Ever sent a Facebook message you ended up wishing you hadn’t? If you have, you know that the torment is just overwhelming, especially if you sent it to someone you have to face on a regular basis.
Luckily for you, there might just be a solution to this—a way out which would effectively save you from the desperation that comes when you are trying to recall your message right after you see that blue text-filled bubble slowly disappear.
How? Read on…
It appears that Facebook has finally answered your calls. If you didn’t know, you’ll be able to effectively recall your messages on Facebook Messenger all thanks to the new “Remove” feature they have just recently introduced. The feature is first being rolled out in Poland, Bolivia, Colombia and Lithuania. It will be released globally soon.
The Remove feature comes only a short while after WhatsApp, another chat platform owned by Facebook, afforded its many users the luxury and convenience to delete messages within a limited time frame of sending them.
This ability to retract messages from your Facebook Messenger is particularly useful if you accidentally send an unintended text to any of your contacts and then have to the resulting awkward conversation later.
Having said so, below is a comprehensive step-by-step guide that takes you through the process of unsending a Facebook Messenger message:
How to Use Facebook Messenger’s New ‘Remove’ Feature
Firstly, note that the following steps require the latest Messenger App version. As such, start by first updating your Messenger App to the newest release that is available on your app store.
If you’re using an Android phone, you can do this by heading over to the Google Play Store on your device and then proceeding to “My Apps & Games.” Once you are here, go to the “Check for Updates” option and then search for the Messenger App and click “Update Messenger.” (Play Store > My Apps & Games > Check For Updates > Update Messenger)
After you have updated your Messenger App to the latest version, here are the steps that you need to take to unsend your Facebook Messenger message:
- Launch the Messenger app on your device.
2. Open the app, and then open a chat window. Type a text and then hit “send.”
3. Go to the message you have sent and long-press on it to highlight it.
- Note: This option only works within 10 minutes of sending the text; so be sure to do it as soon as you realize that you need to retract your message.
- Located along the bottom part of your device’s screen, look out for the “Remove” option and then click on it. A resulting prompt will ask you whether you want to “Remove for You” or “Remove for Everyone.”
- Note: The first option will only delete the texts on your side of the view of the said message or conversation while the latter option will allow you to erase the message or chat from all the named recipients.
- Once you click on the “Remove for Everyone” option, the text you had earlier sent will be deleted both for you and also for the recipient. A placeholder text will inform the recipient of your original text that you have retracted a message in place of the place where the initial text originally appeared on their screen.
As earlier mentioned, your text can only be unsent if you follow these procedures within 10 minutes of sending the text. The ability of the app to unsend your message will expire if you do it later than 10 minutes after sending it.
Facebook Messenger the Latest App to Incorporate the Feature
If you are impressed by this new feature, you will be pleased to know that there are other apps besides Facebook Messenger that afford you the ability of deleting a sent text.
WhatsApp, for instance, also allows you to retract conversations, as mentioned above.
Other apps that boast a similar feature include Instagram, which enables you to unsend DMs, as well as Snapchat, which has incorporated its “Clear a Conversation” feature just recently.
It is essential to understand that simply because Facebook Messenger or any other app affords you the ability to unsend or delete a text, it does not mean that the recipient cannot read your text. In the case where a recipient receives a notification for the text you have sent and proceeds to open it immediately, not even this feature can save you from such.
What’s important, however, is that you take your time to double-check your texts before sending them. Only hit that send button when you are sure about everything you want to communicate through as well as what you have typed. In case you have even the slightest doubt, don’t send the text.
Conclusion
So, whether you sent a text on your Facebook Messenger immaturely or subsequently littered your text with typos, you can now rest easy (at least for 10 minutes) as the chat app now allows you to delete these texts after having already hit send.
By following these steps, you can effectively save yourself the embarrassment or an awkward conversation by effectively retracting your message. With this new “Remove” feature, Facebook Messenger helps you rectify a mistake which you may not have noticed before when sending a text.
