So, to be clear, the current “delete” option on Facebook Messenger only removes the message for you—the recipient can still see it. That also means it’s still on Facebook’s Messenger servers. The Unsend feature, by contrast, will allow users to completely remove the message as if it never happened.
Of course, there’s a catch: it’s limited to a small, 10-minute window. That means you won’t be able to run back through old messages and unsend anything you want, which is both a bummer and a logical move. Still, if you say something and immediately regret it, you’ll be able to unsend it starting today. Here’s how.
It’s a pretty straightforward option: just long-press on the message. You’ll get the normal reaction emoji just above message, as well as some options down below: Copy, Remove, and Forward. This replaces the Copy, Forward, Delete options that have historically been present here.
Tapping the Remove option will then offer two options: “Remove for Everyone” and “Remove for You.” Pretty self-explanatory here, but if you tap the “Remove for Everyone” option it will unsend the message. The latter option will function in the same way the current Delete option works.
While it hasn’t been confirmed yet, this should work the same way in Messenger on the web: hover over a message, click the ellipsis menu button, then choose the Remove option. We’ll confirm this once the feature is available for us to use.
And that’s all there is to that. This functionality will start rolling out today to everyone.
