Seeing someone’s email address on Facebook can be useful for contacting them outside of the platform. However, for privacy reasons, Facebook does not make user email addresses visible by default. There are a few different ways you may be able to find or view someone’s email address on Facebook, but with varying degrees of success.
Searching on Facebook
Facebook does not allow you to search for users by email address. So you cannot simply enter someone’s email address into the Facebook search bar and find their profile that way. Their email address is not visible or searchable to other users. The only information you can use to search for people on Facebook is their name, phone number, username, or user ID if you have it.
Things to note about Facebook search
- Email addresses used for Facebook accounts are kept private and cannot be searched
- You can only search for users by name, phone number, username or Facebook ID
- There is no direct way to look up someone’s profile by email address
Checking Mutual Friends and Suggested Friends
Another way you may be able to find someone on Facebook is by going through your mutual friends and people suggested to you as friends. If you and the person you are searching for have friends in common, their profile may appear in the “People You May Know” section or as a mutual friend of someone else.
To try this:
- Go to your own profile and check the “Friends” section
- Go through your list of friends one by one and look under their Friends list
- See if the person you’re searching for appears under any mutual friends’ Friends
- Also check the “People You May Know” section on your profile
- Look through the list of suggested friends for the person’s name or profile
Tips for this method
- It helps if you and the person have multiple mutual friends
- May not work if they have a private profile or limited friend list
- Check friends of friends to increase your chances of finding them
Using the Email Search on Facebook Messenger
If you have the person’s email address, you can try searching for them on Facebook Messenger to see if they have a Messenger account connected to that email.
To search by email on Messenger:
- Open the Messenger app on your phone or go to messenger.com
- Tap on the “People” tab at the bottom of the screen
- At the top, tap on the search bar and type in the email address
- If they have a connected Messenger account, their profile should appear
- You can then send them a message using Messenger
Limitations of this method
- Only works if the person has Messenger set up with that email
- It won’t show you their main Facebook profile
- You have to already know their exact email address
Using Facebook’s Contact Importer
If you have the person’s email address saved in your phone or email contacts, Facebook’s contact importer tool may be able to find their Facebook profile connected to that email address.
Here is how to use it:
- Go to Facebook and click on the down arrow at the top right
- Choose “Find Friends” from the dropdown menu
- Select “Contacts” on the next page
- Click “Continue” and choose which source to import contacts from (like Google or phone contacts)
- Select the contacts you want to try finding on Facebook
- If their email address is associated with a Facebook account, it should appear
Things to keep in mind
- Only works if that email is connected to their Facebook profile
- Contacts without Facebook accounts will not appear in results
- The email has to already exist in your contacts or address book
Searching Publicly Visible Emails on Facebook
In some cases, people may choose to display an email address publicly on their Facebook profile. This could be in their bio section, About section, or other public-facing area.
To find these:
- Do a Facebook search for the person’s name
- Go through each search result one by one
- Check places like their bio, About section, and contact info fields
- See if any email addresses are listed publicly on their profile
However, this method is unlikely to work in most cases, as most users do not share their emails publicly.
Things to note
- Very low chance of finding public emails on Facebook
- Most users keep email addresses private for security
- Profile may not appear in search results if privacy settings are high
Asking Mutual Connections
One of the most direct ways to get someone’s email address is to simply ask a mutual friend. If you and the person you are searching for have common connections, you can try reaching out to them and asking if they have the person’s email or can share it with you.
Tips for asking mutual friends:
- Phrase it as politely and non-intrusively as possible
- Only ask people you are reasonably close with
- Do not pressure them if they hesitate or decline
- Accept it if they say they are not comfortable sharing the private information
This method may work well if you know mutual friends who are likely to have and be willing to share the person’s contact information. But be respectful and understand if they decline the request.
Pros and cons of asking mutual connections
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Direct way to get the email address | Depends on mutual friend’s willingness to share |
| Can work well with close/trusted mutual friends | No guarantee the friend will have the email address |
| More personal than other methods | Cannot force or pressure the mutual friend to share |
Searching for Email Addresses Outside of Facebook
If the person has a more public online presence outside of just Facebook, you may be able to find their email address associated with other social media profiles or websites.
Places you can look include:
- Their Twitter or Instagram profile
- Personal websites or blogs they run
- Professional listings like on LinkedIn
- Their published articles or papers
- Business or organization listings if relevant
This can be time consuming and you may need to do extensive searching, but it’s possible to find emails publicly listed in people’s professional online presence. Use Google searches to aid this process.
Limitations of this method
- No guarantee you will find any public email addresses
- Their email may be private on all other platforms too
- It can take considerable time and effort
Requesting Email Access Through Facebook
As a last resort, you can try sending the person a Facebook friend request or message asking them to share their email address with you. This is generally less likely to work, but lets them know you are trying to reach them off of Facebook.
Tips for politely requesting email access:
- Only do this if you have an established connection
- Send a friend request and include a note explaining why you want their email
- Make sure to be professional and courteous in your request
- Clearly state why you need their email and how you plan to use it
- Do not overshare or provide unnecessary personal details
This method puts them in control and lets them decide if they are willing to provide you with their private email address or not.
Pros and cons of requesting email access
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Direct and transparent about your intent | Low likelihood of success |
| Puts the user in control to accept or deny | Could damage relationship if done poorly |
| Allows you to explain why you need the email address | May be seen as intrusive |
Conclusion
In summary, here are some key points to keep in mind when trying to find someone’s email address on Facebook:
- Facebook does not allow searching by email address or make emails public
- You can try searching friends of friends and suggested connections
- Use Messenger and the Contacts importer to search by email
- See if they have the email publicly listed on their profile
- Consider asking polite mutual friends if they have the email
- Search the person’s online presence outside of Facebook
- As a last resort, request access to the email through Facebook
But also keep privacy expectations in mind. Not everyone will want their email shared this way. Overall, there is no foolproof method to find someone’s email on Facebook directly, but the above options can sometimes help track it down or make contact indirectly.