There are a few potential reasons why you may not see a share button on your Facebook post:
Your post privacy settings
The share button will not appear on posts that are set to be visible to only you. This includes posts set to “Only me” or “Custom” with just your name selected. The share button only shows up on posts that are visible to at least one other person besides yourself.
To check your post privacy settings:
- Click the three dots in the top right corner of your post
- Select “Edit post”
- Under the audience selector, check that your post privacy is set to “Public” or to a custom audience containing at least one other person
Setting your post privacy to “Public” or to an audience with others will enable the share button.
Your account privacy settings
If your entire Facebook account is set to private, the share button will not appear on your posts even if the individual post privacy is set to public or custom. This is because private account settings override the privacy of individual posts.
To check your overall account privacy settings:
- Click on the arrow in the top right corner
- Go to “Settings & Privacy” > “Settings”
- Click on “Privacy”
- Under “Privacy settings” ensure “Share your posts publicly” is turned on
Enabling public sharing of posts from your account settings will allow the share button to display.
Post formatting
The share button only appears on standard text, photo, and video posts on Facebook. Other post formats like life events, links, and status updates do not have the share button.
To check your post format:
- Click on your username in the top left
- Go to your profile
- Find the post and check if it is a regular status update, photo, or video post
The share button will only display on regular posts, not specialized formats like life events or links.
Post age
The share button disappears from posts after around 30 days. Even if a post privacy and account setting conditions are met, an older post may not show the share button.
To check post age:
- Click the date below the post to see the publish date
- Compare to today’s date
For older posts beyond 30 days, the share button gets removed by Facebook even if other conditions are met.
Device differences
The share button may display inconsistently across devices and platforms. A post that shows the share button on desktop may not show it on mobile, and vice versa.
To check for device differences:
- View the post on both mobile and desktop
- See if the share button appears on one platform but not the other
Due to device and platform differences in Facebook’s UI, the share button can appear on one device but not another.
Account restrictions
If your account has been restricted by Facebook for violations like spamming, the share button can disappear from your posts. Other restrictions like being in Facebook jail can also cause the share button to be removed.
To check if account restrictions are enabled:
- Click on the arrow in the top right corner
- Go to “Settings & Privacy” > “Settings”
- Click on “General”
- Check if any account restrictions or blocks are listed
Having active restrictions, blocks or being in Facebook jail can prevent the share button from appearing.
Bug or glitch
In some rare cases, a technical bug or glitch on Facebook’s end may result in the share button failing to load on a post.
To check for technical issues:
- Try sharing the post from a Facebook Page you manage rather than your personal profile
- See if the share button loads when posting from a Page
If the share button appears when posting from a Page, it indicates a technical glitch was preventing it from showing on your personal profile.
How to troubleshoot and fix
Based on the potential reasons above, here are some troubleshooting steps you can take to try bringing back the share button:
- Check post and account privacy settings
- Make sure the post is a standard text, photo or video format
- View the post on both desktop and mobile to check for device issues
- Post from a Facebook Page to see if technical glitches are occurring
- Wait 1-2 days in case the share button shows up later
- Report the problem to Facebook support if the issue persists
Following these troubleshooting steps can often resolve problems with the share button not showing up. Make sure to check post age, privacy settings, account restrictions, and technical issues on Facebook’s end. If the share button still refuses to appear after troubleshooting, contacting Facebook support is recommended.
Why sharing is important
Having the share button easily accessible on your posts is crucial for reaching a wider audience on Facebook. Sharing enables your content to spread organically to new viewers.
Here are some of the key benefits of sharing on Facebook:
- Increased post reach – Sharing exponentially grows the number of people who see your post
- Broadened audience – Your post can reach new audiences outside your existing follower base
- More engagement – Shared posts tend to get higher reactions, comments and shares
- Improved discovery – Sharing raises the visibility of your posts in Facebook’s algorithm
- Driving referral traffic – Posts shared publicly can drive new visits to your website or blog
Making use of native Facebook sharing is crucial for content creators and business pages looking to expand their reach, engagement, website traffic and overall presence on Facebook.
Alternative sharing options
If you are unable to bring back the standard Facebook share button, here are some alternative sharing options:
- Ask viewers to manually copy and share the post URL
- Share the post to your other social media accounts
- Use the Facebook share dialog to generate a custom share link
- Install a share plugin like AddThis on your website
- Leverage share buttons for third-party services like Twitter and LinkedIn
While not as seamless as the native Facebook share button, these alternatives can help users share your content in other ways.
Summary
The Facebook share button is a valuable feature for increasing the reach and engagement of your posts. If it disappears, check your post and account privacy settings, post age and formatting, device differences, account restrictions, and technical issues. Troubleshooting the potential reasons can often bring back the share button. If not, leveraging alternative sharing options can help fill the gap until the issue is resolved.
Conclusion
In summary, there are several possible reasons why the share button may not appear on a Facebook post, ranging from post privacy settings to technical glitches. The most common fixes include adjusting post and account privacy to public, using the standard post formats, checking on multiple devices, and reporting issues to Facebook support if they persist. While the share button is ideal for driving reach and engagement, alternative options like sharing post URLs or using third-party plugins can help fill the void when troubleshooting the root cause on Facebook’s end.