How to change profile picture on facebook without posting

Many of us like changing the cover photo of our Facebook accounts. It gives us the satisfaction that we are keeping things updated on our social profiles. Typically, the new cover photo is posted on your timeline and your friends also see it in their News Feed. Sounds cool?

But what if you want to change your cover picture on Facebook without notifying anybody? How to change your profile picture without posting it on other people’s News Feeds? Read this guide to know.

Steps to Change Cover Photo on Facebook Without Posting Using Android and iOS

As people mostly use the Facebook app, let’s learn how to change cover photo on Facebook without posting to your timelines on iOS and Android devices.

1. Make the Cover Photo Private While Posting on the Facebook App
2. Change the Cover Picture Visibility Setting After Posting on the Timeline
3. Make Your Previous Facebook Cover Photos Private
4. Lock Your Facebook Profile

Method 1: Make the Cover Photo Private While Posting on the Facebook App

The simplest way to update cover FB photo without notifying anyone on your Friends list is to make it private while posting. When you post or update your cover photo using your Android or iOS device, you can find an option of sharing it on the News Feed. If you uncheck it, the cover picture won’t be shared on your timeline and the News Feed. Follow below to learn how to hide cover photo from public and friends:

1. From your Facebook News Feed, tap your profile picture at the top left.

1. When on your profile, tap anywhere on your cover photo to find a list of options.
2. Select ‘Upload photo’ if you want to choose a picture from your phone or ‘Select photo on Facebook’ for changing your cover photo from your Facebook photos album.

1. Uncheck the ‘Share your update to News Feed’ option at the bottom of the screen and then tap ‘Save’ at the top of the page.

Your cover picture will be updated without Facebook notifying people on their News Feeds.

Method 2: Change the Cover Picture Visibility Setting After Posting on the Timeline

Whether you didn’t know about the above method of changing the cover photo privacy or you forgot to make it private, you have the option to hide your cover photo from your profile/timeline that you have just posted.

This is applicable to any post, profile picture, and cover photo you share on your Facebook profile. But remember that if you use this option, your photo may still be visible in other places like the News Feed of your friends and Facebook search.

Follow these steps to update your cover picture visibility after posting it.

1. From News Feed on your Facebook app, tap your profile picture to go to your profile.
2. Swipe down to find the cover photo and tap the three dots on the top right corner of the post.

1. Select ‘Hide from profile’.

When you hide your cover FB pic from your profile, it won’t be shared on your timeline. However, when anyone visits your profile, they will see the cover photo where it’s supposed to be – above your profile picture. Moreover, it may still be shared on the News Feed of your friends and will be visible in Facebook Search.

So, the best option is Method 1 which completely hides your cover picture from your profile and the News Feeds of your friends, but if you forget to do it, then use this option.

Another important fact is that you can make your previous FB background cover photos completely private, but can’t do the same for your existing cover photo.

Method 3: Make Your Previous Facebook Cover Photos Private

As mentioned above, you can’t change your current cover photo to private after posting, but it’s possible to completely hide your past cover pictures on your FB account. 

1. Open the Facebook app and tap your profile picture from the News Feed.
2. Swipe down and find the past cover picture to make it private and tap the three dots at the top right of the post.
3. Choose ‘Edit Privacy’.

1. Tap ‘See more’.
2. Select ‘Only me’.

Method 4: Lock Your Facebook Profile

Locking your Facebook profile restricts the access of strangers to your profile. If you lock your FB account, only friends can see your posts, profile pictures, and cover photos. Moreover, no one outside of your Friends list can see your profile picture and cover photo in full size.

This feature is useful when your goal is to restrict your cover pic and profile photo access to friends only. If you update your cover photo after locking your profile, your friends will still be able to see it.

For changing your cover photo without letting anyone know, use Method 1. To limit your Facebook cover and profile picture visibility for strangers, lock your profile.

1. Go to your profile from News Feed by tapping your profile picture.
2. Tap the three dots next to ‘Create Story’ under your name.

1. Select ‘Lock profile’ from profile settings.

1. It will show what happens when you lock your FB profile. Tap ‘Lock your profile’.

How To Change Facebook Cover Photo Without Notification Using Windows and Mac Computer?

You can access the Facebook web app from any web browser on any computer to change your Facebook cover. Here, it must be noted that Facebook doesn’t provide the option to change your FB cover privacy during and after posting.

So, we can use workarounds to make it a bit harder for people to see the cover photo, but these methods won’t prevent your cover picture from being shown in the News Feeds of your friends. Explore these methods:

1. Hide Your FB Background Pic After Posting on the Timeline
2. Make Your Old Facebook Cover Photos Private on Desktop
3. Lock your Facebook Profile to Tighten Your Cover Image Privacy

Method 1: Hide Your FB Background Pic After Posting on the Timeline

When you have posted your new cover photo on the Facebook web version, it’s visible to your friends in their News Feed and when they visit your profile. With this option, your cover photo will be hidden only from your profile. It will still be accessible to your friends through their News Feed.

1. Open Facebook on your web browser and log in.
2. Click your profile picture that’s alongside the notification and Messenger buttons.

1. Select the ‘Edit my cover photo’ button at the bottom of your cover photo to update it. If you have already changed your FB cover, skip this step.

1. Scroll down on your profile and find your cover photo update post. Click the three dots on that post.
2. Choose ‘Hide from profile’.

Method 2: Make Your Old Facebook Cover Photos Private on Desktop

Restricting your current cover photo is difficult. However, you have an easy option to limit the audience for your past cover pictures.

1. Go to your profile from News Feed by clicking your profile photo.
2. Scroll down on your profile page and look for your old FB cover picture. Then click the three dots on it.
3. Select ‘Edit audience’.

1. Then click on ‘Only me’.

Method 3: Lock your Facebook Profile to Tighten Your Cover Image Privacy

Locking your profile won’t hide your cover photo from your friends. It will only hide it from people that are not on your Friends list. Strangers won’t be able to see your posts and photos on your profile. Moreover, they will be restricted to see your full-sized cover and profile photos as well. 

1. On your Facebook profile, click the three dots under your cover photo.
2. Choose ‘Lock profile’.

1. Click on ‘Lock your profile’.

Update Cover Photo on Facebook Web Version (m.facebook.com) Without Posting

Changing your cover photo on a mobile’s Facebook web app is similar to the desktop web app. You won’t find any option to prevent it from posting it on your profile and sharing on the News Feed of your friends.

To change your cover photo without notifying anyone, you should use Method 1 in the Facebook mobile app section. If you don’t have access to your Facebook smartphone app, you have no way to prevent the cover photo from appearing on the News Feed of other people. However, you can limit the visibility of your cover photo with these two methods:

1. Hide Your Cover Picture After Posting It on Your Timeline
2. Lock Your Facebook Profile
3. Change the Visibility of Your Old Facebook Cover Photos

Method 1: Hide Your Cover Picture After Posting It on Your Timeline

After updating your Facebook cover image, you get the option to hide it from your profile. This does exactly what it says. It hides the cover picture from your profile only. It will still be shown on the News Feed of your friends and in the Facebook search. Duplicate the following steps:

1. Open your web browser, go to Facebook, and log in.
2. From your News Feed, tap your profile photo at the top left corner.

1. You can tap the camera icon on your cover photo to change it. If you have already changed the cover picture, swipe down to find your post about the updated cover photo.

1. Tap the three dots on the post at the top right corner.
2. Select ‘Hide from profile’.

Method 2: Lock Your Facebook Profile

When activated the ‘Lock your profile’ feature, your posts, profile pictures, and cover photos won’t be shared with anyone except your friends. People outside of your Friends list won’t even be able to see your full-sized cover or profile photo. They will only see what’s visible on the profile when they open your profile page.

1. Tap your profile picture on the News Feed.
2. Tap the three dots below your profile photo and choose ‘Lock profile’.

1. Now, select ‘Lock your profile’.

Method 3: Change the Visibility of Your Old Facebook Cover Photos

You can’t hide your existing cover picture on the mobile web version of Facebook, but you can completely hide your past cover photos without deleting them. You can set them to ‘Only me’ with these steps:

1. Go to your profile from the News Feed.
2. Tap the three dots below your profile photo and name.
3. Choose ‘Activity log’.

1. Find your old cover photo, tap the small arrow next to it, and select ‘Edit privacy’.

1. Choose ‘See more’.
2. Tap on ‘Only me’.

Perform these steps for all of your past cover photos to hide them from your friends and everyone else.

How To Change Profile Picture on Facebook Without Posting Using the Mobile App?

Facebook provides multiple options to keep your profile picture private. Implement the following methods on how to update your Facebook profile picture without posting it on your timeline.

1. Uncheck the Option to ‘Post on News Feed’ While Changing Profile Picture on Facebook
2. Change the Profile Photo Privacy on FB After Posting It

Method 1: Uncheck the Option to ‘Post on News Feed’ While Changing Profile Picture on Facebook

This is the best method for changing your Facebook profile photo without notifying anyone whether Friends or Public. The profile picture won’t be visible on anyone’s timelines and your profile.

1. Open the Facebook app and tap your profile picture.
2. Tap the camera icon on your profile photo and choose ‘Select your profile photo’.

1. It will take you to your gallery. Select from there or use the Facebook photos and select an image.
2. On the ‘Preview profile picture’ page, uncheck the ‘Share your update to News Feed’ box at the bottom of the screen.

1. Now tap ‘Save’.

You now have an FB private profile picture because nobody was notified about it.

Method 2: Change the Profile Photo Privacy on FB After Posting It

In case you have posted the account photo already, you have the option to change its privacy from your timeline or activity history. We will show the method for updating your profile photo privacy from your timeline.

1. Go to your profile from the News Feed.
2. Tap your profile picture to change it.
3. After the update, find your profile photo post on your timeline.
4. Tap the three dots on the post and choose ‘Edit audience’.

1. Choose ‘See more’.
2. Tap ‘Only me’.

Update Profile Picture on Facebook Without Posting Using a Web Browser on any Device

Use a Windows, Mac, or Linux computer for changing your profile picture on Facebook without notifying your friends with this method. It lets you update the privacy of your already-posted profile picture.

1. Open Facebook on your web browser and sign in.
2. Click your profile picture to access your profile page.
3. Click the small camera on your profile image to change it. 
4. When the profile photo is updated, go to your profile, scroll down to find the profile picture update post.
5. Click the three dots on that post and select ‘Edit audience’.

1. In the audience, select ‘Only me’.

There is no method on the desktop (Facebook web version) to hide your profile picture while posting. You can change the audience for it when it’s posted.

Know the Privacy of Your Profile

Stay on top of your Facebook profile picture and cover photo privacy with these tips:

How To Know If Your Cover Picture Is Public or Private?

To find out if your Facebook cover photo is public or private, go to your profile. Find your cover picture post. Then look for a small icon under your name and next to the date or time of the post.

• A globe icon means that your cover photo is public.
• Two people on the icon denote that only your friends can see the profile.
• A lock icon shows that only you can see it.

What To Do If Your Profile Picture Is Public?

You have multiple options to change your profile picture privacy should you find out that it’s public and you want it to be private.

To hide it from the News Feed of people and your profile (timeline), go to your profile, find the post that says you updated your profile image, tap or click the three dots on it, click ‘Edit audience’, then find ‘Only me’ and click/tap on it.

Conclusion

To change your cover photo on Facebook without posting it to your profile and other people’s News Feed, you have only one option: Update the cover photo by using the Facebook mobile app. For your profile picture, its privacy is editable even after you post it.

FAQs

Why Can’t I Change My Cover Photo On Facebook?

If you can’t change your cover photo on Facebook, perform the following actions:
– Check if you’re connected to the internet
– Close and reopen your Facebook app or web browser
– Update your Facebook app or web browser
– Clear the Facebook app/browser cache

How Do I Change My Cover Photo On Facebook To Only Me?

You can’t change your existing Facebook cover photo to only me. If you change your cover picture from the Facebook app, you have the option to make it private. Go to your Facebook app > profile > tap your cover photo > select the photo > uncheck ‘Share your update to News Feed’ and tap ‘Save’.

How do I change my cover photo on Facebook from my phone?

To change your cover photo, go to your profile on the Facebook app > tap your cover picture > select a picture > tap Save.

How do I delete my updated cover photo?

You can’t delete your existing cover photo. If you mean to delete it from your timeline, select the three dots on the post that says you’ve updated the cover photo, and choose ‘Hide from profile’. The cover photo will be deleted from your timeline but it will still be visible on your friends’ News Feed.

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