Have you spent too many hours on your social feeds and feeling anxious, combative or just unproductive? Just like limiting social media exposure, it is recommended for the mental health of children, many adults can also benefit.
Even if you are not ready for a complete digital detox (where you seriously reduce your smartphone use or even take a week offline), small adjustments to your daily routine can help you make time for other activities. And if you have decided that it is time to continue, see what you can take with you before closing your accounts. Here is a fast guide.
Set limits
Social media platforms offer good reasons to linger, such as connecting distant family members or offering online community space to groups of people. If you want to keep using them – but in moderation – the settings of your phone can help.
First try to control reports of social apps. Open the settings icon on an iPhone or iPad with iOS, tap Reports and scroll down in the app list to silence selected apps. In the menu settings of a telephone with Android 15, you tap notifications and then app reports to go to the controls.
Apple and Google also contain controls for ration time on apps. In the iOS 18 settings, select the screen time, select App & Website activity and switch on (if it is not yet switched on) and then tap the app limits. In the settings of the digital well -being of Android 15, tap the circular graph at the top of the screen and then select the apps in the list below to set your limitations.
Remove the temptation
It is easy to fritter away pieces of the day with fast peeks in your social media feeds. If limiting reports or setting timers on your use is not enough, go one step further: remove the app from your phone.
Removing the app does not delete your social account. However, it forces you to check your feeds on another device, such as a laptop or tablet that stays at home.
To remove an app from an iPhone or iPad, press and hold the home screen icon, select Delete the app and then delete the app.
Removing apps on an Android telephone can vary with the hardware and software version, but on Android 13 and later, open the Google Play Store, tap your profile icon in the upper right corner, choose Manage apps and devices and tap management. On some telephones you can also drag an app icon to the top of the screen and drop it on the admonition option.
Take a break
With most social media platforms you can take a temporary break through deactivating Your account. Deactivating in principle hides your profile before the display until you register again to re -activate it. The steps vary per platform, but you usually start the process in your account settings area. Check the support section of the platform for specific instructions.
If you decide to deactivate, check the policy of the social media company. Some platforms, such as X and Snapchat, offer a period of 30 days of deactivation before the account is automatically deleted forever.
Other platforms, including Facebook, Bluesky, YouTube and Tiktok, do not set a time limit on your return. Deactivating an Instagram account also places your threads account (if you have one) on ice.
Stop for good
In contrast to deactivation, the removal of your account is a permanent deviation from the platform. The removal option is usually in the same part of the settings as the deactivation scheme.
If you decide to delete, all the content you have posted on the platform will disappear, but many sites will let you download an archive of your photos and other messages before you leave. Search for an option “Download your information” or “download your data” in your account settings.
Depending on how much content you have posted, it can take a few days after you request your data to receive the link to download your archive. Some sites, such as Tiktok, only offer links to your videos instead of the actual files themselves, which requires extra effort to get them.
Once your data download has been completed and you have checked the files, follow the platform guide for permanently deleting your account. Before departure, some people post their contact details for connecting elsewhere – and continuing the conversation.
