Facebook’s algorithm is designed to show you posts and ads that are relevant to your interests. This means you will often see suggested posts in your News Feed from pages you don’t follow, friends of friends, and advertisers. While some users find suggested posts helpful, others would prefer to only see posts from friends, family, and pages they explicitly follow. Here are some tips for minimizing suggested posts on Facebook.
Adjust News Feed Preferences
The easiest way to see less suggested posts is to adjust your News Feed preferences. Here’s how:
- Go to the menu icon in the top right of Facebook and click “Settings”.
- Select “News Feed Preferences” on the left side.
- Adjust the slider for “Posts from people you don’t follow” to see less of them.
- Adjust the slider for “Relevant ads” to see less sponsored posts.
Tweaking these sliders will immediately change the mix of posts in your News Feed. You can continue to adjust them over time to find the right balance for your preferences.
Unfollow Suggested Pages
When you see a suggested post from a page you’re not interested in, you can unfollow that page so posts from it no longer appear in your feed. Here’s how to unfollow on desktop and mobile:
Desktop:
- Hover over the page name above the post and click the “Following” button.
- Select “Unfollow Page” to stop seeing posts from them.
Mobile:
- Tap the three dots in the upper right of the post.
- Select “Unfollow Page” to stop seeing posts from them.
Unfollowing suggested pages you don’t care about will remove some unwanted posts from your News Feed over time.
See Less of Certain Friends
Sometimes suggested posts come from friends of your friends or groups your friends are in. If you’re seeing too many posts from certain people, you can see less of them without fully unfriending or unfollowing them.
- Click the three dots above a post in your News Feed from someone you want to see less of.
- Select “Show fewer posts like this” or unfollow them.
This will reduce their posts in your feed without them knowing. You can do this for as many friends or pages as you like.
Sort News Feed by Recent Posts
Facebook’s algorithm isn’t just showing you the most recent posts – it’s selective based on engagement and relevance. Switching your News Feed to a chronological recent sort can cut down on suggested posts:
- Go to the menu icon in the top right and click “News Feed Preferences”.
- Select “Recent” instead of “Relevant” sorting.
This will make your News Feed show the freshest posts first from friends, family, and pages you follow. Note that you may need to manually refresh to update the sort at first.
Filter Posts with News Feed Groups
You can create custom lists of friends and pages you want to always see posts from in your News Feed. Here’s how to make News Feed groups on desktop:
- Go to your News Feed and click “News Feed Groups” on the left side.
- Click + Create a Group.
- Give your group a name and add friends/pages you want to always see.
- Click Create Group.
When viewing that group, your News Feed will only show posts from those selected profiles. This can filter out suggested posts.
See Only Posts You’re Tagged In
If you want to only see posts that you’re directly involved in, you can filter to posts you’re tagged in.
- Go to your News Feed and click “News Feed Groups” on the left.
- Click Posts You’re Tagged In at the top.
This shows all posts and photos that friends have tagged you in. No sponsored or suggested posts will appear in this view.
Limit Ad Topics
If you’re seeing too many ads for certain products or services, you can limit the ad topics Facebook shows you. Here’s how to do it on desktop and mobile:
Desktop:
- Click the arrow in the top right corner and select “Settings”.
- Click “Ads” in the left sidebar.
- Under “Ad Topics”, click “Limit Ad Topics”.
- Choose topics to see less of.
Mobile:
- Tap the menu icon and go to “Settings”.
- Select “Ads”.
- Tap “Ad Topics”.
- Select topics to limit ads for.
Limiting ad topics will remove more sponsored posts from those categories from your News Feed.
Hide Ad Categories
You can completely hide ads from certain sensitive categories like alcohol, pregnancy, parenting, politics, dating, and more. Here’s how to hide ad categories on desktop and mobile:
Desktop:
- Go to “Settings” then “Ads”.
- Under “Hide Ad Topics”, choose categories to hide.
- Save your preferences.
Mobile:
- Tap the menu icon then “Settings”.
- Tap “Ads”.
- Tap “Hide Ad Topics”.
- Select categories to hide ads for.
Hiding sensitive ad categories can remove many sponsored posts from those areas.
Turn Off Ad Personalization
By default, Facebook personalizes the ads you see based on your interests, age, location and more. Turning off ad personalization makes your ads more generic.
- Go to “Settings” then “Ads”.
- Turn off “Ad Personalization”.
- Opt out of targeted advertising if prompted.
With personalization off, your sponsored posts should become less tailored and relevant over time.
Use the Feedback Tool
If you see a suggested post that’s not relevant or is offensive, you can use the feedback tool built into Facebook.
- Click the X icon in the top right of the post.
- Select “I don’t want to see this”.
- Choose “Irrelevant” or explain why.
Providing this feedback trains Facebook’s algorithm to show you less of that content.
Report Improper Suggested Content
You should report any suggested posts that violate Facebook’s community standards or terms of service. Reporting trains the algorithm and helps remove unwanted content.
- Click the 3 dots at the top right of the post.
- Select “Report post” or “Report group”.
- Follow the prompts to submit a report.
Make sure to report any suggested posts that are abusive, spam, scams, or otherwise improper. This improves the experience for everyone.
Give More Feedback
The more signals you give Facebook by interacting with posts, the better job it can do tailoring your feed. Here are some ways to provide feedback:
- Like, comment on, and share posts you find interesting or relevant.
- Click on links and videos you want to see more of.
- React to posts or vote in polls when prompted.
- Go through your News Feed giving positive and negative feedback with the X icon.
Actively engaging with content trains the algorithm over time. But it requires patience and consistency.
Keep Friends and Follows Current
Having friends or following pages you lost interest in long ago contributes to a stale News Feed. Do some maintenance to keep your connections current.
- Unfriend people you haven’t interacted with in years.
- Unlike or unfollow pages that no longer interest you.
- Follow pages and people that reflect your current interests.
Trimming your News Feed network to active connections helps reduce outdated suggested posts.
Take a Break
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your News Feed, consider taking a break from Facebook for a while. Sometimes a few days off allows the algorithm “reset” and show you fresh content when you return.
You can also try engaging with Facebook less for a period – skim your News Feed quickly without liking, commenting or clicking. This can train the algorithm to highlight quality content.
Turn Off Push Notifications
Getting too many notifications from Facebook can make it feel cluttered. Turning off notifications can make Facebook feel less incessant.
On iOS, disable notifications for the Facebook app in Settings. On Android, disable notifications in the Facebook app settings. You can also disable specific notification types.
With fewer pings for likes and comments, Facebook becomes less intrusive.
Conclusion
Facebook will likely always show some suggested posts in your News Feed – that’s how their platform works. But you’re not powerless to influence what you see.
Adjusting your News Feed preferences, providing clear feedback, and limiting ads gives you some control. Being selective about friends and follows also prevents seeing irrelevant posts.
Getting suggested posts that are completely off base? Don’t hesitate to report them. But have realistic expectations, as Facebook’s algorithm will continue to serve up a mix of posts tailored to your interests along with suggested content to keep you engaged.