Facebook made a significant change in 2019 by removing the ability for users to see the total number of likes on posts. Now, only the original poster of content can see how many likes their post received. For everyone else, posts will only show that they were “liked by [name] and others” without revealing the total like count. This change sparked confusion and debate among Facebook users. Here are some quick answers about why Facebook hides like counts and the implications of this controversial decision:
- Facebook wants to reduce social media’s negative effects on mental health – Seeing high like counts can trigger feelings of envy while low engagement can lower self-esteem. Hiding likes aims to make the experience less competitive.
- Facebook wants people to focus on sharing, not chasing engagement metrics – Total like counts could distract from meaningful interactions. This change puts more emphasis on sharing personal moments versus viral posts.
- Advertisers are still privy to post insights – While users can’t see total likes, advertisers can still access engagement metrics through Facebook’s analytics tools.
- Influencers lose an important metric for their work – For influencers and creators, likes help quantify their reach and engagement. Removing this metric makes it harder to demonstrate value to brands.
While Facebook maintains this change creates a healthier environment, it remains controversial among users who see it as limiting transparency into what’s popular on the platform. The effects of this significant shift remain to be seen.
The History Behind Facebook Likes
Facebook first introduced the Like button in 2009 as a simple way for users to interact with posts. It served as an alternative to commenting. A single tap conveyed positive feedback and became core to how Facebook measured engagement. Over time, amassing high quantities of Likes became an obsession for many users and Page owners. Brands would even run ads focused on getting more Likes. Here’s a quick history of how Likes became so prominent on Facebook:
- 2009 – Facebook introduces the Like button as an easy engagement option for users.
- 2010 – Facebook begins allowing third-party websites to integrate Like buttons and view counts.
- 2011 – Facebook launches its Open Graph API which makes Likes public data.
- 2013 – Facebook adds options to break down Likes by country, age and gender for Page analytics.
- 2016 – Influencers and creators start using high Like counts to attract brand deals.
- 2019 – Facebook begins testing hiding Likes in Australia.
- 2021 – Facebook starts hiding Likes from public view for all users worldwide.
Over Facebook’s first decade, Likes grew from a simple feedback mechanism into a vital metric for influencer marketing and social media stardom. But its ubiquity also came with downsides Facebook is now addressing.
Why Facebook Made This Change
In 2019, Facebook began running tests in various countries where only post creators could see the total Like counts on content while others just saw generic phrases like “Liked by [name] and others.” Following these tests, Facebook rolled out this change to all users by mid-2021.
Facebook outlined a few core reasons behind hiding public Like counts:
1. Reduce Social Media’s Negative Impacts on Mental Health
Excessive social media use has been linked to higher risks of depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. Facebook cited research that exposing people to the quantitative metrics of Likes can exacerbate these problems. Seeing high Like counts triggers feelings of envy and self-doubt for some users. Meanwhile, posts with low engagement can cause creators to feel unsatisfied and discouraged.
By removing the numerical values, Facebook aims to make the experience less competitive and judgmental overall. People can still express their support through Likes, but without the possible pressure of shares and views being quantified for all to see.
2. Have Users Focus on Sharing, Not Metrics
Similar to mental health concerns, Facebook suggested public Like counts encouraged an unhealthy fixation on virality and metrics. People could often get distracted trying to parse why certain posts get more traction. Removing this metric aims to direct focus back to meaningful sharing rather than chasing engagement.
The change emphasizes posts that spark connection and discourse over posts that simply get high numbers of Likes at face value. Facebook described this as part of their work towards more authentic communication.
3. Give Users More Control Over Visibility
Facebook also characterized this shift as enabling more user control. Before, users had no choice but to expose the Like counts on their posts to everyone by default. Now users can choose to be more open by sharing these stats themselves or keep them private if desired. Individual users and creators who want to share the full engagement metrics still have the option to.
Some groups have welcomed this change as it gives them more discretion in highlighting their most liked content versus keeping engagement details private. However, influencers and creators often rely on public metrics, so the change limits visibility against their preferences.
How Advertisers Are Still Able to View Insights
While regular users can no longer access post Like counts, Facebook emphasized that advertisers can still view detailed analytics through the platform’s Ad Manager and Page Insights tools. These include metrics like:
- Total Likes on both organic and paid posts
- Paid ad reach and engagement
- Follower growth over time
- Top performing posts and engagement rates
- Demographics and interests of engaged users
- Shares, comments and other reactions
Accessing this data requires having an authorized Ad Manager account connected to a Facebook Page. But advertisers can leverage these professional analytics to optimize both organic content and paid campaigns. So brands, influencers and creators with Facebook advertising budgets can still leverage Like counts, just no longer publicly.
Some key advantages Facebook touts for advertisers include:
Fine-Tune Ad Targeting
Detailed age, gender and interest breakdowns of who engages with certain post types enables tighter ad targeting. Pages can target lookalike audiences modeled off their best customers.
Track Paid Ad Performance
In-depth metrics on reach, clicks, shares and cost per result helps optimize paid campaigns to deliver the strongest ROI. Can compare performance across different ad sets and creatives.
Identify Top Performing Content
Seeing total Likes and engagement rates by post makes it easy to determine what content resonates most with target audiences to inform organic posting strategies.
Benchmark Against Competitors
Facebook provides aggregate metric benchmarks against competing Pages. Advertisers can evaluate their engagement levels versus competitors.
While regular users now lack the public visibility into Likes, Facebook has prioritized giving advertisers data to maximize results and spending. The ad metrics help justify the platform’s value to brands amid the changes for organic content.
The Implications for Influencers and Creators
Influencers and creators have expressed a mix of skepticism and frustration regarding Facebook’s decision to hide public Like counts. As these groups rely on quantified metrics to secure brand deals and fans, limiting visibility poses challenges. Here are some key implications:
Harder to Track Content Performance
Influencers often tested different posting strategies and angles to determine what content best engages their audience. Public Like counts enabled easy A/B testing to optimize organic reach. Without access to total Likes, understanding top and underperforming content is much more difficult.
Reduced Ability to Pitch Value to Brands
When pitching brand sponsorships and collaborations, influencers leverage metrics like high Like and engagement rates to showcase their value. Hidden Likes removes a key data point for proving reach and resonance to potential partners.
Limiting Supporter Interaction and Feedback
Super fans would sometimes Like older posts to show support, which creators would notice and engage with. Hidden Likes reduce this casual interaction loop between influencers and their loyal followers.
Uncertain Impact on Earning Potential
If lower transparency into their effectiveness makes brands less willing to partner with influencers, it could significantly impact their earnings. However, sponsored content may also increase as brands shift dollars away from organic reach.
While Facebook framed this as a positive step, influencers bear the burden of less visibility into their efforts. They must adapt through strategies like sharing exclusive metrics directly with their audience and finding alternative ways to quantify audience engagement.
Responses and Perceptions Among Users
The reaction among everyday Facebook users to hiding Like counts has been mixed. Some support the change as beneficial for mental health, while others criticize it as limiting transparency. Here are some common perspectives:
Positive Support From Some Users
Some users welcomed the change as an opportunity to use Facebook in a less pressured and competitive way. Rather than fixating on engagement, they can focus on sharing personal moments. The change encourages expressing oneself without worrying about metrics.
Confusion and Frustration From Losing Insights
Many express annoyance at losing insight into what posts resonate most with their audience. It removes a simple barometer for what content works best. Some feel Facebook is limiting transparency into popularity and reach.
Ambivalence Towards Change
Plenty of users have minimal reaction to the change itself, neither praising it nor complaining about it. They passively accept Facebook’s decision without it really impacting their usage or perception much.
Criticism That It Misses the Real Issues
Some criticize Facebook for hiding Likes as an ineffective band-aid solution that fails to truly address mental health or transparency concerns on the platform. Real change would require tackling root causes like algorithms that promote controversial and divisive content.
Overall, Facebook users have mixed opinions on the merits and impact of this significant change. While some see potential mental health benefits, others argue it harms transparency and removes useful metrics. The long-term effects remain uncertain.
How Other Social Platforms Manage Public Engagement Metrics
Facebook’s hiding of Like counts reflects wider debates around social media and mental health. Each platform takes a different approach to showing quantitative engagement:
Instagram (also owned by Meta)
- Began testing hidden Likes in 2019 and has since expanded the test
- Users must choose to hide their own Like counts
- Influencers and creators can still view Likes using creator profiles
- Total Likes remain publicly visible by default
- Users can choose to hide their own engagement metrics
- Provides data like Top Tweets and Tweet impressions
YouTube
- Publicly displays view counts, Likes, dislikes and other metrics
- Analytics provide creators with detailed audience data
- Focuses more on reducing harmful comments than engagement transparency
TikTok
- Video view counts and hearts are publicly shown
- Profiles display total hearts and followers
- Owners can hide cumulative likes and view counts
Snapchat
- Does not have a visible like function
- Public metrics limited to friend counts and subscribers
- Stories show number of viewers but not identities
Facebook remains the only major platform to hide engagement metrics for all users by default while still tracking data behind the scenes. Other social media companies highlight this to position themselves as more transparent, though policies continue evolving.
Potential Future Changes
While likes are now hidden, Facebook may make additional changes related to engagement metrics and social media experiences going forward. Potential upcoming changes include:
Showing Like Counts Only to Close Friends
Facebook may follow Instagram’s lead and have Like counts visible only to close friends and followers rather than being fully private. This could balance transparency for creators with removing public judgment.
New Metrics for Measuring Engagement
Facebook is exploring alternate metrics beyond Likes to quantify post resonance. Metrics like “Reach” which shows how many unique accounts saw content could become more prominent.
Hiding Comment Counts
Facebook may extend hiding engagement to comments as well. It follows the same rationale of reducing focus on popularity metrics in favor of authentic discussion.
More User Controls Over Visibility
Rather than a blanket policy, Facebook could allow users to decide if they want to show or hide their own engagement data. This personalized approach enables customizing based on comfort levels.
Expanded Mental Health Features
Alongside removing external pressures, Facebook may add more well-being focused tools directly within the app like breaks from consuming content or support resources.
As social media’s role in society continues evolving, Facebook will likely continue iterating its features around community engagement, support and user control. The choices they make significantly influence the experiences and priorities of billions of users.
Conclusion
Facebook’s hiding of public Like counts represents a major shift for both casual users and professional creators. While Facebook framed it as an issue of user wellbeing and transparency, reactions have been mixed. Some appreciate seeing less focus on engagement metrics, while influencers and creators feel handicapped. Other social platforms highlight engagement more, arguing transparency matters.
Going forward, it remains unclear if this change will achieve Facebook’s aims of less social media pressure and more authentic connections. As users continue voicing feedback and adjusting behaviours, Facebook may iterate further on its approaches. But for now, the Like counts that were once core to Facebook’s DNA are now hidden from public view. Despite the visible changes, Likes maintain huge weight behind the scenes as Facebook leverages data to serve relevant ads and content.