Facebook Is Not Restricting Your News Feed to 25 Friends

Hand holding cup of coffee and other hand holding phone on Facebook.

Okay, Facebook users… stop spreading the hoax!

Chances are, by now you’ve seen the viral Facebook post that explains how the “new algorithm” is restricting what you see in your News Feed — to just 25 friends.

This isn’t true! Facebook isn’t cutting you off from your friends or limiting the number of people whose posts you can view in your feed.

This false news-esque post has been circulating for months, claiming that Facebook has implemented an algorithm change that will only allow you to see posts from a select number of your friends.

This hoax promotes users to copy and paste a message about the “change” — which has sent the post viral. The typical message looks something like this:

The new algorithm controlling Facebook’s News Feed now shows only posts from the same few people, about 25. Their system chooses the people to read your posts, but I would like to choose for myself. Therefore, I ask you a favor: please, right now…Leave me a quick comment, a ‘hello,’ a sticker, whatever you want – don’t just ‘like’ – post something – so you will appear in my News Feed. I have some interesting news coming and want to make sure it reaches you.

Facebook dismissed the claims and made it clear that the post is false. But, thanks to people who are unknowingly sharing inaccurate information, the post continues to spread.

But wait, you say, you have noticed changes in your feed. Significant changes!

So, what is true about changes to your Facebook News Feed?

Mark Zuckerberg speaking with his hands held out.It is true… that Facebook is cracking down on sham articles shared on the social networking site, after discovering that some fake posts impacted the outcome of the 2016 U.S. election.

It is true… that CEO, Mark Zuckerberg announced back in January that Facebook would overhaul the News Feed to prioritize posts from friends and family, as opposed to those from brands and publishers. Check out the blog we wrote detailing these changes.

It is true… that Facebook’s algorithm does make judgments when it comes to which of your friends you see content from, how often, and in what order, based on your ongoing interactions with posts.

And it is true… that you can change what you see on your news feed!
Just not by copying and pasting the hoax post with inaccurate information.

How To Change What You See On Your News Feed

If you feel that you are only seeing a limited number of posts from only a few of your friends there is a trick that will give you a different view on your News Feed.

On your desktop click on “News Feed” in the left-hand column and then click on “Most Recent”. On your mobile app click on the “three lines” symbol and then click on “See More” then “Most Recent”. This will make your News Feed show you the most recent post from your friends rather than just the top stories.

This is a great lesson to always do your research before believing a Facebook post, and definitely double-check the facts before hitting share.

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