How to log out of Facebook Messenger on Android

Are you looking for ways to sign out of Facebook Messenger? As trivial as it might sound, Facebook has made it inherently difficult to log out of Facebook Messenger, which is its dedicated messaging app. Well, fret not! Because we are here to help you get around this annoying problem!

Read on to find out how to log out of Facebook Messenger on Android, iOS, or from your computer.

Jump to:

• How to log out of Facebook Messenger on Android
• How to log out of Facebook Messenger on iOS
• How to log out of the Messenger app from the Facebook website

How to log out of Messenger on Android and iOS

There are two methods of logging out of the Facebook Messenger app: clear Facebook Messenger app data from within your device Settings, or log out of the Messenger session from the Facebook app. The first procedure works only on Android phones while the second option can also be used by iPhone/iOS users.

Let us now take a look at each of these steps.

Clear Messenger app data in Settings (For Android users only)

To log out of Facebook Messenger, you need to go into the Settings of your Android device.

1. Close the app if you have it open, and remove it from your recent apps list. Otherwise, this trick won’t work.
2. Open the Settings app.
3. Select the Apps option.
4. Tap on See all apps.
5. Select the Messenger app.
6. Tap on Storage & cache.
7. After opening, select Clear Storage.
   1. There also should be a Clear Cache option, which we suggest you select as well.

Now when you return to launch Messenger in your app drawer, you should see that it will not automatically log you in. 

Pro tip: If someone else wants to use your smartphone to check their Facebook messages while you're still logged in, they just need to select Switch Account to sign into their own account.

Note that this little trick will delete all data that your Messenger application had saved: so it will be returned to a freshly installed state. But as we mentioned earlier, the application 'remembers' your Facebook account.  If you do not want even your account to be displayed here, you will need to repeat the same step. This time, however, using the main Facebook app.

Log out of Messenger session from the Facebook app (Android and iOS users)

If you've got Messenger on your smartphone, chances are pretty high that you also have the Facebook app installed as well. In the Android Facebook app, tap the More button that is located on the top right (which should appear as three horizontal lines). Go to Settings and Privacy, followed by Settings. There you should see Password and securityunder the Account settings. Select Password and security. You'll see a section named Where you're logged in, where you select the Messenger session and tap Log Out.

Following a recent update, you can access these same settings from within Facebook Messenger. To do this, please follow these steps:

1. Launch Facebook Messenger and select your profile picture that is located at the top right corner.
2. Scroll down to Account settings
3. Select Security and login. You may sign out from here as well.

Pro tip: The steps above can also be applied to Messenger Lite.

How to log out of the Messenger app from the Facebook website

You can log out of the iOS or Android Messenger apps from the Facebook website, from your PC, or from your smartphone browser. Go to facebook.com/settings and navigate to Security and login, then find the section called Where You're Logged In. Locate the Messenger session you'd like to log out of, click the three dots on the right, then click Log Out.

These workaround methods can be a bit annoying to deal with, but they work. Facebook doesn't seem keen to change the situation and make it any easier. If you are annoyed by Facebook in general, you might want to consider giving it the boot and trying one of these Facebook alternatives.

In case you are looking at something more concrete to disconnect yourself from Facebook, you can log out from Facebook in different ways depending on where you are accessing it from.

Logging out of Facebook on a computer

If you primarily access Facebook on your computer using a browser, all you need to do to log out of Facebook is to perform these steps:

1. Open Facebook.
2. In the extreme top right corner, click the downward arrow button and select the last option, Log Out.

Logging out of the Facebook App on iOS and Android

If you happen to access Facebook using the official Facebook app, the steps to log out of the app are pretty simple.

1. Launch the Facebook app.
2. Select the menu button (three lines) in the top right corner.
3. Scroll down to the very bottom and select Log Out.

How to log out of Facebook if you've lost your smartphone

In case you lost your smartphone and are worried the thief or person who found it could possibly access your private information, you can remotely log out of Facebook using your computer. Here’s how you can do so:

1. Open Facebook on your computer.
2. Click this link: https://www.facebook.com/settings?tab=mobile 
3. Click on Lost your phone?.
4. In the dialog box that appears, click Log Out on Phone.

If you are on the lookout for something that is even more drastic, we assume that you are looking at a temporary deactivation or perhaps something more permanent like deleting your Facebook account. Well, we have a separate article that addresses the same issue. Please check it out in the link below.

• Now's the time: How to delete a Facebook account permanently

What do you think of Facebook's decision to make Messenger a separate app? Does it annoy you that there's no straightforward way to log out in the form of a Log Out button? Let us know in the comments!

This article was last updated in April 2022. Older comments have been retained and hence, some of them might seem out of context. 

How do you logout of Messenger on a 2022 phone?