Buzz
This guide will teach you how to clear the 'Recent Searches' list on the Facebook Messenger app. The only method to achieve this is by logging out of your Messenger session—this process can be done through the Facebook app on your phone or via the Facebook website.
Steps
On Your Phone
Open Facebook. Tap the Facebook app, which features a white 'f' on a blue background. This will open the News Feed if you're logged in.
- If you’re not logged in, enter your email address (or phone number) and password to continue.
Tap the ☰ icon located at the bottom-right of the screen (iPhone) or the top of the screen (Android) to open the options menu.
Scroll down and select Settings towards the bottom of the list.
- Skip this step on Android.
Tap Account Settings from the menu that appears to open the account settings.
- On Android, you may need to scroll down to see this option.
Select Security and Login located near the top of the screen.
Look for the section titled "Where You're Logged In" in the middle of the page. You may need to scroll down to find it.
Look for the "Messenger" login entry. Under the section titled "Where You're Logged In", locate the phone or tablet you've logged into Messenger with, and then look for the word "Messenger" below the device name. If you can't find the device you're looking for, tap See More to view additional logins.
- On Android, you'll need to tap See More to log out from a specific device.
- If you see the word "Facebook" under the device name, it's a login to the Facebook app, not Messenger.
Tap the ⋮ icon located to the right of the page, next to the Messenger login entry on your phone or tablet, to open the menu next to this icon.
Choose Log Out. This action will log you out of Messenger on the selected phone or tablet.
Log back into Messenger. Use your iPhone, Android, or tablet to open Messenger and log in using your Facebook email address (or phone number) and password. Once logged in, you can tap the search bar at the top of the screen to see the "Recent Searches" section, which will no longer display any data.
- You may need to wait a few seconds before Messenger recognizes that your account has been logged out.
- Upon logging back in, you will be asked if you'd like to sync your contacts with Messenger.
- If for any reason the "Recent Searches" section still shows data after logging back in, try removing the Facebook Messenger app and reinstalling it.
On a computer
Open Facebook. Navigate to https://www.facebook.com/ using your web browser to access your Facebook News Feed, provided you're already logged in.
- If you are not logged in, enter your email address and password first, then click Log In located at the top-left corner of the page.
Click on Settings near the bottom of the list to open the Settings page.
Click the Security and Login tab located at the top left corner of the page.
Scroll down to locate the section labeled "Where You're Logged In" in the center of the page. You may need to scroll further down to see all the details.
Look for your "Messenger" login entry. In the "Where You're Logged In" section, locate the name of the phone or tablet you logged into Messenger with, then check for the word "Messenger" beneath the device name. If the device is not listed, click See More to reveal additional login entries.
- If you see the word "Facebook" under a device's name, it's a login to the Facebook app, not Messenger.
Click on the ⋮ icon to the right of the page, next to the Messenger login on your phone or tablet to open the menu next to the icon.
Click on Log Out in the menu that appears. This action will log you out of the Messenger app on the selected phone or tablet.
Log back into Messenger. Use your iPhone, Android, or tablet to open Messenger, then log in with your Facebook email address (or phone number) and password. Once logged in, you can tap the search bar at the top of the screen to view "Recent Searches" (recent searches), which will now show no information.
- You may need to wait a few seconds for Messenger to recognize that you’ve logged out.
- When logging back in, Messenger will ask if you'd like to sync contacts with the app.
- If for some reason the "Recent Searches" section still displays information after logging back in, you can try removing the Messenger app and reinstalling it.
Tip
- The "Where You're Logged In" section can also be used to ensure that your Facebook account isn’t logged into any computers, phones, or tablets that you’re not using.
Warning
- You cannot log out of Facebook Messenger directly from the app itself.
