the “Friends Except” option. However, limiting the audience too much defeats the purpose of posting a relationship status at all. It’s best to find a balance between privacy and sharing.
Customizing relationship status privacy
To customize exactly who can see your relationship status on Facebook:
- Go to your profile page and click on the About section
- Find the relationship status area and click on the audience selector icon next to it (a globe icon)
- Choose your desired privacy setting from the menu: Public, Friends, Friends Except, Specific Friends, or Only Me
- If choosing Friends Except or Specific Friends you can type in the names of people to exclude or include
- Click Save Changes to apply your new audience selection
Now only the audience you selected will be able to see your relationship status moving forward. You can return to these settings and modify the privacy at any time.
Limiting News Feed exposure
Even if you limit your relationship status privacy, some friends may still see a post about it in their News Feeds at first. This occurs when Facebook’s algorithm decides your status change is relevant to that person. Fortunately you can choose to exclude specific friends from being notified this way:
- Go to your relationship status post (it will be pinned at the top of your recent posts)
- Click on the audience selector button below the post (a globe icon)
- Select Friends Except or Specific Friends to exclude or only include certain people
- Type the names of who to exclude or include from notifications
- Click Save Changes and these friends will no longer be notified in their feeds
Limiting the News Feed exposure this way prevents your status change from appearing in unwanted feeds. But anyone who visits your profile directly can still see your new status.
Preventing notifications about your status change
When you change your relationship status, Facebook gives you the option to actively notify individual friends about it via News Feed posts. Even if you limit visibility, notified friends will still see a post from you about your new status.
To avoid notifying specific friends:
- When initially changing your status Facebook shows a box saying “Notify [friend’s name]” for various friends
- Hover over the name and click the X icon to remove them from notifications
- Deselect all the friends you don’t want directly notified
- Click Confirm to save your notifications selections
Following these steps ensures only chosen friends will be actively told about your new relationship status. Everyone else will be subject to your general visibility settings.
Viewing your old relationship history
When you enter a new relationship status, your past status history remains visible. This allows you and others to view your previous relationship updates.
To see your status history:
- Go to your profile and click About
- In the relationship section, click on the down arrow icon
- Select View Previous Statuses from the menu
- Here you will see a timeline of all your past relationship statuses
This relationship status history is subject to the same privacy settings as your current status. You can limit who can see your past statuses in the About section audience selector.
Hiding your relationship status completely
If you want to hide your relationship status from everyone, even friends, you have two options:
- Set your relationship status privacy to Only Me
- Select no relationship status by choosing “Single” and then removing it
Both of these options will remove your relationship status from public view. However, friends may still see older posts where your past status was displayed.
Conclusion
Changing your Facebook relationship status is a public event that many friends will see. However, you have options like privacy settings, News Feed and notification adjustments, and hiding your status entirely. Balancing visibility with privacy allows you to share relationship updates comfortably. Customizing your preferences and being selective about notifications gives you control. With the right settings, you can decide exactly who gets to see your new relationship status on Facebook.
| Relationship Status Privacy Options | Description |
|---|---|
| Public | Anyone including people off Facebook can see your status |
| Friends | Only your friends list can see your status |
| Friends Except… | Friends except specific people you exclude |
| Specific Friends | Only friends you select can see your status |
| Only Me | Only you can see your status |
This table summarizes the different audience options for controlling who can view your relationship status on Facebook. The most restrictive is Only Me, while Public is completely open.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do all my friends see my new relationship status right away?
No, typically only some of your friends will see your new status initially. Facebook’s algorithms will show it to friends most likely to engage with it. However, anyone who visits your profile will see it.
Can I prevent specific people from seeing my new relationship status?
Yes, by using the Friends Except privacy option you can exclude particular friends from seeing your update. You can also limit who is notified about it.
What happens to photos and old posts with my ex after a breakup?
Old posts and photos with your past partner will remain on Facebook but will no longer be linked or tagged to your profile after a breakup.
Can I view my old relationship statuses after changing it?
Yes, Facebook keeps a history of all your past relationship statuses that you can view. Just select View Previous Statuses from the menu on your profile.
Is it possible to have no relationship status visible on my profile?
Yes, you can either hide your status from everyone with Only Me privacy or select Single and then remove it to show no relationship status.
Key Takeaways
- Your updated relationship status is shown publicly on your profile and may appear in some News Feeds
- Limit visibility using privacy settings like Friends Only or Friends Except
- Control News Feed exposure by excluding people from status notifications
- Prevent unwanted notifications by being selective when first posting your status
- View past relationship statuses in your About section history
- Remove your status entirely by hiding it or deleting Single status