You can cancel a friend request you sent before the other person accepts it
If you sent someone a friend request and want to take it back, Facebook lets you cancel it at any time before they respond. The person won't get a notification that you cancelled it — the request simply disappears from their inbox. Once they accept your request, you can't cancel it anymore; you'd have to unfriend them instead.
The steps differ slightly depending on whether you're using Facebook on a computer or phone, but the process takes less than a minute either way.
Key Takeaways
- You can cancel a friend request only before the other person accepts it; after acceptance, you must unfriend them instead.
- On a computer, go to the person's profile, click the "Cancel request" button, and confirm your choice.
- On a phone, tap the person's profile, find the pending request indicator, and select the option to cancel.
- The other person will not receive a notification when you cancel a request.
- If you're unsure whether a request was sent, check your "Friends" tab to see a list of pending requests you've made.
How to cancel a friend request on a computer
Open Facebook in your web browser and search for the person's name using the search bar at the top of the page. Click on their profile to open it.
Look for a button that says "Cancel request" or shows a checkmark with "Friend request sent" — the exact wording depends on your Facebook version, but the button will be near the top of their profile, often next to the message button. Click that button, and Facebook will ask you to confirm. Select "Cancel request" in the confirmation box that appears.
The button will change back to "Add Friend" once the cancellation is complete, which means the request has been removed from their inbox.
How to cancel a friend request on a phone or tablet
Open the Facebook app and search for the person using the search icon at the bottom of the screen. Tap their name to open their profile.
Look for a button showing a checkmark or the words "Friend request sent" — on mobile, this button is usually near the top of the profile. Tap it, and a menu will appear with the option to "Cancel request." Tap that option to remove the request.
The button will change to "Add Friend" once the request is cancelled, confirming the action worked.
Finding requests you've already sent
If you're not sure whether you sent a request to someone, you can check your pending requests. On a computer, click the Friends icon (it looks like two people) in the left menu, then select "Friend requests." This shows requests you've received, but scroll down or look for a tab that says "Sent" or "Outgoing" to see requests you've sent that haven't been answered yet.
On a phone, tap the menu icon (three horizontal lines) at the bottom right, scroll to "Friends," and look for an option to view sent requests. The exact location varies by phone type and app version, but Facebook groups these under the Friends section.
From this list, you can tap any pending request and cancel it using the same method described above.
What happens after you cancel a request
Once you cancel a friend request, the person will not see it in their inbox anymore. They won't receive a notification saying you cancelled it — it simply vanishes as if it was never sent. If they check their pending requests, your name won't appear there.
You can send them a new friend request at any time in the future. There's no waiting period or penalty for cancelling a request, so you can try again immediately if you want to.
If the person already accepted your request
If the person accepted your friend request before you cancelled it, the "Cancel request" button will no longer appear. Instead, you'll see an "Unfriend" button or option. Cancelling is no longer possible at that point — you would need to unfriend them if you want to remove the connection.
Unfriending works differently from cancelling: the person may notice you're no longer on their friends list, depending on their privacy settings and how often they check. Cancelling a request, by contrast, leaves no trace.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the person know I cancelled my friend request?
No. Facebook does not send a notification when you cancel a request. The request simply disappears from their inbox, and they won't be told why or that you cancelled it.
Can I cancel a request after someone has already seen it?
Yes. Whether they've seen it or not doesn't matter — you can cancel any request that hasn't been accepted yet. Once they click "Accept," the request becomes a friendship and you can only unfriend them.
What's the difference between cancelling a request and unfriending someone?
Cancelling removes a request before it's accepted, leaving no trace. Unfriending removes an existing friendship after it's been accepted. The person may notice they're no longer on your friends list if they check, though Facebook doesn't notify them of unfriending.
Can I cancel a request on mobile if I sent it from a computer?
Yes. Your pending requests sync across all devices, so you can cancel a request you sent from a computer by using your phone, or vice versa. Just search for the person and tap the "Cancel request" button.
If I cancel a request, can I send another one right away?
Yes. There's no cooldown period. You can send a new request immediately after cancelling the old one, though Facebook may limit how many requests you can send in a short time if you're sending many at once.