How do you turn off active status online?

When your active status is enabled on Facebook, your contacts can see that you are currently or recently have been online. If you do not want them to know your online presence, turn off your active status on Facebook. We’ll show you how.

Later, if you change your mind, you can re-enable active status and let people know that you are online.

Note: To hide your active status in Facebook Messenger, check out our dedicated guide on that.

Table of Contents

How to Appear Offline on Facebook for Desktop
How to Not Show Your Active Status on Facebook on Mobile

How to Appear Offline on Facebook for Desktop

On a Windows, Mac, Linux, or Chromebook computer, use the Facebook website to disable your active status.

To start, open a web browser on your computer and launch the Facebook site.

In the site’s top-right corner, click the “Messenger” icon.

At the top of the “Messenger” box, click the three dots.

In the “Chat Settings” menu that opens, click “Turn Off Active Status.”

Tip: In the future, to re-enable your active status, select “Turn On Active Status” from the “Chat Settings” menu.

You will see an “Active Status” box with three options. Here’s what each option does:

• Turn Off Active Status for All Contacts: Select this option to disable your active status for everyone.
• Turn Off Active Status for All Contacts Except: Choose this option if you want to show your active status only to specific people. You can enter those people’s names once you select this option.
• Turn Off Active Status for Only Some Contacts: Select this option to hide your active status from certain people. You can enter those people’s names once you choose this option.

When you have selected an option, at the bottom of the “Active Status” box, click “Okay.”

And Facebook will now hide your active status from everyone or the people you chose. Enjoy some privacy!

How to Not Show Your Active Status on Facebook on Mobile

On your iPhone, iPad, or Android phone, utilize the Facebook app to hide your active status.

RELATED: How to Hide Your Online Status in WhatsApp

To do so, launch the Facebook app on your phone. In the app, tap the three horizontal lines. If you are on an iPhone or iPad, you will find these lines at the bottom-right corner. If you are on an Android phone, these lines are at the top-right corner.

Scroll down the “Menu” screen that opens to the bottom. There, tap “Settings & Privacy.”

In the menu that opens, tap “Settings.”

On the “Settings & Privacy” page, at the bottom of the “Audience and Visibility” section, select “Active Status.”

To turn off your active status, on the “Active Status” page, disable the “Show When You’re Active” option.

Tip: To re-enable your active status on Facebook, turn on the “Show When You’re Active” option.

Tap “Turn Off” in the prompt.

You are all set.

And that’s how you prevent people from finding out your online presence on Facebook. Very useful for privacy!

Have you ever wondered how some people know you're online even though you swear you set the Messenger app to hide your active status? No, you're not crazy — it's an issue with two conflicting settings, and there's an easy fix.

Many don't realize this, but you have two different online status settings to deal with if you want to appear offline at all times. Not only is there the "Active Status" option in the Facebook Messenger app, but you also have a similar setting in the actual Facebook app itself. It's tucked away under the settings sub-menu, which means the average user of the app can easily miss it.

Step 1: Disable Active Status in the Facebook App

Open the Facebook app and tap the menu icon (three horizontal lines) on the right to access a giant list of options. Scroll down and tap "Settings & Privacy" to expand a new set of options. Tap "Settings," then scroll down to the "Privacy" section. Locate "Active Status" and select it to open a new screen, then flip the "Show when you're active" switch to the off position.

You can also use the search bar at the top and type in "active status" to locate the setting even faster if you prefer to do it that way.

Now, whenever you're browsing your news feed from the Facebook app, you will no longer appear as active. This means your profile will show up as offline to everyone in your friend list, which allows you to browse in peace. If you want to maximize your offline status even further, follow the next step to disable the other option from the Facebook Messenger app.

Step 2: Disable Active Status on the Messenger App

Open the Facebook Messenger app to the main screen, then tap your profile icon in the upper-left to bring up the app settings. Locate the "Active Status" option then tap it to bring up a new screen. Now you just need to flip the "Show when you're active" switch to the off position. Easy! Even if you thought it was off the first time around, now was a good time to double-check for good measure.

From this point, you will be completely hidden when it comes to your Facebook online status in both apps. Sometimes you just need to unwind and chill without everyone knowing when you're available at all times. You now have the option to browse your news feed privately as you see fit. At the same time, you can also message others without your entire friend list seeing your online status as well.

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