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Terms of use

Meta

Meta Terms of Service

C

Risk score

39of 100

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In short

  • This document establishes the rules for using Facebook and other Meta services, noting that the service is free but supported by personalized ads based on your data.
  • It grants Meta broad legal rights to use, share, and modify any content you post across their platforms.
  • You also accept that account deletion may take up to 90 days and that backups are not immediately removed.

What you accept

If you tap Agree

Everyday words for the material promises and rights you give up. Each line includes a quote from the document.

  1. 01

    You are agreeing to grant Meta a worldwide, sublicensable license to host, distribute, and modify any photos, videos, or text you upload to their services.

    Other products, stores, or brands

    “when you share, post, or upload content... you grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, and worldwide license to host, use, distribute, modify, run, copy, publicly perform or display, translate, and create derivative works of your content”
  2. 02

    You are agreeing that Meta can show you personalized ads and use your personal data to determine which ads to display without selling your direct identity to advertisers.

    This product

    “By using our Products, you agree that we can show you ads that we think may be relevant to you and your interests. We use your personal data to help determine which personalized ads to show you.”
  3. 03

    You are agreeing that deleting your account or content will not be instantaneous and may take up to 90 days to complete, with additional time required for backup removal.

    This product

    “It may take up to 90 days to delete content after we begin the account deletion process... After the content is deleted, it may take us up to another 90 days to remove it from backups”

What it can cost you

Downsides we could quote

Quoted clauses that can affect your privacy, money, or right to go to court — including terms that follow you to other products.

Highest-cost clauses first

High cost

Broad license to user content

You are agreeing to let Meta use, copy, and modify your uploaded content for any purpose related to their services.

“you grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, and worldwide license to host, use, distribute, modify, run, copy, publicly perform or display, translate, and create derivative works of your content”

What that means: Users lose exclusive control over their posted media, allowing Meta to reuse it in ways beyond simple hosting.

The Terms allow Meta to sublicense and transfer rights to user content globally and permanently until deletion, covering actions like translation and modification.

Medium cost

Unilateral changes with little or no notice

You are agreeing to accept future changes to these Terms simply by continuing to use the service.

“We will notify you (for example, by email or through our Products) at least 30 days before we make changes to these Terms... Once any updated Terms are in effect, you will be bound by them if you continue to access or use our Products.”

What that means: You must monitor updates or stop using the service to avoid being bound by new rules.

Meta can change terms with 30 days' notice, binding users who continue to use the service.

Medium cost

Difficult or incomplete deletion

You are agreeing that your data will stay in backups for up to 180 days total after deletion.

“After the content is deleted, it may take us up to another 90 days to remove it from backups and disaster recovery systems.”

What that means: Your data remains recoverable for months even after you request its removal.

Data persists in backup systems for weeks after a user deletes an account, meaning full erasure is delayed.

Medium cost

Tracking you across apps

You are agreeing to have your on-platform and off-platform activities tracked for ad personalization.

“we use data about the connections you make, the choices and settings you select, and what you share and do on and off our Products - to personalize your experience.”

What that means: Your activity outside Facebook influences the content and ads you see within the app.

Meta tracks behavior both on and off its own products to tailor ads and features.

People also accept these terms in

The same company terms often apply on these apps or devices. This is a lookup aid, not a claim we caught this company.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Whatsapp
  • Meta Quest
  • Oculus

If these terms already apply to you

Keep this list. Fineprint cannot undo or cancel something you already agreed to at the company.

We cannot see Agree on their site. With Premium, tap “I accepted these terms” if you already agreed to what Meta asks.