You create or edit a Facebook avatar in the Facebook app for Android or iPhone: open your profile, tap Edit profile, scroll down to Avatars and choose Create or Edit. As of Nov 2026, Facebook Help says your avatar is public, so anyone on or off Facebook can see it, but you decide who can share or interact with it: Everyone, Friends or Only me.
Facebook Help doesn't spend long on what an avatar is. It's something you create and customise in the app and use to express yourself with friends. What Help does spell out are the settings around it, and that's where the surprises are: who can see it, who can use it, how it syncs with Instagram and what happens when you delete it.
Make your avatar in the app
Help says you create and customise your avatar through the Facebook app for Android and iPhone. As of Nov 2026, the steps are:
- Open the Facebook app on your phone.
- Tap your profile photo in the top right, then tap your profile.
- Tap Edit profile.
- Scroll down to Avatars and tap Create or Edit.
- Build your avatar in the avatar editor. To change it later, go back to the editor at any time.
One small trap. Help's article on creating an avatar starts from your profile photo in the top right, while its article on showing your avatar starts from Menu. Menus move between app versions, so if one route isn't there, try the other. Both end at Edit profile.
This page is about Facebook only. Instagram has its own avatar settings, which I cover in my Instagram avatar guide, and WhatsApp has its own too, in the WhatsApp avatar walkthrough.
Show it on your profile
Creating an avatar and displaying it on your profile are two separate steps, and Help gives the second one its own article. To dynamically display your avatar on your profile:
- In the Facebook app, tap Menu.
- Tap your profile, then tap Edit profile.
- Under the Avatar section, tap Show on profile.
If you've made an avatar and can't see it on your profile, this is the first step I'd check.
Public to see, your call who uses it
This is the part people mix up, because two different things are going on.
Seeing your avatar. Help says your avatar is public, so it can be seen by anyone on or off Facebook, in the same way people can see names and profile pictures. Help doesn't list a setting to hide it. What you can always do is edit it or delete it.
Using your avatar. Separately, you control who can share or interact with it. By default, that's your friends. Help lists three options:
| Option | Who can share or interact with your avatar | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Everyone | Anyone can view and use your avatar on Facebook and Messenger | The widest setting Help lists |
| Friends | Everyone you're friends with | The default |
| Only me | Just you | The tightest setting, though the avatar itself is still public to see |
To change it, as of Nov 2026:
- On Facebook, click or tap your profile picture in the top right.
- Choose Settings and privacy, then Avatars.
- Choose Who can share or interact with your avatar?
- Pick Everyone, Friends or Only me.
Notice that this setting lives under Settings and privacy, not in the avatar editor. People who go looking for it next to the Create or Edit button won't find it there.
Syncing your avatar with Instagram
Help's create article says that if you sync your Facebook and Instagram profiles, you can use the same avatar in both places. The sync itself runs through Accounts Centre. Instagram Help says once your accounts are in the same Accounts Centre, you can sync your name, profile picture, username and avatar across your Facebook, Instagram and Meta Horizon profiles.
Here's the condition. You can choose whether to sync your profile picture, username or avatar, but Help says that to sync any profile information you need to sync your name first. When you do, your name becomes the same across every profile you've chosen to sync, and people can see and search for you by that name on those apps. That's worth a moment's thought if your Instagram runs under a brand name and your Facebook is your own name.
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
When you sync the avatar itself, you choose either your Facebook or your Instagram avatar to use across your profiles. The default is the avatar from the app you're using at the time. After that, Help says changes carry across: change your avatar on Facebook or Instagram and it changes on both.
Deleting can't be undone
To delete your avatar, open the avatar editor, tap Options, then tap Delete avatar. Help is blunt about it: the action is permanent and can't be reversed. You can create a new avatar at any time by going back to the editor, but you'd be building a new one, not getting the old one back.
So if your real worry is other people using it, I'd change the share setting to Only me instead. That keeps the avatar you've built and stops friends from sharing or interacting with it.
Clothing and accessories vary by area
Help has an article on getting clothing and accessories for your avatar, but it shows a notice that the feature isn't currently available in some areas. So what you see in the editor can depend on where you are, as of Nov 2026. If a friend somewhere else has outfit options you can't find, that's the likely reason. For other Facebook settings questions, my Facebook help guide is the place to start.
What I'd do with a Facebook avatar
I'd set the share option before anything else. Friends is the default and suits most people. I'd only open it to Everyone if you're happy for anyone on Facebook and Messenger to use it, and that includes people you've never met.
I'd skip the delete button unless you're sure, because it can't be undone and Only me does most of the job. And if your Instagram and Facebook use different names, I'd think twice before syncing, because syncing the avatar means syncing your name too.
If you want a friendly, consistent face across your brand's social profiles and a plan to go with it, that's the kind of social media guidance I give. I run AI training and workshops for teams, and help businesses with AI enablement and workflow automation, so the busywork runs itself and people get time back. Most of that work is with SaaS marketing teams and small businesses. Here's how we can work together.
Frequently asked questions
Where do I create a Facebook avatar?
Help says you create and customise your avatar through the Facebook app for Android and iPhone. Go to your profile, tap Edit profile, scroll to Avatars and choose Create or Edit.
Who can see my Facebook avatar?
Anyone, on or off Facebook. Help says your avatar is public, like your name and profile picture. The settings control who can share or interact with it, not who can see it.
How do I stop people using my Facebook avatar?
Go to Settings and privacy, then Avatars, then Who can share or interact with your avatar? and choose Only me.
Can I get a deleted Facebook avatar back?
No. Help says deleting an avatar is permanent and can't be reversed, though you can create a new one at any time in the avatar editor.
Why can't I sync my Facebook avatar to Instagram?
To sync any profile information in Accounts Centre, you need to sync your name first. Then you can choose either your Facebook or your Instagram avatar to use on both.
