Facebook doesn't like it when you make too many friend requests at in one case. Trying to expand your network likewise quickly could get yous blocked from adding more Facebook friends. Maybe it already happened to you lot, and yous can't friend someone on Facebook?

Innocent mistakes and ignorance of essential Facebook etiquette tin can lead to consequences like these. But with our tips on how to manage Facebook friend requests, you tin can avoid facing unintentional punishment or lift an existing cake and go on making many new friends.

How to Add together Friends on Facebook

Here is a piffling refresher on the basics of adding friends for those of y'all not too familiar with Facebook. Anybody else, delight skip ahead.

When logged into Facebook, you can find your awaiting friend requests under Menu (3x3 dots icon) > Friends. Facebook no longer highlights awaiting friend requests, but yous will see a note in your Facebook notifications.

Expanded Facebook Menu with Friends option selected.

On your Facebook Friends page, yous'll see a summary of pending friend requests and a list of people you lot may know in the left-paw sidebar. Click a person'due south proper noun on the left to run across their full contour on the right.

Select Confirm to add a friend or Delete Request to deny the asking. The sender won't be notified.

Overview of received friend requests and people you may know on Facebook.

How to Ship and Cancel a Friend Asking on Facebook

Y'all tin likewise search for people you lot know, open up their profiles, and, if they accept friend requests from the public or friends of friends, add them by clicking the Add Friend push located right adjacent to the Message push.

Facebook Add Friend button on a person's profile page.

To cancel a friend asking, get back to their profile, click that same push, which at present reads Cancel Asking.

Yous tin also remove a friend via your Friends list. Facebook does not notify people if you remove them. Notwithstanding, information technology is possible to rail your Facebook friends with third-party tools and receive alerts when people remove yous. An example of such a tool is Who Deleted Me.

Unfollowing vs. Unfriending

Rather than unfriending people who are flooding your News Feed with airheaded posts, attempt unfollowing them instead. That mode you lot can maintain your digital sanity, without risking the loss of a existent-life friendship. For more data, read our primer on following and unfollowing on Facebook.

From your Feed (Domicile) observe a post from your overactive friend, click the arrowhead in the superlative correct to expand the post carte, and click Unfollow. If yous think the hyperactivity is only temporary, you can likewise snooze their messages for 30 days.

Facebook on-post menu to unfollow or snooze a friend.

Alternatively, head to your friend'due south profile, expand the menu right next to your friendship condition, and select Unfollow from the lesser.

Unfollow a Facebook friend from their profile page.

Unwritten Facebook Friend Request Rules

Now that you lot understand the basics of how to add friends on Facebook, permit's review some finer details of managing Facebook friend requests.

ane. Just Add People You lot Know

Facebook but wants you lot to add people you lot know in real life. If your friend requests frequently remain unanswered or fifty-fifty if just 1 person reports your friend request as unwanted, Facebook may conclude that you accept sent friend requests that violate its Community Standards.

Consequently, Facebook might cake you from sending friend requests for some fourth dimension.

To avoid being blocked from adding friends, go far easy for people to recognize you lot. Hither are some guidelines:

  • Utilize your real proper noun or the name you lot use in your everyday life, and set a genuine profile photo.
  • Effort to add simply people with whom you take mutual Facebook friends.
  • Transport your desired contact a message introducing yourself before you add them.

In other words: don't await like a fake account, don't add random strangers, and don't be a stranger yourself.

two. Add Friends Conservatively

You will often want to add a new friend immediately, even though you lot don't have mutual friends on Facebook. And information technology might exist more than awkward to send a bulletin first than to add them directly. That'southward cool.

Just exist sure you don't add too many people without common friends at once only to aggrandize your Facebook accomplish.

Faceboook Follow Option

If yous don't know someone, only but want to know what they post on Facebook, and if there is an option to follow them, rather cull that option. From their profile, click the three-dot carte du jour, and select Follow. This allows you lot to see what they are upwards to, but your timeline is not shared with them.

3. Report Spammy Friend Requests

When yous delete a friend request, Facebook promises that the sender won't be notified. But they might ship you a new asking. If yous can't get rid of them, y'all tin can apply either the Find support or study offline or Block options, available from the three-dot menu, to prevent farther friend requests from that person.

Block person after unsolicited friend request on Facebook.

Utilise the starting time option to report simulated accounts, strangers, or people who harass you.

Report an unwelcome friend request on Facebook.

Go on in listen that if you do this, the person may be penalized.

4. Review Friend Requests You Accept Sent

Feeling self-witting most maybe having sent too many friend requests yourself? Go ahead and double-check.

Go to Friends > Friend Requests > View Sent Requests. From here, you can abolish pending requests.

Cancel Facebook friend requests you've sent.

5. Block Friend Requests From Strangers

Facebook allows you to restrict who tin can transport you a friend request. Not setting that limit is an open invitation for anyone to request your friendship.

If you're receiving also many friend requests from strangers, hither's how you tin can terminate it.

Expand the Account card (arrowhead icon) in the top right and click through to Settings & privacy > Settings > Privacy. Nether How People Find and Contact You lot find the Who tin send you friend requests? option and click Edit. Your choices are Everyone or Friends of friends.

Facebook friend request settings in the Privacy section.

vi. Hide Your Friends List

Allowing everyone to encounter who you've friended could cause some people to exist jealous and bailiwick your friends to unsolicited friend requests. It'south best to restrict who can see your Friends list and friend activeness.

To hide your Friends list, head to How People Find and Contact You on your Settings page. Find the option Who can see your friends list? and click edit.

Here, you can further refine your privacy settings by choosing who tin see your Friends list.

Choose who can see your Facebook friends list.

Yous tin also access all friends-related settings from your (existing) Facebook friends folio. From your profile page, click See all friends, then click the three-dot menu next to Detect Friends and choose Edit Privacy.

Edit your Facebook friends privacy.

Why Tin can't I Friend Someone on Facebook?

If yous can't seem to friend someone on Facebook, here are the most likely reasons...

1. Yous Sent an Unsuccessful Friend Request

You lot already sent a friend asking, and information technology's either still pending or the recipient deleted information technology. Now, the Add Friend button doesn't show upwards, so you can't transport a new friend request.

If your request was deleted, Facebook has blocked you from sending that person another friend asking for one whole year. The but manner to get around this is to enquire the other person to send you a friend request.

If your request is still pending (follow our instructions under "Review Friend Requests You Have Sent" above), you could send your friend-to-be a bulletin and ask them to approve your request.

2. You Blocked the Other Person

You can't friend someone you lot've blocked. See if you can unblock them and and then try sending a new friend request.

3. They Don't Permit Friend Requests From Strangers

As outlined above, Facebook allows you to restrict who can ship you a friend request. If that's the reason yous can't friend someone, ask them to send y'all a friend request instead.

4. Someone Has Too Many Friends Already

Neither you, nor your friend-to-be, tin have more than 5,000 friends. If ane of y'all has crossed that limit, you can't send each other friend requests.

If you take besides many friends, consider turning your account into a Facebook Page.

5. Facebook Blocked You From Sending Friend Requests

This tin can happen if you send too many friend requests at in one case, have many unanswered friend requests, or if several people marked your requests as spam.

According to the Facebook Help Center, Facebook cannot elevator a cake early, merely fortunately, information technology's only temporary and volition elapse within a few days.

Follow our guidelines above to avoid this from happening again.

Master Your Facebook Friendships

Friend requests on Facebook remain awkward. Whether you add together your best friend, someone you know from schoolhouse, your mom, or your dominate, as far equally Facebook is concerned anybody is a "friend."

Nevertheless, Facebook does acknowledge diverse levels of friendship. After all, you tin can sort your friends into close friends, family, acquaintances, or whatsoever other custom list you create.

How to See Friendship and Relationship History on Facebook

Y'all can use a simple URL to see the friendship and human relationship history between y'all and others on Facebook.

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