How to turn off Reels on Facebook (what Facebook allows, and what it doesn’t)

If you searched "how to turn off Reels on Facebook", you've probably already discovered the short answer: you can't, not completely. There is no single switch in Facebook's settings that removes Reels from the app.

But "you can't turn it off" isn't the whole story. Facebook does offer several controls that reduce how often Reels reaches you, and there are ways to go further on Android. This guide walks through each one honestly — what it does, what it doesn't, and who it's good for.

A quick note: Facebook redesigns its menus often. The names and locations below are accurate at the time of writing, but they may move. If something isn't where we describe it, search Facebook's settings for the feature's name.

Why Reels showed up everywhere

A few years ago, Facebook's feed was mostly posts from friends, groups and Pages you followed. Short-form video changed the economics of social media: it's cheap to produce, endlessly varied, and very good at keeping people on the app. So Reels now appears in several places at once:

• Reels rows inside your main feed.
• A dedicated Reels or Video tab in the navigation.
• Suggested reels from accounts you've never followed.
• Full-screen Reels player that opens when you tap any reel — with the next one waiting below.

Each of these needs a different fix, which is why there's no single answer.

What Facebook lets you do

1. "Show less" and "Hide reel"

On any reel, the three-dot menu offers options like Show less, Hide reel, or Not interested. These tell the recommendation system you don't want that kind of content.

What it changes: What kind of reels you see, slowly. What it doesn't change: Whether you see reels. Rows and the tab stay.

2. The Feeds tab (Friends, Groups, Pages)

Facebook has a Feeds view with filters such as Friends, Groups, Pages and Favorites. It shows recent posts from those sources, in order.

What it changes: It gives you a calmer view where suggested content is much rarer. What it doesn't change: It's a separate view. Your default home feed still contains Reels, and Facebook usually opens to the home feed.

This is the most useful native option. If you can build the habit of opening Feeds → Friends instead of Home, you'll see a lot fewer reels.

3. Favorites

You can mark up to a certain number of people and Pages as Favorites. Their posts are prioritized in your feed, and there's a Favorites filter in Feeds.

What it changes: Makes sure the people you care about rise to the top. What it doesn't change: Reels rows still appear between them.

4. Snooze and unfollow

For a specific person, Page or group that keeps posting reels, you can Snooze them for 30 days or Unfollow them while staying friends.

What it changes: Removes specific sources. What it doesn't change: Suggested reels from accounts you don't follow — which is most of them.

5. Time reminders

Under Your time on Facebook, you can set a daily reminder that appears after a certain amount of time.

What it changes: Gives you a nudge. What it doesn't change: You can dismiss it with one tap and keep scrolling.

What Facebook doesn't let you do

At the time of writing, Facebook offers no setting to:

• Remove the Reels or Video tab.
• Remove Reels rows from the main feed.
• Stop the next reel from playing when you swipe.
• Limit the time you spend in Reels specifically (as opposed to Facebook overall).

That's not an accident. Reels is a central part of Facebook's strategy, so a "turn off Reels" button is unlikely to appear.

Going further on Android

On Android, apps that use the Accessibility Service can recognize what's on screen in other apps and respond. That's how Reelless blocks Facebook Reels:

• The Reels player closes as soon as it opens, from anywhere.
• Reels rows are covered with a calm panel, so you can scroll past them.
• The Reels tab won't open.
• Suggested posts and reels can be hidden with Friends-first mode — see Facebook without suggested posts.
• Facebook Lite is supported too.

Friends, groups, events, Marketplace and Messenger links keep working.

Because the Accessibility permission is powerful, it matters how an app uses it. Reelless processes everything on your phone and collects no screen content; the details are in our Accessibility Service disclosure. Whatever tool you consider, read its disclosure before granting the permission.

What about iPhone?

On iPhone, no app is allowed to see or act inside another app, so there's no equivalent to the Android approach. Your best native options are the Feeds tab, Favorites, snoozing, and iOS Screen Time limits for Facebook as a whole. Using Facebook in Safari instead of the app adds friction, which helps some people.

A combined approach that works

For most people, the best results come from combining a few of these:

1. Use Feeds → Friends (or Favorites) as your starting point. Make it a habit.
2. Snooze or unfollow the Pages that post the most reels.
3. Turn off Facebook notifications you don't need — many Reels sessions begin with a notification.
4. On Android, block the Reels player and rows so the feed can't pull you back in when you slip.
5. Set a pause before opening Facebook — even three seconds of breathing turns a reflex into a choice.

If you'd like to understand why this is so hard in the first place — and why it's not a willpower problem — read Doomscrolling: why short videos are so hard to stop.

The bottom line

You can't turn off Facebook Reels with a setting. You can make it much quieter with the Feeds tab, Favorites and snoozing, and on Android you can close Reels completely while keeping everything else Facebook is still good for: friends, family, groups and the local community.