You can delete a Facebook page you manage, but the process is permanent and takes 14 days

When you delete a Facebook page, Facebook keeps it in a deletion queue for 14 days. During that time, you can cancel the deletion if you change your mind. After 14 days, the page and all its content — posts, photos, comments, followers — are gone permanently and cannot be recovered. You cannot undo a deletion after those 14 days pass.

Only the person who created the page or a page admin with full control can delete it. If you are a regular moderator or editor without admin rights, you will not see the delete option. You must ask someone with admin access to do it, or ask them to give you admin rights first.

Key Takeaways

  • Deleting a Facebook page is permanent after 14 days, so read any content you want to keep before you start the deletion process.
  • Only page admins can delete a page; if you are a moderator or editor, you need admin rights or must ask an admin to delete it for you.
  • The deletion takes 14 days to complete, and you can cancel it anytime during those 14 days by going back into your page settings.
  • If you want to keep the page but stop posting, you can unpublish it instead, which hides it from the public without deleting anything.

How to delete a Facebook page you manage

Open Facebook and go to the page you want to delete. Click the three-line menu icon (called a hamburger menu) in the top right corner of the page. Scroll down and look for "Settings" — this is usually near the bottom of the menu. Click it.

In Settings, look for the left sidebar menu. Scroll down to the bottom of that sidebar until you see "Deactivation and Deletion" or sometimes just "Deletion." Click that option. Facebook will show you a button that says "Delete Page." Click it. Facebook will ask you to confirm — it will remind you that deletion is permanent. Click the confirmation button. Your page will now be in the deletion queue for 14 days.

Write down the date 14 days from now. After that date passes, your page cannot be recovered. If you realize before that date that you made a mistake, you can cancel the deletion by going back to Settings and clicking "Cancel Deletion" — but this option only appears during the 14-day window.

What to do before you delete

Before you start the deletion process, read any content you want to keep. This includes photos, videos, posts, and a list of your followers. Facebook does not automatically send you this information, so you have to request it yourself.

To read your page's content, go to Settings and look for "read Your Information" or "Data read." Click it and select what you want to read — usually photos, videos, and posts. Facebook will prepare a file and email it to you. This can take a few hours or a few days depending on how much content you have. Do this before you delete, because once the page is deleted, you cannot get this information back.

If other people manage the page with you, tell them before you delete it. Once it is gone, they will lose access to it too, and they cannot undo your deletion even if they are admins. If you are not sure whether to delete, consider unpublishing instead — this hides the page from the public but keeps all the content safe in case you want to bring it back later.

The difference between deleting and unpublishing a page

Deleting removes the page permanently after 14 days. Unpublishing hides the page from public view but keeps everything intact. If you unpublish a page, only you and other admins can see it. You can republish it anytime and it will come back exactly as it was, with all posts, photos, and followers still there.

Unpublish a page if you are not sure you want to delete it, or if you might want to use it again someday. Go to Settings, find "General," and look for "Page Status." You will see an option to unpublish. Click it and confirm. The page will disappear from public view but will still exist in your admin panel. To bring it back, go to the same place and republish it.

What happens to your followers when you delete

When you delete a page, all followers lose access to it when ready. They will not be able to find it, message it, or see any of its content. If they try to visit the page URL, they will see an error or a blank page. Followers do not get a notification that the page was deleted — it straightforward disappears from their view.

If you want followers to know where to find you instead, post an announcement before you delete. Tell them about any new page, website, or social media account where they can follow you. Do this at least a few days before you delete so people have time to see it and move to the new location.

If you cannot find the delete option

The delete option only appears if you are a page admin with full control. If you are a moderator or editor, you will not see it. Ask someone who is an admin to delete the page, or ask them to change your role to admin first.

If you are an admin but still cannot find the delete option, the page may have restrictions. Pages that are very old, have a lot of followers, or are connected to a business account sometimes have different deletion rules. Try going to Settings and looking under "General" or "Page Status" — sometimes the delete option is in a different location depending on your page type. If you still cannot find it, you may need to contact Facebook support through the Help Center.

What to do if you change your mind during the 14-day window

If you delete a page and then realize you made a mistake, you have 14 days to cancel the deletion. Go back to the page (you may need to search for it by name), open Settings, and look for "Deactivation and Deletion" again. You should see an option to "Cancel Deletion." Click it and confirm. Your page will come back online with all its content, followers, and history intact.

After the 14 days pass, this option disappears and the page is gone for good. There is no way to recover it after that point, even if you contact Facebook support. So if you are unsure, cancel the deletion and take time to think about it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I delete a Facebook page if I am not the person who created it?

No, only the creator or a page admin with full control can delete a page. If you are a moderator or editor, ask an admin to delete it or to give you admin rights first. If the original creator is no longer available and no one else has admin access, you may need to contact Facebook support to request a transfer of ownership.

What happens to messages people sent to the page?

When you delete a page, all messages in the page's inbox are deleted too. If you need to keep any of those messages, take screenshots or read them before you delete. Once the page is gone, you cannot recover the messages.

Can I delete a page and then create a new one with the same name?

Yes, you can create a new page with the same name after the old one is deleted. However, you have to wait for the 14-day deletion period to finish before the name becomes available again. During those 14 days, no one else can use that name either.

Will deleting a page affect my personal Facebook account?

No, deleting a page only removes the page itself. Your personal account, your friends list, and your personal posts will not be affected. A page is separate from your personal profile, so the deletion only impacts the page and its content.

What if the page has a lot of followers — does that change the deletion process?

The deletion process is the same no matter how many followers the page has. However, pages with very large followings sometimes have additional restrictions or may take longer to fully delete. If you have a page with thousands of followers and want to delete it, go through the normal deletion steps in Settings. If you run into problems, contact Facebook support through the Help Center.