If you are missing the shortcut bar settings on Facebook, there are a few things you can try to get it back. The shortcut bar is the customizable section at the top of the Facebook website that allows quick access to sections like News Feed, Messages, Notifications and more.
Check Your Facebook Layout Settings
The first thing to check is your Facebook layout settings. Facebook allows you to customize the layout of the site, including hiding various components like the shortcut bar. To check your layout settings:
- Click on the down arrow at the top right of Facebook.
- Select “Settings & Privacy” from the dropdown menu.
- Click on “Settings” in the left sidebar.
- Click on “Layout” under the Facebook Settings menu.
On the Layout settings page, make sure “Show Shortcut Bar” is enabled. If it is disabled, simply toggle it on to bring back the shortcut bar.
Reset Facebook Site Preferences
If toggling the shortcut bar on/off in the layout settings doesn’t work, you may need to reset your Facebook site preferences entirely. Resetting will restore all your Facebook site settings to default.
- Click on the down arrow at the top right and select “Settings & Privacy.”
- Click on “Settings.”
- Scroll to the bottom and click on “Reset Settings.”
- Click “Reset Settings” again to confirm.
Once your settings are reset, the shortcut bar should be visible again at the top of the page. You may need to customize some of your other settings again if you reset everything.
Try in Incognito/Private Browsing Mode
Missing shortcut bar settings could also be caused by an extension or browser add-on. Try loading Facebook in an incognito or private browsing window:
- On Chrome, click the 3 dots in the top right and select “New incognito window.”
- On Firefox, click the 3 lines in the top right and select “New Private Window.”
- On Safari, click File > New Private Window.
Load Facebook in that private window and check if the shortcut bar is back. If the shortcut settings reappear, an extension or browser add-on was likely the issue. You’ll have to determine which add-on is causing the conflict.
Update Your Browser
An outdated browser can also sometimes cause interface issues on Facebook. Make sure you are running the latest version of your browser when troubleshooting missing shortcut bar settings:
- Chrome: Click the 3 dots in the top right, Help > About Google Chrome to check for updates.
- Firefox: Click the 3 lines in the top right, Help > About Firefox to check for updates.
- Safari: Click Safari > About Safari in the menu bar to check for updates.
If an update is available, install it and restart your browser. Then load Facebook again to see if the problem is resolved.
Try Facebook Mobile Site
You can also attempt loading the Facebook mobile site to see if the shortcut bar settings reappear there:
- On your computer, visit m.facebook.com
- Log into Facebook if required.
- Check if the shortcut bar is now visible at the top.
If the mobile site does show the shortcuts, you know the issue is isolated to the desktop site. You can continue troubleshooting or use the mobile site for the time being.
Clear Browser Cache and Cookies
Outdated browser caches and cookies can sometimes disrupt page elements from loading properly. Clearing your browser data may help the shortcut bar show up again:
- Chrome: Settings > Privacy > Clear browsing data > Clear data
- Firefox: Settings > Privacy & Security > Cookies and Site Data > Clear data
- Safari: Develop menu > Empty Caches
Reload Facebook after clearing caches and cookies. The shortcut bar should reload as well with any corrupted data wiped.
Check for Facebook Extension Conflicts
If you have any browser extensions or add-ons installed for Facebook, try disabling or removing them as they may interfere with the shortcut bar. For example, extensions that block ads or alter page layouts could inadvertently hide the shortcut bar.
Try disabling all your Facebook-related extensions and enabling them one-by-one until you identify any problem extensions. You can then remove the problematic add-on or find an alternative that works well with Facebook’s default interface.
Contact Facebook Support
If you still cannot get the Facebook shortcut bar settings to reappear after trying all troubleshooting steps, you may need to contact Facebook support. They can look into any account-specific issues that may be preventing the shortcut bar from loading.
To contact Facebook support:
- Click on the down arrow in the top right of Facebook.
- Select “Help and Support” from the menu.
- Click “Help Center” and select the issue you are having.
- Follow the steps to have Facebook contact you about the shortcut bar problem.
Provide as much detail as possible about when the issue started and troubleshooting steps you have tried. Facebook can investigate and restore your shortcut bar functionality if there are problems on their end.
With some focused troubleshooting, you should be able to restore the Facebook shortcut bar quickly. The key is methodically checking different settings, browsers and add-ons to isolate what may have caused it to disappear. If the problem persists, leverage Facebook’s customer support to resolve even difficult shortcut bar issues.