Facebook doesn't like it when you make too many friend requests at once. Trying to expand your network as well quickly could get yous blocked from adding more Facebook friends. Maybe information technology already happened to you, and y'all can't friend someone on Facebook?

Innocent mistakes and ignorance of essential Facebook etiquette tin lead to consequences like these. But with our tips on how to manage Facebook friend requests, you can avoid facing unintentional punishment or elevator an existing cake and go along making many new friends.

How to Add Friends on Facebook

Hither is a little refresher on the nuts of adding friends for those of you non too familiar with Facebook. Everyone else, delight skip alee.

When logged into Facebook, you tin notice your pending friend requests under Menu (3x3 dots icon) > Friends. Facebook no longer highlights pending friend requests, but you volition see a note in your Facebook notifications.

Expanded Facebook Menu with Friends option selected.

On your Facebook Friends page, you'll meet a summary of pending friend requests and a list of people y'all may know in the left-hand sidebar. Click a person'south proper name on the left to see their full contour on the right.

Select Confirm to add a friend or Delete Asking to deny the request. The sender won't be notified.

Overview of received friend requests and people you may know on Facebook.

How to Send and Abolish a Friend Request on Facebook

You tin can also search for people you lot know, open their profiles, and, if they have friend requests from the public or friends of friends, add them past clicking the Add Friend button located correct side by side to the Message push.

Facebook Add Friend button on a person's profile page.

To abolish a friend asking, go back to their profile, click that aforementioned push button, which at present reads Abolish Asking.

Yous tin as well remove a friend via your Friends list. Facebook does not notify people if you remove them. Withal, it is possible to rail your Facebook friends with third-party tools and receive alerts when people remove you. An example of such a tool is Who Deleted Me.

Unfollowing vs. Unfriending

Rather than unfriending people who are flooding your News Feed with silly posts, endeavor unfollowing them instead. That manner you can maintain your digital sanity, without risking the loss of a real-life friendship. For more data, read our primer on following and unfollowing on Facebook.

From your Feed (Home) discover a post from your overactive friend, click the arrowhead in the top correct to expand the post menu, and click Unfollow. If you think the hyperactivity is only temporary, you tin can besides snooze their messages for 30 days.

Facebook on-post menu to unfollow or snooze a friend.

Alternatively, head to your friend's contour, expand the carte correct side by side to your friendship condition, and select Unfollow from the bottom.

Unfollow a Facebook friend from their profile page.

Unwritten Facebook Friend Request Rules

Now that yous understand the basics of how to add friends on Facebook, permit'south review some finer details of managing Facebook friend requests.

1. Only Add People You Know

Facebook just wants you to add people you know in real life. If your friend requests often remain unanswered or even if just one person reports your friend request every bit unwanted, Facebook may conclude that you have sent friend requests that violate its Community Standards.

Consequently, Facebook might cake you from sending friend requests for some time.

To avert being blocked from adding friends, make information technology easy for people to recognize you. Here are some guidelines:

  • Use your real proper name or the name you lot use in your everyday life, and set a genuine profile photo.
  • Try to add only people with whom you take mutual Facebook friends.
  • Transport your desired contact a message introducing yourself before you add together them.

In other words: don't await like a fake business relationship, don't add random strangers, and don't be a stranger yourself.

ii. Add Friends Conservatively

You will oft want to add together a new friend immediately, even though yous don't have mutual friends on Facebook. And it might be more bad-mannered to send a message offset than to add together them directly. That's cool.

But be sure you don't add too many people without common friends at once simply to expand your Facebook reach.

Faceboook Follow Option

If you don't know someone, but just want to know what they post on Facebook, and if there is an option to follow them, rather choose that option. From their profile, click the three-dot menu, and select Follow. This allows y'all to come across what they are up to, merely your timeline is not shared with them.

3. Report Spammy Friend Requests

When yous delete a friend request, Facebook promises that the sender won't exist notified. But they might ship you a new request. If you can't become rid of them, you can apply either the Find support or study offline or Block options, available from the three-dot card, to prevent further friend requests from that person.

Block person after unsolicited friend request on Facebook.

Apply the first option to study imitation accounts, strangers, or people who harass you.

Report an unwelcome friend request on Facebook.

Keep in mind that if you practise this, the person may be penalized.

4. Review Friend Requests You Have Sent

Feeling self-conscious about maybe having sent likewise many friend requests yourself? Go ahead and double-check.

Get to Friends > Friend Requests > View Sent Requests. From here, you tin can abolish pending requests.

Cancel Facebook friend requests you've sent.

5. Block Friend Requests From Strangers

Facebook allows you to restrict who can send you a friend request. Not setting that limit is an open invitation for anyone to request your friendship.

If you're receiving as well many friend requests from strangers, here'south how y'all tin cease it.

Expand the Business relationship menu (arrowhead icon) in the top correct and click through to Settings & privacy > Settings > Privacy. Under How People Find and Contact You find the Who can ship y'all friend requests? option and click Edit. Your choices are Everyone or Friends of friends.

Facebook friend request settings in the Privacy section.

6. Hide Your Friends List

Allowing everyone to see who you've friended could cause some people to be jealous and subject your friends to unsolicited friend requests. It's best to restrict who can see your Friends list and friend activity.

To hide your Friends list, head to How People Notice and Contact You on your Settings page. Find the pick Who can see your friends list? and click edit.

Hither, you tin further refine your privacy settings by choosing who can see your Friends list.

Choose who can see your Facebook friends list.

Yous can also access all friends-related settings from your (existing) Facebook friends folio. From your contour page, click See all friends, and then click the three-dot menu next to Observe Friends and cull Edit Privacy.

Edit your Facebook friends privacy.

Why Tin can't I Friend Someone on Facebook?

If you tin can't seem to friend someone on Facebook, hither are the most likely reasons...

one. You lot Sent an Unsuccessful Friend Request

You already sent a friend request, and it's either still pending or the recipient deleted information technology. Now, the Add Friend push button doesn't evidence up, so y'all can't transport a new friend request.

If your request was deleted, Facebook has blocked you from sending that person another friend request for one whole twelvemonth. The only way to get effectually this is to inquire the other person to send you lot a friend request.

If your asking is nevertheless pending (follow our instructions nether "Review Friend Requests You lot Have Sent" above), y'all could send your friend-to-be a message and ask them to approve your request.

two. You Blocked the Other Person

Y'all can't friend someone you've blocked. Come across if y'all tin unblock them and then attempt sending a new friend request.

iii. They Don't Permit Friend Requests From Strangers

As outlined to a higher place, Facebook allows yous to restrict who tin send you a friend request. If that's the reason you can't friend someone, ask them to send you a friend request instead.

4. Someone Has Besides Many Friends Already

Neither you, nor your friend-to-be, can have more 5,000 friends. If i of yous has crossed that limit, you can't send each other friend requests.

If you accept likewise many friends, consider turning your account into a Facebook Page.

5. Facebook Blocked You From Sending Friend Requests

This can happen if yous transport also many friend requests at in one case, have many unanswered friend requests, or if several people marked your requests as spam.

According to the Facebook Help Heart, Facebook cannot lift a cake early, merely fortunately, it's merely temporary and volition expire within a few days.

Follow our guidelines above to avoid this from happening once more.

Master Your Facebook Friendships

Friend requests on Facebook remain awkward. Whether y'all add your best friend, someone you know from schoolhouse, your mom, or your boss, equally far every bit Facebook is concerned everyone is a "friend."

Even so, Facebook does admit various levels of friendship. Afterward all, you lot can sort your friends into close friends, family unit, acquaintances, or any other custom list you lot create.