What if you wanted to search Facebook without an account? Perhaps you’re trying to look up an old colleague, but you no longer have access to a Facebook account. Or maybe you’re trying to avoid the platform altogether. Parents also consider this an issue when they want to check and view their child’s online activities without using their personal account. The good news is you can still use Facebook search without logging in. Here, we will discuss legal and straightforward techniques for finding someone on Facebook without needing to enter your password.
How to search on Facebook without logging in?
There are several ways to find someone on Facebook without an account, including using the platform directly and utilizing third-party platforms.
Name search with site operator
Search operators, primarily through engines like Google, are powerful ways to browse Facebook for user profiles without using the platform. Here are some search operators you can use:
- site:facebook.com “First Name Last Name”
- site:facebook.com “keyword” The keyword can be their city, or interests to explore pages where they might frequently interact.
- Site:facebook inurl:groups “local events” To find Facebook groups related to local events, they spoke of.
- Site:facebook.com “Full Name” AND “Seattle” This allows you to search for people with that name in a specific place.
Social Searcher is a fantastic third-party Facebook people search tool. Specifically, it helps you research public posts or find users through their public activities. The only restriction is that it can’t find a private Facebook profile. Here’s how to use it:
- Go to the Social Searcher website.
- Enter the name of the person you’re looking for.
- Browse through the results.
- You’ll love that you can use double quotes around the name to force the platform to find people with their names in that particular order.
- Go through the results.
If you know their interests or specific topics they might be interested in; there are many more ways to find them. Fortunately, people interact on tons of Facebook pages and content profiles. However, note that it can become like finding a needle in a haystack if their interests aren’t unique or confined to a specific region. This search method may yield many irrelevant results, particularly with popular hashtags. It’s also better used for finding business pages or creators rather than regular people. That said, here’s how this approach works:
- In your browser address bar, type www.facebook.com/hashtag/ followed by the keyword. For instance, this could be www.facebook.com/hashtag/landscaping.
- This will automatically direct you to Facebook posts with that hashtag.
Use reverse image search
Reverse image search can also be a powerful way to find content on Facebook without an account. This approach can identify people when you have a photo but no name. It’s also great for finding fake profiles. This means you can immediately check if the person you’re interacting with is using a false profile related to another person on the platform. Note, however, that it works best for images of celebrities and public figures. It can be less effective for private individuals with strict privacy settings. Here’s how it works using a tool like Google Image search:
- Go to Google Image search via your web browser.
- Click the camera icon, and you can either paste a URL or upload from your computer.
- Press the Enter key.
- Browse through similar results on Google.
Ask a friend who has a Facebook
If you are not finding all the information you have, you can always use a Facebook account to broaden your search. All you need is a trusted friend to log into Facebook and easily search. Note, however, that this depends on their willingness to help. That said, this is the only method that may provide access to information from private profiles. This is because there’s a chance your friend might not be blocked from seeing that private profile.
What can you see without a Facebook account?
Imagine trying to view a shop’s merchandise without actually stepping inside. That’s what happens when you want to see people’s accounts on the Facebook platform without signing up or logging into an existing account. So, like this showcase, you can still catch a glimpse of different materials. First, let’s talk about what you can see, followed by the restrictions you’ll face.
Here are the different things you can see:
- Profile Name and Picture: If you search for the person by name or other keywords, you’ll be able to see their profile name and picture.
- Public Posts: You can also see any posts, images, or videos that they’ve set to “Public”. If there are comments or reactions on these posts, you’ll see them too.
- Public Page: You don’t need a Facebook account to view the entire accounts and profiles for businesses, organizations, and public figures. Everything they have on tier pages, including photos, events, posts, comments, and reactions, would be visible.
- Cover photo: It would also be possible to see the large banner image at the top of the profile or page
When you don’t log in to a Facebook account, here are the different things you won’t see:
- Personal information and contact details: On individual pages, you won’t see their birth dates, current city, hometown, relationship status, workplaces, or contact information. Note that email addresses and phone numbers are never visible by default unless the person has made them public.
- Photos and albums: Beyond the single public profile or cover photo, you won’t access their photo albums. This includes pictures they’ve been tagged in as well.
- Friends List: Without logging into a Facebook account, you can’t see the person’s friends list. Note that some people also protect their Friends List even when they have a public profile.
- Comments and interactions: You won’t see people’s comments on private threads or posts restricted to some selected friends.
- Facebook groups and events: The vast majority of Facebook groups and events are not public. You won’t see their members, posts, activities, guest lists, etc.
FAQ
How to find hidden Facebook accounts?
Hidden can refer to two things: deactivated and private accounts. You can only find someone’s private account using the Google search operator, although you won’t be able to access their content. That said, deactivated or deleted accounts are entirely invisible.
Can I find someone on Facebook with just their phone number?
Yes, if they’ve shared their phone number with you on the platform, you can use the third-party phone lookup service LocatePhone to find them. LocatePhone scans public records and data sources to see social media platforms, carrier details, and more. It’s also a great way to search Facebook without an account.
Can you tell if someone has multiple Facebook accounts?
There’s no direct official method to tell all the accounts owned by one person, especially if they use different usernames. However, you can evaluate accounts for similarities in profile pictures, biographical information, friends, check-ins, or photos tagged in multiple accounts. Also, try using the Google site operator: site:facebook.com “First Last” search to see if they used variations of their name for different accounts.
Conclusion
Although you would find more information if you logged into a Facebook account, there are still some hacks that can help. Here, we’ve discussed strategic techniques ranging from search operators to third-party tools. And when all else fails, you can try reverse phone lookup tools, such as LocatePhone, when you have their phone number. Use these methods effectively, and you may get all the information you need in no time.
