- What memorializing a Facebook account does
- How to request memorialization
- Memorialize or remove? Your two options
- What happens to their Pages and groups
- Legacy contacts: who can manage a memorialized profile
- What friends can do on a memorialized profile
- Set your own wishes now
- My verdict
- Frequently asked questions
To memorialize a Facebook account for someone who has died, send Facebook a memorialization request through its Help Center contact form for deceased people's accounts, with a link to their profile. Once Facebook accepts a valid request, the profile shows 'Remembering' next to their name and nobody can log in to it again.
If you're reading this because someone you love has died, I'm sorry. Dealing with their accounts is one of the odder jobs that lands on family and friends, and Facebook doesn't make the options obvious. Here's what memorialization does, how to ask for it, and the other choices you have.
What memorializing a Facebook account does
| What changes | What stays the same |
|---|---|
| 'Remembering' appears next to their name | Their photos and posts stay, visible to the same audience they were shared with |
| Nobody can log into the account | Friends can share memories on the profile, depending on its privacy settings |
| It stops appearing in People You May Know, ads and birthday reminders | Pages and groups they ran are affected, as explained below |
The birthday reminders point matters to a lot of families. Once the account is memorialized, friends stop getting cheerful prompts to wish them a happy birthday, which can be painful to see.
How to request memorialization
- Find the person's Facebook profile and copy the link to it.
- Go to the Facebook Help Center and search for memorializing a deceased person's account, then open the memorialization request form.
- Fill in the person's name, the profile link and any other details the form asks for. Facebook may ask for proof of death.
- Submit the form. Facebook says it's its policy to memorialize the account once it receives a valid request.
You don't need the person's password, and Facebook won't give it to you. It says it can't provide login information for someone else's account, even after a death, and that logging into another person's account is always against its rules.
Memorialize or remove? Your two options
| Option | What happens | Who can ask |
|---|---|---|
| Memorialize | The profile stays as a place for memories, locked against logins | Anyone with a valid request |
| Remove | The account is deleted from Facebook | Immediate family or the executor, with documentation |
For removal, Facebook asks you to show you're an immediate family member or the executor, usually with documents such as a death certificate. If the person chose a legacy contact, only that contact can ask for removal. If they chose Delete after death, the account is deleted automatically once Facebook learns of the death.
What happens to their Pages and groups
This catches families out. If the person was the only admin of a Facebook Page, Facebook says the Page will be removed once it receives a valid memorialization request. If they were the only admin of a group, the group will be paused. If a Page or group matters to their business or community, add another admin before you send the request, if anyone still has access to do so.
Legacy contacts: who can manage a memorialized profile
A legacy contact is someone the person chose, while they were alive, to look after their profile. If there's no legacy contact, Facebook says the memorialized profile can't be changed at all. A legacy contact can:
- Accept friend requests on the profile's behalf.
- Change the profile picture and cover photo.
- Download a copy of what the person shared, if they turned that feature on.
- Have the account deleted whenever they choose.
Even a legacy contact can't log in to the account, because nobody can log into a memorialized profile. If you're worried someone else is trying to get into a loved one's account, my guide on why Facebook locks accounts explains how Facebook protects logins.
What friends can do on a memorialized profile
A memorialized profile isn't frozen for friends. Depending on the privacy settings the person had, friends can still share memories on the timeline, and everything the person posted stays visible to the same audience as before. Many families find the profile becomes a place to share stories and photos people didn't know existed.
If something posted there upsets you, or a stranger starts posting, you can report it like any other post. And if the profile shows up in a way that hurts, such as in your Memories, you can unfriend the profile or adjust what you see without affecting the memorial for everyone else.
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Set your own wishes now
The kindest thing you can do for your own family is decide in advance. Facebook lets you choose a legacy contact or Delete after death from your settings:
- Click your profile photo, then Settings & privacy, then Settings.
- Open Accounts Center, then Profiles and personal details (sometimes shown as Personal details).
- Choose Account ownership and control, then Memorialization, and select your account.
- Pick Memorialize account and choose a legacy contact, or pick Delete after death.
Two limits: you can only set a legacy contact for your main profile, not additional profiles, and minors can't choose a legacy contact. Tell the person you choose, and tell your family which option you picked.
My verdict
Memorializing is usually the right first step: it locks the account, stops the birthday reminders and keeps the photos for the people who loved them. Move any Pages or groups to another admin first, because those can be removed or paused. And while you're thinking about it, set your own legacy contact. It takes two minutes and saves your family a difficult job later.
Frequently asked questions
How do I memorialize a Facebook account?
Send Facebook a memorialization request through its Help Center form for deceased people's accounts, including a link to the person's profile.
Can I log into a memorialized Facebook account?
No. Nobody can log into a memorialized account, and Facebook won't share login details for someone else's account.
What does Remembering mean on Facebook?
It shows the profile has been memorialized because the person has died.
Can I delete a deceased person's Facebook account?
Immediate family or the executor can request removal with documentation. If there's a legacy contact, only they can ask for removal.
