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Terms of use

Meta

Meta Terms of Service

C

Risk score

49of 100

Open the original (new tab)Company page

In short

  • You are agreeing to terms that grant Meta broad, perpetual rights to your content and allow them to share data across their companies for safety or research.
  • You accept that they provide services "as is" with no warranties, limiting their liability for any damages you might suffer.
  • Your account can be deleted or suspended at their discretion, with specific rules about how long it takes to remove your data.

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 non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable license to use, host, and distribute your content worldwide.

    This product

    “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 your experience will be personalized using data from on and off their products to show relevant ads.

    Other products, stores, or brands

    “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.”
  3. 03

    You are agreeing to hold harmless Meta from risks by accepting their services without guarantees of safety or accuracy.

    This product

    “Our Products, however, are provided "as is," and to the extent permissible by law, we make no guarantees that they always will be safe, secure, or error-free”

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 give Meta broad, transferable rights to use and distribute your content permanently.

“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: You give up control over how your photos, videos, and posts are used or shared by Meta and its partners.

Meta requires a broad license to use your content that includes sublicensing and distribution rights, extending far beyond simple hosting.

High cost

Liability shifted onto the user

You are agreeing to waive most claims against Meta for damages arising from the use of their services.

“We cannot predict when issues might arise with our Products. Accordingly, our liability shall be limited to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.”

What that means: If something goes wrong or you lose data, you have very limited grounds to sue for financial compensation.

The document limits Meta's legal responsibility for any damages, including lost profits or data, to the maximum extent allowed by law.

Medium cost

Difficult or incomplete deletion

You are agreeing that data removal from backups will not happen immediately and may take up to 180 days total.

“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 private information remains stored in backup systems for up to three months after you delete your account.

Even after you request deletion, data persists in backup systems for an extended period before being fully purged.

Medium cost

Tracking you across apps

You are agreeing to allow Meta to track your activity off their sites for advertising and personalization purposes.

“what you share and do on and off our Products - to personalize your experience.”

What that means: Companies can see your behavior on other websites to target advertisements and customize your feed.

Meta explicitly states they track user activity both within and outside their ecosystem to tailor content and ads.

Lower cost

Unilateral changes with little or no notice

You are agreeing to be bound by any future updates to the terms simply by continuing to use the service.

“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: The rules you agreed to can change, and staying on the platform means you accept those new rules.

Meta updates terms unilaterally; continued use constitutes acceptance of these changes without explicit re-signing.

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.