- How to open your activity log
- What's inside the activity log
- Find something specific
- See posts you've hidden from your profile
- Archive or delete posts in bulk with Manage Activity
- The 30-day Trash rule
- Activity log or a full download?
- Questions to answer with your activity log
- Recent activity versus your whole history
- My take
- Frequently asked questions
Your Facebook activity log is under your profile picture, then Settings and Privacy, then Activity Log. It lists what you've done on Facebook in date order, from posts and likes to friend changes, searches and login details, and you can filter it by year, month or activity type.
It's the closest thing Facebook has to a full record of your account. If you're looking for an old comment, a post you hid, a video you watched last week or proof of when you added someone, this is where it lives.
Here's how to open it on any device, what each section holds, and the one thing that trips people up when they try to clean their account from a computer.
How to open your activity log
- Click or tap your profile picture in the top right of Facebook.
- Select Settings and Privacy.
- Click Activity Log.
- Click Activity history on the left to see everything in date order.
Facebook's help centre has versions of this page for computers, the Android and iPhone apps, iPad, mobile browsers and Facebook Lite, so you can look at your log on whatever you're using. The menu names can shift slightly between them.
What's inside the activity log
Facebook groups your history into these activity types:
| Activity type | What you'll find there |
|---|---|
| Your activity across Facebook | Posts you've created, likes and other interactions |
| Personal information | Details you gave when you set up your account |
| Connections | How you've connected with people, such as adding or removing friends |
| Security and login information | Technical details and logged activity on your account |
| Apps and websites off of Facebook | Posts from apps and websites |
| Preferences | Changes you've made to customise Facebook |
| Logged information | Things like your location and search history |
Find something specific
Scrolling the whole log is slow. Filters get you there faster:
- Open Activity Log and click Activity history.
- Click Date, choose the year from the dropdown and then the month.
- Click Save Changes.
- Or pick an activity type, then the category inside it. For example, under Posts you can open Videos you've watched.
That Videos you've watched view is the one people search for most when they want to find a clip they forgot to save.
See posts you've hidden from your profile
- Open Activity Log from Settings and Privacy.
- In the left column, click Your Facebook activity, then Posts.
- Click Posts hidden from profile.
- Use Date filters if you need to narrow it down, then click Save Changes.
Here's the catch Facebook spells out: hiding a post from your profile doesn't hide it from everyone. It's still visible to the audience you shared it with in other places, such as Feed and Search. If you don't want people seeing it, change the audience or remove it instead.
Archive or delete posts in bulk with Manage Activity
Manage Activity is the part of the log that lets you select several posts, photos or videos at once and move them to your Archive or to Trash. It's handy for clearing out years of old posts.
The limit most people hit: right now it only works in the Facebook app on iPhone or Android, or in Facebook Lite. You can't use Manage Activity from a computer. If you've been hunting for it on your laptop and can't find it, that's why.
When you use it, you'll only see the content Facebook lets you move. Not everything in your activity log can be archived or sent to Trash.
The 30-day Trash rule
Moving something to Trash isn't instant deletion. Facebook keeps it for 30 days, then deletes it automatically and it can't be restored after that.
- During those 30 days you can restore it to where you first posted it, or move it to your Archive.
- When you restore it, it goes back to the audience it had before.
- You can choose to delete items before the 30 days are up.
- While it sits in Trash, the content is still covered by Facebook's terms and privacy policy.
If you'd rather keep posts but stop people seeing them, Archive is the safer choice. My guide to finding archived Facebook posts shows where they end up and how to bring them back.
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Activity log or a full download?
The activity log is for browsing and tidying. If you want a copy of everything, for a backup or before you close your account, download your information instead. I've covered the steps in how to download your Facebook data.
Questions to answer with your activity log
A few things people come to the log for, and where to look in it:
| You want to know | Where to look |
|---|---|
| When you added or removed a friend | Connections |
| Whether someone else logged in | Security and login information |
| What you've searched for | Logged information |
| Which posts you liked or commented on | Your activity across Facebook |
| What you changed in your settings | Preferences |
If the list is long, start with Date. Picking the year and month first, then the activity type, gets you to the right week much faster than scrolling.
Recent activity versus your whole history
People often search for Facebook recent activity when they mean the activity log. They're the same place. The log runs in chronological order, so the newest items sit at the top of Activity history. Scroll down, or use the Date filter, to go further back.
To control what others add to your profile, see our guide to stopping tags on Facebook.
My take
Open your activity log once in a while, even if you're not looking for anything. Check Security and login information for anything you don't recognise, glance at Logged information to see what Facebook's recording, and use the Date filter to clear out old posts you'd be embarrassed by now. Just do the bulk clearing from your phone, because the computer won't let you.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the activity log on Facebook?
Click your profile picture in the top right, select Settings and Privacy, then Activity Log. Activity history on the left shows everything in date order.
Can I see videos I've watched in my Facebook activity log?
Yes. In Activity Log, pick the Posts category and open Videos you've watched.
Why can't I use Manage Activity on my computer?
Facebook says Manage Activity currently only works in the Android, iPhone or Facebook Lite app, so you need to use your phone to archive or delete posts in bulk.
How long do deleted Facebook posts stay in Trash?
30 days. During that time you can restore them or move them to Archive. After 30 days they're deleted automatically and can't be restored.
Does hiding a post from my profile hide it from everyone?
No. Facebook says hidden posts are still visible to the audience they were shared with in other places, such as Feed and Search.
