Trusted Reviews is supported by its audience. If you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission. Learn more.

How to turn off Active Status on Facebook Messenger

Facebook Messenger is one of the most popular messaging platforms on the market, with the service being owned by the company Meta.

Messenger allows its users to connect with any friends they have on the social network Facebook. It has a plethora of uses, but you may prefer to engage with the messaging platform without wanting everyone to see it. 

We’ve already gone over how to turn off your active status on Facebook itself, but today we’re going to tackle how to turn it off on Facebook Messenger. Once you disable active status, friends will not be able to see when you were last active, but you also won’t be able to see when they were last active. 

If you’re interested in turning off your active status, then make sure you keep reading, as we’re going to break it down in this simple step-by-step guide. 

Save 81% on a VPN with SurfShark

Save 81% on a VPN with SurfShark

Surfshark has dropped the price of its VPN to £1.94 a month. Head over to Surfshark now to pay a one time price of £46.44 for 24 months of Surfshark and save 81%.

  • NordVPN
  • 81% off
  • £1.94 a month
Buy now

What you’ll need: 

  • A Facebook account

The Short Version 

  • Open up Facebook Messenger
  • Click on the hamburger menu
  • Tap on Settings
  • Go to Active Status
  • Tap on the Active Status button
  1. Step
    1

    Open up Facebook Messenger

    This can be done through the Messenger app or on a browser. Go into your Messenger account to get started. Messenger app

  2. Step
    2

    Click on the hamburger menu

    At the top of the screen on the left-hand side, there is a hamburger menu. Tap on it. Hamburger menu on Messenger

  3. Step
    3

    Tap on Settings

    Click on the large Settings button; it looks like a cog. Chats on Messenger

  4. Step
    4

    Go to Active Status

    From the menu, tap on the heading called Active Status. Active Status on Messenger

  5. Step
    5

    Tap on the Active Status button

    You will be presented with an option to turn off or turn on Active Status. Click the button to disable Active Status. Active Status on Messenger

Troubleshooting

Is the Messenger Active Status accurate?

It is a reliable indicator of when your friends were last online, but it is not completely accurate.

Will my friends know that I turned off my Active Status?

When friends look at your profile on Messenger there will be no indication of when you were last online, which will show that you turned off your Active Status.

Why trust our journalism?

Founded in 2003, Trusted Reviews exists to give our readers thorough, unbiased and independent advice on what to buy.

Today, we have millions of users a month from around the world, and assess more than 1,000 products a year.

author icon

Editorial independence

Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.

author icon

Professional conduct

We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.

Trusted Reviews Logo

Sign up to our newsletter

Get the best of Trusted Reviews delivered right to your inbox.

This is a test error message with some extra words