How to Delete Messenger Messages for You and the Recipient

Step by step

1. 1

   Open the conversation

   Open Messenger and pick the conversation with the message you want to get rid of. Scroll to the specific message - if it is older, use the magnifying glass at the top and type a piece of the text or the person's name. It works the same on Android and iPhone.

2. 2

   Press and hold the message

   Tap the message and hold it for a second. A small menu appears with reaction emojis and extra options. Look for More or go straight to Remove - in some versions of the app the trash icon shows up right away.

3. 3

   Choose Remove

   Tap Remove, sometimes labeled Unsend. Messenger asks how you want to delete the message and shows the available options.

4. 4

   Decide: for you or for everyone

   Remove for everyone takes the message off both phones, but it is often only available for a limited time after sending (about 15 minutes). Remove for you hides it only on your side, and the other person still sees it. If the everyone option is gone, too much time has passed.

5. 5

   Delete a whole conversation

   To delete an entire thread, go back to the chat list, press and hold the conversation and choose Delete. It disappears only from your phone - it stays on the recipient's. There is no way to delete a whole conversation from someone else's device. If you would rather just hide it, choose Archive instead - the thread comes back when the person writes again.

Does the recipient see that you deleted a message

When you choose Remove for you, the other side notices nothing - the message stays intact on their end. You are only hiding it from yourself.

With Remove for everyone, the content disappears, but a note like Message removed usually appears in its place. So the recipient sees that something was there and got unsent. On top of that, they may have already read the content or seen a lock screen notification before you deleted it.

Deleting messages on a computer

On a computer, open Messenger at messenger.com or in a chat window on Facebook. Hover over the message, click the three dots that appear next to it and choose Remove.

From there it works the same as on your phone: you get Remove for you and Remove for everyone, and the second one only works within a short window after sending. To delete a whole conversation, click the three dots next to it in the chat list on the left and choose Delete.

Disappearing messages and vanish mode

Messenger also has features that delete messages automatically. In vanish mode, which you usually turn on by swiping up in an open chat, messages disappear after the other person sees them and you both leave the conversation.

In encrypted chats you can also set a disappearing messages timer. Every new message then deletes itself after the chosen time on both sides. The timer only applies to messages sent after you turn it on - it will not touch older ones, so you have to delete those manually.

How to get rid of Messenger - uninstalling vs deactivation

Uninstalling the app only takes it off your phone. Your account and entire chat history remain, and you can still read your messages in a browser or after reinstalling.

If you want to leave Messenger for good, you have two routes. If you use it through Facebook, deleting or deactivating your Facebook account also shuts down Messenger. An account running only on a phone number gets deactivated in the app's own settings, in the account and privacy section.

Frequently asked questions