A Facebook friend request is when someone sends you an invitation on Facebook to become friends. When someone sends you a friend request, you’ll get a notification and you can choose to accept or ignore the request. If you accept the friend request, you become Facebook friends with that person and can see their profile updates, photos, and more based on their privacy settings.
How do I send a Facebook friend request?
To send a Facebook friend request to someone:
- Go to their Facebook profile page
- Click the “Add Friend” or “Send Friend Request” button. This is usually found near the top of their profile, below their profile picture.
- A notification will be sent to the person letting them know you want to be friends.
You can also send a friend request by:
- Clicking on the person’s name or profile picture anywhere on Facebook
- Going to your Friends list and entering the person’s name in the search bar
- Importing your email contacts and selecting people to send requests to
How do I accept a Facebook friend request?
When someone sends you a friend request, you’ll get a notification on Facebook letting you know. To accept the friend request:
- Click on the notifications icon at the top of Facebook. You’ll see a list of any pending friend requests.
- Click “Confirm” next to the person’s name to confirm you want to be friends.
You can also accept a friend request by:
- Going to the person’s profile and clicking “Confirm” or “Add Friend”
- Clicking on the friend request notification email Facebook sends you
Once you accept the friend request, you become Facebook friends with that person. If you don’t want to accept the request, you can simply ignore it and the request will expire after a few days.
Can I cancel or delete a sent friend request?
If you’ve sent someone a friend request on Facebook but change your mind and want to cancel it, you can delete the sent request. To do this:
- Click on the notifications icon at the top of Facebook
- Find the pending request you want to delete and click “Delete Request”
This will withdraw your friend request. The person will no longer see the pending request from you. However, if they already accepted your request, you will remain Facebook friends.
How do I delete a Facebook friend?
To delete or remove someone as a Facebook friend:
- Go to their Facebook profile
- Hover over the Friends button and click “Unfriend”
- Confirm you want to unfriend the person when prompted
You can also remove a friend by going to your Friends list, clicking on the person’s name, and selecting “Unfriend.”
When you delete someone as a friend, you’ll no longer see their profile updates or be able to interact with them as a friend on Facebook. However, any previous interactions you had with them (like posts on each other’s timelines) will remain visible.
Can I resend a Facebook friend request?
If someone hasn’t responded to your friend request, you can send the request again by:
- Going to the person’s profile
- Clicking the “Add Friend” button again
This will resend the friend request notification to the person. However, it’s best not to send too many repeat requests, as that could be considered spam.
What happens when I reject a Facebook friend request?
When you reject a friend request, the person who sent it will not be notified. However, they will see that their friend request is no longer pending. The request will simply disappear from both sides.
To reject a friend request:
- Click on the notifications icon at the top of Facebook
- Find the pending request and click “Delete Request” or “Ignore Request”
You can also simply leave the request pending and do nothing. After a few days, it will expire on its own.
Can someone view my profile without adding me as a friend?
Yes, people can see parts of your Facebook profile without being your friend. How much they can see depends on your privacy settings:
- If your profile is fully public, anyone can view your posts, photos, friends list, and more.
- If your profile has limited public visibility, non-friends can only see your public info like profile photo and cover photo.
- If your profile is fully private, only friends can see anything on your profile.
So unless your profile is 100% private, people will be able to access parts of it without sending a friend request.
What information does Facebook show about friend requests?
When you receive a friend request on Facebook, you can see some basic information about the person before choosing to accept or ignore it. This includes:
- Profile picture
- Name
- Any mutual friends you may share
This allows you to identify the person and determine if you know them before accepting their request. You can also click on their name or profile picture to view limited details on their public profile.
Can I limit who can send me friend requests?
Yes, you can adjust your Facebook settings to limit who can send you friend requests:
- Friends of Friends – Only people with mutual friends can send requests
- Friends Only – Only your existing friends can send requests
- Disabled – No one can send you requests
To change this setting:
- Go to Settings & Privacy
- Click Settings
- Click Privacy
- Adjust the “Who can send you friend requests” setting
Limiting requests can reduce unwanted contact from strangers. But remember, even if requests are limited, your profile info may still be visible to non-friends depending on your other privacy settings.
Why do I have a pending friend request I didn’t send?
Sometimes Facebook glitches can make it appear you have a pending outgoing friend request that you never sent. This happens when:
- You deleted a sent request, but Facebook still shows it as pending
- You blocked someone after sending a request, but Facebook still shows it as pending
- A deactivated account appears to have sent you a pending request
These phantom requests are usually visual glitches that will disappear after a few days rather than actual requests. You can delete the pending request and that should resolve the issue.
Can I see if someone rejected my friend request?
When someone rejects or ignores a friend request you sent, you will not get notified. The request will simply disappear from your sent requests page.
There is no way to definitively tell if someone rejected your request, as Facebook does not notify senders of rejections. The only sign is that your pending request vanished.
So while you won’t know for sure if your request was rejected, you can make an educated guess if a pending request disappears without the person ever adding you as a friend.
Should I accept friend requests from people I don’t know?
It’s generally wise to be cautious about accepting Facebook friend requests from strangers. Here are some tips:
- Check if you have any mutual friends. Having connections in common makes it more likely the person actually knows you.
- Quickly browse their profile. Do you recognize them or see anything suspicious?
- Send them a message asking how you know each other. This helps verify their identity.
- If anything seems suspicious, delete the request. You can always add them later.
Ultimately, accept requests at your own discretion. It’s perfectly fine to delete requests from people you can’t identify, as that’s the safest approach.
Conclusion
Facebook friend requests allow you to connect with other users on the platform and see their profile content. You can send and receive requests, accept or ignore them, and even limit who can request to friend you. Managing friend requests properly helps you control who interacts with your profile and builds an online network. With over 2 billion Facebook users, friend requests are an essential tool for making connections.
| Friend Request Action | How to do it |
|---|---|
| Send Request | Click “Add Friend” on a profile |
| Accept Request | Click “Confirm” on pending request |
| Delete Sent Request | Click “Delete Request” in notifications |
| Reject Request | Click “Ignore” or “Delete” on pending request |
| Remove Friend | Click “Unfriend” on their profile |