Can you have messenger without a facebook account

Facebook made it possible to use Messenger without an account back in 2015. For a while, all you needed was a phone number, but things have changed since then. Facebook Messenger isn’t officially supported without a Facebook account anymore.

It makes sense in the grand scheme of their operations. After all, Facebook continues its ongoing attempts to get everyone to use their social network. This doesn’t mean using Facebook Messenger without a Facebook account is impossible right now, though. It just requires a workaround, and you’ll have to sign up for it at least temporarily.

The trick here is that you can continue using the chat service after you deactivate your Facebook account. This means you can sign up for Facebook, deactivate your Facebook account, and continue using Messenger like everyone else. Let’s show you how this is done!

More: 10 best alternative Facebook apps for Android

How to sign up for Messenger without a Facebook account

Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority

Create an account:

1. Go to Facebook.com and select Create New Account.
2. Input your information and tap on Sign Up.
3. Confirm your Email or phone number.
4. This process can also be done through the Facebook app.

Access Facebook Messenger:

Deactivate your account:

1. Log in to your Facebook account.
2. Click the arrow at the top right.
3. Hit Settings & privacy.
4. Pick Settings.
5. Select Your Facebook Information from the left menu.
6. Click Deactivation and Deletion.
7. Select Deactivate Account, then Continue to Account Deactivation.
8. Follow the instructions to confirm deactivation.

Next: How to delete your Facebook account | How to recover your Facebook account

You can now continue using Messenger. It’s even possible to sign in using the same username and password you had before deactivating the Facebook account. This won’t reactivate your Facebook account.

Facebook Messenger is one of the most popular instant messaging platforms worldwide, with over 1.3 billion monthly active users. 

While the decision to create a separate app initially drew criticism, it has since matured into one of the go-to services for communicating with friends and family. 

The beauty of Facebook Messenger is that it works across multiple devices, and isn’t tied to your phone number like WhatsApp.

However, Facebook now forces you to sign up or log in when you download the Messenger app. 

While it has allowed you to use Messenger without an account in the past, the option was removed in December 2019. The only way you can still use it account-free if you’ve previously had a Facebook account but now deleted it. 

This is great news for those who cut ties with Facebook in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, but if you’ve never had it you’re out of luck. The old method of validating your phone number will not work. 

How to use Messenger without an active Facebook account

1. Download the free Facebook Messenger app from the App Store or Google Play.
2. Sign in with the account information you used to use. While this doesn’t work on the social network, it will work here. 
3. Add new contacts by entering their phone numbers – if their Facebook account is linked they’ll show up.

Also see: How to send a Facebook message without the Messenger app

Author: Marie Black, Editor In Chief

Marie is Editor in Chief of Tech Advisor and Macworld. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she's worked in tech media for more than 17 years, managing our English language, French and Spanish consumer editorial teams and leading on content strategy through Foundry's transition from print, to digital, to online - and beyond.

Thanks to its dreadful track record with user data, its shady stance on political ads, and the role it played in the rise of fake news, many people have turned their backs on Facebook. But the annoying thing about the social network is that it offers a few handy tools and features, one of the most useful of which is Facebook Messenger. Fortunately, you can use Messenger without Facebook − but only if you have had a Facebook account in the past.

It wasn’t always this way. Previously, it was possible to sign up for Facebook Messenger using your phone number and nothing else. But as of December 26 2019, you can’t sign up for Messenger if you’ve never had a Facebook account.

In other words, you need to either have an active Facebook account, or have had a Facebook account at some point in the past, in order to be able to use Messenger. Read on for all the details.

How to use Facebook Messenger if you’ve deleted your Facebook account

If you once had a Facebook account but have now either deactivated to deleted it, you can still use Messenger without having to resurrect your account. So those of you who’ve been holding off deleting your Facebook account for fear of losing access to Messenger, fear not! Go ahead and delete it.

Related: How to delete a Facebook account

To continue using Messenger, follow these steps:

• Download the Facebook Messenger mobile app (iOS, Android).
• Sign in to Messenger with the same login details you used for your Facebook account. For better or for worse, all of the people you were Facebook friends with when you deleted your account will be able to message you.
• To add new contacts on Messenger, simply enter their phone numbers.

You can no longer sign up for Facebook Messenger with a phone number alone

As mentioned above, Facebook used to allow you to sign up for Messenger with your number alone. You used to be able to by hitting ‘Create New Account’ in Messenger, entering your phone number and creating a password

However, the social network removed that option on December 26, 2019.

“If you’re new to Messenger, you’ll notice that you need a Facebook account to chat with friends and close connections,” a Facebook spokesperson said at the time. “We found that the vast majority of people who use Messenger already log in through Facebook and we want to simplify the process. If you already use Messenger without a Facebook account, no need to do anything.”

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