Having your email address visible in the Facebook search bar can be concerning for privacy reasons. The good news is you can easily remove your email so it doesn’t auto-populate when someone searches for you on Facebook.
Why Remove Email from Facebook Search?
There are a few key reasons you may want to remove your email from the Facebook search dropdown:
- Prevent spam and phishing emails – Your email may get scraped and used for spam if it’s public
- Avoid unwanted friend requests – People you may not know could send friend requests if they find your email
- Enhance privacy – Keeping your email more private limits who can contact you directly
Removing your email from search protects your contact information and gives you more control over who can interact with you on Facebook.
How Facebook Search Bar Works
When you begin typing a name into Facebook’s search bar, it provides suggested matches pulling from your friends list, people you may know, and other Facebook users. If an email address is associated with a Facebook profile, it may also pop up as a search recommendation.
Facebook’s search algorithms scan profiles and connections to generate these recommendations. The more information in the public domain, the easier it is for Facebook to surface profile suggestions.
Step 1: Adjust Privacy Settings
The first step to remove your email from Facebook search is to adjust your general privacy settings:
- Click on the down arrow at the top right of any Facebook page and select “Settings & Privacy”
- Go to the “Privacy” section on the left side menu
- Under the “How people find and contact you” heading, click “Edit”
- Change the “Who can send you friend requests?” setting to “Friends of Friends”
- Change “Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your profile?” to “No”
- Click “Limit Past Posts” and change the default Months/Years drop down to “Only Me”
These changes limit the visibility of your profile to only people connected to your friends. It also prevents search engines from indexing your Facebook information.
Step 2: Adjust Email Privacy Settings
Now it’s time to focus specifically on email privacy:
- Go to “Settings & Privacy” then click “Settings”
- Click “Privacy” in the left menu
- Go to “Contact Info” and click “Edit” for both Email and Contact Info
- Change the visibility for who can see your email to “Only Me”
- Change your contact info visibility to “Friends” or “Only Me”
Selecting “Only Me” for email visibility ensures your email stays totally private from anyone else on Facebook.
Step 3: Remove Email from Public Search
As one final precaution, you can fully opt out of public email searches:
- Go back to “Settings & Privacy” then “Settings”
- Click “Public Posts” in the left menu
- Turn “Allow search engines to link to your timeline” to “Off”
- Click “Limit the audience for posts you’ve shared with friends of friends or public?” and change to “Only Me”
This prevents your email or posts from appearing in public search engine results outside of Facebook.
Step 4: Confirm Email Removal
To confirm your email is no longer searchable:
- Log out of your Facebook account and navigate to the Facebook login page
- Type your full email address into the search bar and hit enter
- You should get a message that no matching results were found
If your email still auto-populates as a recommendation, double check that you changed the visibility settings for your email to “Only Me”. You may also need to clear your browser cookies and cache.
Other Ways to Enhance Facebook Privacy
A few other settings to consider adjusting to increase privacy:
- Turn off Facebook facial recognition
- Disable future posts from being shared to News Feed
- Turn off address and birthday visibility
- Block search engines from indexing your profile
Take the time to fully review all of your Facebook privacy settings. The more visibility you limit, the less opportunity for your personal information to be accessed.
Limit Profile Visibility for Search
Adjusting your overall Facebook profile visibility is also important. Here are the key settings to check:
| Setting | Recommendation |
| Profile photo visibility | Friends only |
| Add you to search | No |
| Profile visibility | Friends only |
| Available to be tagged | No |
The more aspects of your profile you make private, the less likely your email or posts will appear in public search results.
Consider a Profile Nickname
If you want an extra layer of identity protection, you can also set up a custom nickname or pseudonym for your Facebook profile.
- Go to your profile and click “Edit Public Details”
- Add a nickname where it says “Name”
- Click “Review Changes” and save them
This means your chosen nickname will now appear instead of your real name. Just make sure no sensitive personal details can be inferred from the nickname you choose.
Review Tagging Permissions
When other people tag you in posts or photos, it can expose your profile more publicly. To limit visibility from tagging:
- Go to “Settings & Privacy” then “Settings”
- Click “Privacy” then “Tags”
- Adjust tag settings to “Friends” or “Only Me”
This requires you to manually approve any new tags, giving you full control over what appears linked to your profile.
Deactivating vs Deleting Facebook
If privacy is a major concern, you may also consider fully deleting your Facebook account. Here is how deactivation and deletion differ:
| Deactivating | Deleting |
|---|---|
| Temporarily disables profile | Permanently deletes profile |
| Reversible if change mind | Irreversible process |
| Data remains on Facebook servers | All data erased from servers |
Deactivating pauses your account while deletion wipes it completely. If you ever re-open a deactivated profile, all of your previous data and settings remain intact.
How to Deactivate Facebook Account
These are the steps to temporarily deactivate your Facebook profile:
- Click down arrow at top right and select “Settings & Privacy”
- Click “Your Facebook Information” in left menu
- Select “Deactivation and Deletion”
- Choose “Deactivate Account” and continue prompts
Your profile will disappear until you choose to reactivate it again.
How to Permanently Delete Facebook
If you want to permanently delete Facebook, here are the steps:
- Click down arrow and choose “Settings & Privacy”
- Select “Your Facebook Information”
- Click on “Deactivation and Deletion”
- Choose “Delete Account” and follow prompts
Once confirming deletion, your profile is gone for good along with posts, photos, messages, and other data.
Using a Fake Email for Facebook
If you want to maintain a Facebook account without exposing your real email address, creating a fake or secondary email is an option. Here are some tips:
- Use an alias email service that forwards messages to your real inbox
- Create an email specifically for Facebook through Gmail, Outlook, etc.
- Only use the fake email for your Facebook login
- Keep it private by adjusting visibility settings
Having a separate email just for Facebook keeps your real inbox protected. Just monitor the fake address to stay on top of notifications.
Should I Remove My Email from Facebook?
Here are some pros and cons to weighing when deciding if you should remove your email from Facebook search:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Enhanced privacy and security | Harder for friends to find you |
| Avoids spam and phishing scams | Limits visibility if using Facebook professionally |
| Controls who can contact you | Have to re-add email if deactivate account |
For most personal Facebook use, the privacy benefits tend to outweigh the cons of removing your email from public view.
Facebook Email Search Removal FAQs
Does removing email from Facebook remove account?
No, removing your email only changes the email visibility settings. Your account remains active but your email is no longer public.
Can someone search me by email on Facebook?
If your email privacy settings allow it, people can search for your profile by typing your email into the Facebook search bar. Adjust settings to “Only Me” to prevent email searchability.
Does Facebook still recommend friends if email removed?
Yes, Facebook will still suggest friend recommendations even if you remove your email. Recommendations are based on profile details, networks, groups, and activity history.
What if I reactivate Facebook after deactivating?
When you reactivate a deactivated Facebook account, all of your previous data and settings are restored. You remain logged out during deactivation but everything comes back if you choose to reactivate.
Can you tell if someone deactivates or deletes Facebook?
If someone deactivates their Facebook account, their profile disappears from search results. There is no indication given if an account has been permanently deleted.
Conclusion
Keeping your email address private on Facebook is smart for both security and privacy. Adjust your profile visibility settings, limit public searchability, and confirm your email no longer auto-populates in searches. With a few simple tweaks, you can control who can find and contact you while reducing spam and unwanted friend requests.