Facebook Mutual Friends Explained: Checking and Gaining

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What Mutual Friends are, how to check them, and add more

Written by Travis Boylls

Last Updated: July 29, 2025 Fact Checked

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Checking Mutual Friends

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Adding Mutual Friends

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Using the "People You May Know" List

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What are “mutual friends?”

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Video

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Q&A

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Tips

Have you wondered what “mutual friends” are on Facebook? Perhaps you want to know how to check who someone has as mutual friends, or to gain more mutual friends. This wikiHow article explains everything you need to know about mutual friends on Facebook.

Finding and Adding Mutual Friends on FB

A mutual friend is someone whom you and another Facebook user have both added as a friend. You can check who another person’s mutual friends are on their profile. To add mutual friends, check the user’s friends list and send a friend request to anyone you want to be friends with.

Section 1 of 4:

Checking Mutual Friends

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1
Go to the user’s profile. You can search for Facebook users by tapping the magnifying glass icon at the top or bottom of the screen, or using the search bar at the top of the menu to the left if you are signed into Facebook on a desktop browser. Enter the name of the user you want to check and tap their username.
- Alternatively, if you are already friends with the user you want to search, you can find them in your Friends list. To check your friends list, tap your profile icon in the Facebook app and then tap Friends. On a desktop browser, click Friends in the menu bar to the left, then click All friends.
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Check how many mutual friends you and the user have. You will see how many mutual friends you and the user have next to “Mutual” below their username at the top. You will likely see how many friends they have total and then how many mutual friends you and the user have next to that. For example, if it says “27 mutual” below their username, you and this user have 27 mutual friends.
- Not all users allow you to see their friends list. If the user has chosen to hide their friend’s list, you may not be able to see who your mutual friends are.
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When you click or tap “Mutual” below the user’s username, this will show you all the mutual friends you and the user have in common.

Section 2 of 4:

Adding Mutual Friends

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When you visit a stranger's Facebook profile, you may notice that the "Add Friend" button is missing. This is because that person has set their security settings so that they only receive friend requests from people who share at least one mutual friend. You'll need to be friends with at least one person on this person's friends list before you can send a friend request.^{[1]
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Tap or click the "Friends" tab on their profile page. Many people have their friends list public, allowing you to send friend requests to people on their friends list.^{[2]
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- If you can’t see a user’s friends list, they have probably hidden their friends list in their privacy settings. You cannot check their friends list.
If you are using the Facebook mobile app, it will show you your mutual friends first. To see all the user’s friends, tap All at the top.
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Find people to add. You'll see a list of all the person's friends (if their list is public).^{[3]
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- If the "Friends" tab does not display any friends, you'll have to hope that you eventually make some mutual friends with this person. Look for posts that they comment on and send friend requests to the original poster.
To do so, click or tap Add friend next to any friends you want to add. Once at least one accepts, you'll be able to send a friend request to the original person.
When you view a friend's friend list, you'll see all of your mutual friends at the top. Tap All at the top to see all their friends, or scroll down on a desktop browser. You'll be able to send friend requests to any of these people by tapping or clicking "Add Friend."

Section 3 of 4:

Using the "People You May Know" List

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1
Open the Facebook app. Log in with your Facebook account if you aren't already logged in.^{[4]
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- You can also log into the Facebook website. Enter your email and password to log in.^{[5]
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Add all of your real-life friends. The more people that you add to Facebook, the more people will show up in the "People You May Know" list based on mutual friends:
- Open their profile page by searching for their name, email address, or phone number at the top of the menu bar to the left, or by using the Magnifying glass icon on the mobile app.
- Tap or click the "Add Friend" button on their profile page. When they accept your friend request, they will be added to your friends list.
- If the "Add Friend" button is not available, you'll need to have at least one mutual friend with that person. Keep adding other people, and you're bound to get a mutual friend soon.
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Open the "People You May Know" list. This list shows people that you share a mutual friend with, according to Facebook's Artificial Intelligence program. You'll see the number of mutual friends you have with that person below their name. For example, if it says "15 mutual friends," there are 15 people on your friends list who are friends with that person as well.^{[6]
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- Mobile - Tap the magnifying glass icon at the top or bottom of the app and then scroll down to the bottom of the search page to see suggestions for people you may know. Tap See all above the list to see a complete list of people you may know.
- Desktop - Click Friends in the menu bar at the top and then scroll down to see a list of people you may know.
This will send that person a friend request. If they accept, they'll be added to your friends list, and your "People You May Know" list will expand.
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View the mutual friends you share with someone. You can view the mutual friends you and another person share.
- Open the person's profile page. This works best if you're already friends with the person, as their friends list won't be hidden.^{[7]
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- Tap or click the "Friends" tab to open their friends list.
- Tap or click the "Mutual" tab to view the friends you share with this person.

Section 4 of 4:

What are “mutual friends?”

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On Facebook, "mutual friends" is a term that refers to someone whom both you and another Facebook user have added as a friend. The other user doesn’t have to be a Facebook friend. "Mutual friend" is not a label that can be applied by you to anyone else. It is simply a way to inform you that you share friends with someone else. You can turn mutual friends into your Facebook friends by using the "People You May Know” tool.
- For some people, you'll need to share at least one mutual friend with them in order to send a friend request.

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If people are my friends, how are they made mutual friends?

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A mutual friend means that you share the same friend with another person. For example, say you are friends with Bob and Sally, and Bob and Sally are also friends with each other. When you look on either Bob or Sally's profile, you will see that the other friend will be a mutual friend, because you both have the same friend.

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How I remove my mutual friends from Facebook?

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You can't remove someone from Facebook, but you can always unfriend them. See How to Unfriend on Facebook.

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What can I do if I am not getting any responses?

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Message them with something they like or ask them if they want to hang out. However, if they stay unresponsive, you may need to talk to them face to face to see if they are even using Facebook on any regular basis or to find out what else might be up.

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Tips

Review profiles before adding a person as a friend. Do you like the memes they post? Do you see anything that might offend you? Be choosy. And remember, you can always unfriend someone, or even unfriend and block the person.

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Get to know your 'friends' profiles at least a little.

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Know your contacts. Though it seems you can be friends with anyone on Facebook, also know that sometimes Facebook requires you to identify the person by their profile picture.

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