How to Close One of Two Facebook Accounts

By James Wright

Updated September 13, 2017

Deactivating or deleting a Facebook account removes all its content from view.
i Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News/Getty Images

If you have two Facebook accounts, you can close one without affecting the other by either deleting or deactivating just one account. Closing the account may affect the Pages you manage, however, if the account is the page's only administrator. Before attempting to close any of your accounts, take some precautions to make sure your Pages and data are safe even after your account is gone.

Deactivating an Account

Log in to the account you want to deactivate. Click the dropdown menu icon in the Facebook menu bar, then click "Settings."

Click the "General" tab, then click the "Deactivate Your Account" button.

Enter your password and click "Continue."

Select your reason for leaving, choose to opt out of any future emails if you so desire, and then click "Deactivate." Click "Deactivate Now" to complete the deactivation. You will be redirected to Facebook's main login page when it is all done. To reactivate, all you need to do is type in your email address and password like you're logging in normally and your account will be restored.

Permanently Deleting An Account

Log in to the Facebook account you want to delete completely, and then access your Account Settings to download a copy of your Facebook data. This isn't necessary to delete your account, but since the deletion is permanent, downloading an archive of your data first is recommended.

Access the account deletion form via Facebook's Help section, or from the link in the Resources section of this article. The form is simply an explanation of what the permanent account deletion does, and will only ask you to confirm or cancel your deletion request.

Select "Delete My Account" to start the deletion process. Provide your password, then enter the CAPTCHA characters displayed to confirm. You will then be displayed a warning that your account will be deleted within 14 days.

Tips

If you change your mind about permanently deleting your account, simply log in to Facebook with your email address and password at any time within the 14-day period. If you miss this window, however, your account will be gone for good.

Warnings

If you are the only administrator of a Page, this Page will be deleted or unpublished when you delete or deactivate your account. If you want to keep the Page, be sure to designate another administrator before doing so; full administrative powers will automatically transfer to the new administrator upon deletion.

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