How to Change Your Date of Birth on Facebook

Facebook allows you to update your date of birth, but the process comes with a few important limitations worth understanding before you start. Whether you entered the wrong birthdate when you signed up or simply want to adjust what's visible to others, here's exactly how it works — and what to expect.

Why Facebook Restricts Birthday Changes

Facebook treats your date of birth as a core piece of identity information, which is why it doesn't let you change it freely or unlimited times. The platform uses your birthdate partly to verify age eligibility (you must be at least 13 to have an account) and to personalize certain features.

Because of this, Facebook limits how frequently you can edit your birthday. If you've changed it recently, you may be blocked from changing it again for a period of time — sometimes several days, sometimes longer. This is by design, not a bug.

How to Change Your Birthday on Facebook (Desktop)

1. Log into your Facebook account and go to your profile page
2. Click Edit Profile (usually just below your cover photo)
3. Scroll to the About section, or click directly on the About tab on your profile
4. Select Basic and Contact Info from the left-hand menu
5. Find the Birthday field and click the edit (pencil) icon next to it
6. Update the day, month, and year using the dropdown menus
7. Click Save

If the option appears greyed out or unavailable, it typically means you've hit Facebook's edit limit for that period.

How to Change Your Birthday on Facebook (Mobile)

The steps differ slightly depending on whether you're using the iOS or Android app, but the general path is the same:

1. Tap your profile picture to go to your profile
2. Tap Edit Profile
3. Scroll down to find the Birthday section — it may appear under Customize Your Intro or About
4. Tap Edit next to the birthday field
5. Adjust the date and tap Save

📱 On some versions of the mobile app, you may need to go through the full About section rather than the quick-edit profile screen to see the birthday field.

Controlling Who Sees Your Birthday

Changing your birthday is separate from controlling who can see it. Facebook lets you set visibility independently for both:

• The year you were born
• The month and day of your birthday

You'll find these visibility controls directly alongside the birthday field when you edit it. Options typically include Public, Friends, Only Me, and Custom.

Many users keep the month and day visible to friends (so they get birthday notifications) while hiding the year for privacy reasons.

What to Do If You Can't Change Your Birthday

If the edit option is locked or grayed out, you have a couple of options:

Wait it out. Facebook's restriction is temporary. If you recently changed your birthday, the ability to edit it again may return after a few days.

Submit a request to Facebook. If you believe your birthday is genuinely incorrect and you're unable to fix it yourself, Facebook has a support process where you can request a correction. In some cases, you may be asked to provide identity verification — such as a government-issued ID — especially if the change affects your account's age status.

To reach this option, go to Settings & Privacy → Settings → Personal and Account Information → Birthday, then look for any available help or support link if the direct edit is unavailable.

🔒 A Note on Birthday and Account Age

If changing your birthdate would drop your listed age below 13, Facebook may treat this differently than a routine edit. The platform has specific policies around underage accounts, so corrections in this range may trigger additional review steps rather than a simple save.

Variables That Affect Your Experience

Not every user will follow the same exact path, because outcomes depend on several factors:

• How recently you last edited your birthday — recent changes trigger the cooldown period
• Which version of the Facebook app you're using — the interface has changed over time and varies between iOS and Android
• Whether you're accessing via browser or app — the desktop browser experience and the mobile app can present the settings in different locations
• Your account's history — accounts that have flagged identity issues in the past may face additional steps

The path also looks different depending on whether Facebook has rolled out a recent interface update to your account, since the platform frequently tests layout changes across different user groups.

Some users find the process straightforward and done in under a minute. Others hit the edit lock immediately and need to wait, or find that their account requires a support request rather than a self-service change. Which of those applies to you depends on the specifics of your account's current state.