I have a client that was upset about using the Business Manager tool on Facebook. Her business partner had turned it on but they later found that they couldn’t use Facebook apps or get back to the personal area without a lot of trouble.
I discovered this myself when it first came out. As an internet professional, much of my testing and learning about new tools comes about when I use my own accounts as the guinea pig. I usually wait until I hear reviews from other pros before putting myself in the line of fire but I went ahead and jumped in the deep end.
I regretted it immediately
The benefits of Business Manager are clear. It’s recommended to use it if you have more than three pages and multiple admins. It’s also a good idea for agencies that manage pages for their clients.
The downsides aren’t as clear. It’s not until you upgrade that you realize the mobile apps won’t work anymore. The Pages app and the mobile FB app are both separate from the new manager so all your work must be done from the desktop version of Facebook.
Now, most of the time, I’m critical and careful about my posts so this isn’t the biggest problem. My biggest complaint is that we currently can’t monitor the activity on pages from mobile. This is an issue for social media managers that have to attend meetings or be away from their desks for any length of time. Just ask one, if they couldn’t see the notifications of their accounts via their phones, you’d see the sweat start to pour down their forehead.
I’m sure at some point there will be a Business Manager app but until that time, this new “feature” hobbles managers and forces them to stay close to a desktop and obsessively check their page activity. I even tried downloading the new Facebook Ads app but it’s not the solution either.
When it was my account, I hit the Help button and begged them to reverse it which they did with no argument. The client I mentioned at the top of this blog wasn’t so lucky. She’d tried everything she could think of and wasn’t able to remove it so she asked for my help. I found the following instructions in a Facebook Community thread, tried it, and it worked!
How to remove Facebook Business Manager
- in the Business Manager page click the cog shaped icon top right of screen
- select BUSINESS MANAGER SETTINGS
- select pages (left hand side)
- add new page
- create a new page (I called mine Test Page)
- select Info (button left hand side)
- where is says primary page (your actual page) click the edit icon (pencil)
- type in the new page to the box next to Primary page
- your new page should highlight
- select the new page and save
- go back to Pages
- select your real business page
- click remove
- (alternate instructions: Settings>Pages>click the page you want and simply click “REMOVE”)
- Instructions directly from Facebook as of 3/24/16
Didn’t Work? Try This
When I originally wrote this blog in July 2015, these instructions worked for me. This is one of my Top 5 blogs of all time and on average, 1 out of 10 people still find relief from those instructions.
I reinstalled my Business Page into Business Manager recently just so I could do this process again for you. These new instructions (and screenshot below) are from June 2018. You can find them on Facebook Help here.
- When in Business Manager, open Business Settings
- Click Accounts and click Pages
- Select the Page you’d like to remove and click Remove
- As of 3/11/20, you had to schedule your page to be deleted. Whatever they tell you (14 days is common), put it on your calendar and make sure they did it. If they didn’t (also common) go through the process again. The second time, it works immediately.
THANK YOU. This has made my life enormously better.
You are quite welcome. This setting is a headache.
You made my day! Thank you Lovey xxxxxxxx
You’re welcome!
Help! I don’t have the “cog” on my Business Manager page. How do I revert back out of this blasted thing???
Is there any other way you can get into your settings?
Did you find this? I was able to successfully revert to a page without using the cog. Reply here if you still need help.
I’m in Holly’s boat. I can’t find the “cog” anywhere – either in Chrome or IE (I checked both just to make sure it wasn’t a browser issue). I really want to delete the account I had originally set up for this so my own personal account is no longer attached to my business pages, but the BM account I set up is hidden somewhere, and now my chrome facebook defaults to the business manager page.
This is so aggravating.
I have a cog next to Business Settings on my left column now. I wish I could walk through the newer process with you. Since I’ve turned it off, I don’t want to turn it back on to learn how they’ve changed it recently. I’d still use the same concept of adding a dummy page then removing your main page.
thanks a lot for this. really helped
@Kerry & Holly – I just did this. You need to go to Settings>Pages>click the page you want and simply click “REMOVE”
Thanks for this article!!
Thanks for writing, Tonia!
when you click “remove” did it remove the page (I don’t want to do that!) or just the bus. mgr?
I added your text to the bottom of the blog. Thanks!
AMAZING!! You have saved us!
I’m SO happy to hear it was helpful for you :)
I think the page has changed a lil bit… I can find “create new page” bit when I click on it nothing happens. Any ideas?
The instructions work for some but a few others have had to adjust the instructions. Since nothing is happening for you, I don’t know what’s going on the back end for your FB code. My recommendation anytime something doesn’t work as designed on FB is to give it 24 hours and try again.
I had to create a dummy page, something like “My Test Page”, and then I was able to remove my real business page from Business Manager.
@Tonia – thank you. I had the same issue and you found the right settings to dump this FB BM app.
Hi Kerry,
If I have this notice am I in the right place or will it delete all my pages?
If you permanently delete your business, all assets (ad accounts, Pages and product catalogs) will be removed from your business.
You’ll continue to have admin rights to all assets associated with this business through your Facebook account.
You’ll lose access to assets granted to you by other businesses.
Anyone who works on assets for this business will keep their access to those assets, and any admins on this business will gain admin access to all assets in the business.
I understand that I can’t reactivate my business once I delete it.
Alison, you are looking for “remove” versus “delete”. The ability to remove your page from business manager will enable you to keep everything but you won’t be accessing it through BM anymore. I had to add a dummy page so that I had multiple. I made the dummy page the primary then was able to REMOVE my main page.
Kerry but CAN we delete Business Manager altogether? And without deleting our entire page? I never signed up to this thing and after SO much drama and problems to get here (thank you btw) I don’t want it at all. No logo, no business name- I just want it to be nonexistent. Thanks :)
Casey, you can’t delete Business Manager itself. You won’t be using it but the function will still exist, your page just won’t be inside it.
Hi, I tried this a few times now. When I click “remove” on my page it says I must assign someone as an admin. So I added a new admin but it still won’t remove. Help! Thanks!
Jessica, I haven’t seen this error before. I wonder if you can have the other admin remove you and add you back. I’d try that, log out, log back in and try the whole process again.
Thank you! You just saved my day!
I’m glad to be of help!
Hi Kerry,
Stumbled across your page here and I am desperate to remove Business Manager.
I am having the same issue as somebody above. When I click add new page, nothing happens.
So, I have created a new page on my personal account and claimed ownership, so I now have 2 pages in the backend on business manager.
However, when I go to info and try to edit the primary page, it is only showing my main page. It doesn’t show the dummy page I set up and claimed ownership of, nor will business manager let me make a new page.
This is making me pull my hair out. Cheers Facebook! Anyone know how to solve this? Any help would be appreciated, cheers.
Sam, The only thing I can think to do is to try the “punch ’em in the nose” technique that I employ as a consultant. I file complaint after complaint until they solve my problem.
Hi Kerry
Please help. Business Manager is not working for me.
I tried to follow your instructions above but I get stuck at “select (info button bottom left hand side)”
I don’t have an info button on the bottom left hand side.
Jason, The instructions that Facebook gives might be ever so slightly more helpful as they are able to update them more directly. Now that I’m out of the system, it’s harder to keep this blog updated. Here’s their link: https://www.facebook.com/business/help/816230598469434
Oh My God! You made my day! THANK YOU so much for that. Business Manager was a pain…
It sure was. I’m so glad it worked for you :)
Hi dear, I did what you said, create a new page but when I went to pages again to remove my old business page…there was no ‘remove page’ but my new page has the ‘remove page’ Can anyone please help??
Adriana, does your real business page not have a remove button because it is still the primary page on the account? If you are able to make the new page the primary, a remove button should appear next to your real page.
Kerry this was perfect and worked great….but now I have a Business Manager account hanging with a test page….how do I nuke Business Manager altogether now that my business page is back under control from my personal facebook page?
Have you tried deleting the Test Page as you would delete any other page?
Hi Kerry, i am not getting the info button after i created a test page? I now have 2 pages, when i select the “test page” it says remove on the right hand side but not when my business page is selected.
Forget that! I did it…your help is so much appreciated! THANK YOU!
You are so welcome, Glenn!
What happens if I then permanently delete the test page?
If you have already removed your page from Business Manager, deleting the test page will release from your account. It will be as if you didn’t have it at all.
I was able to get my company page out of the evil clutches of Business Manage but, I don’t see how to remove the test page and close my account…can you help?
hello,
how can i remove Ad account from business manager?
Kate, Try this link: https://www.facebook.com/business/help/525004847617431 It has all the answers you’ll need for Business Manager.
OMG!! Thank you!!! You made my life so much easier, the business manager really sucks!
Glad to help!
Hi Kerry,
thank you so much for the help! I finally get out of the sick business manager!
You’re welcome!
Hi, It says “Your page can’t be deleted at this time” :( what should I do? I’m irritated already, I can’t advertise on my instagram since I use business manager. :( please help, I want to entirely remove everything connected to business manager.
Did you create yourself a test page to swap the primary status? My next thought is that when something on FB doesn’t work the first time, give it 24 hours and try again.
THANK YOU!!!! saved my life, seriously.
I am happy to be of help!
Oh dear..it was liking prison break in intense situation…
Thank You so much for this….
You are so welcome!
You are a blessing, Kerry!!! Thank you for this!! It worked!
I’m glad it was helpful!
Thank you very much Kerry . Facebook Business Manager had me locked in a pen for two business accounts and you freed both in under 15 minutes. Concise, professional and a great educator. Your social media account overview was absolutely invaluable. I cannot recommend more highly. Worth every penny. Delighted to remain your client. Thanks Jackie
I’m so glad I could help! I love un-trapping people from this feature!
I mistakenly set up Business manager whilst logged in as admin for one of the pages I manage for a client.
It now links everything in Business Manager through that client.
How can I undo this when Facebook says that once deleted, that page cannot use Business Manager again?
Worried that if I delete business manager completely, it will affect the client’s ability to advertise in the future through business manager
Thank you so much in advance for this!!
Polly, from what I’ve seen, pages can go in and out of Business Manager. Also, there’s the alternate option of using Ad Manager rather than the full blown Business Manager should there be an issue in the future. I hope this is helpful.
Thank you so much for this
I’m glad it was helpful for you!
Than you so much for this! I installed over the weekend and just couldnt get my head around it and wanted to go back to the old version until I have more time to play around with FBM. But I read once you delete it you cant ever re add? Hence your article helping! Thank you
Mike, I haven’t heard that that’s the case once you remove a page. I believe I’ve added mine back in at least once. I’ve done some research and can’t find an answer so I’m asking a few colleagues and will hopefully be able to respond shortly.
Hi Kerry,
thank you so much for the help! I finally get out of the sick business manager!
Thank You so much !!
Your welcome, Nurul! I’m so happy it worked for you :)
Thank you so much! Can’t believe facebook haven’t sorted this Page Manager out, it’s so terrible to try and navigate!! You are a saint xxx
Jessica, I’m so glad to hear it helped!
THis didnt work for me
I’m sorry to hear it didn’t work for you, Sarah. About 1 out of 10 responders in my comments section say it doesn’t work for them. :(
Thank goodness I found this! It helped ALOT! All back to normal now. Thank you!!!
I’m glad to hear it! You are quite welcome :)
Hi Kerry!
I found this article by chance and I’m writing to you a little out of desperation, just in case you found a case like mine in these last months and have any idea on how to fix this.
I removed a page from my Business Manager account just as you explained in your latest update of the post, but the business is still shown as proprietary of this page in the “page roles” section of the page settings. I’ve even tried to completely delete the business manager account, but no matter how many times I click on “delete”, it never disappears. I wait for a 2 days margin just in case (they say 24 hours), and it is still there…
I really need to give the property of the page back to my personal Facebook account, because I’m finding a lot of problems when connecting external apps to the Instagram account linked to the Facebook page (they detect that I’m not the proprietary of the page and fail to connect with the Instagram account).
Have you heard about any case like this?
Sara, each time I’ve seen this (probably 40 times), it looks slightly different. There seem to be endless variations.
I didn’t write this blog post to make money, I just wanted to offer a solution. That said, I’m regularly hired to solve this problem and I haven’t failed yet. If you have Skype, you can share your screen with me and I can guide you through the process of fixing this. As a consultant, I charge $100/hr for individuals and have a half hour minimum.
I’d love to be able to help. My email is kerry@kerryregoconsulting.com if interested.
Can anyone on this earth please help with how to remove an (already disabled) ad account from Business Manager? It’s the last step to finally be able to close this *literally never used* Business Manager account and I can not for the life of me figure out how to do it. Been waiting on a resolution for about six months. Please HALP xx
I looked up the information and found this support page useful: https://www.facebook.com/business/help/331993756945799 I tested it on myself (I had a business, personal, and Instagram ad accounts – I deleted the personal) and I hope it’s helpful for you.
Wow!! Thanks so much for your response, Kerry. Unfortunately, this doesn’t solve my problem. The ad account associated with the Business Manager is already deactivated. There are no apps, IG accounts, or pages associated either. When I click “Permanently Delete Business,” I get a message saying “Your business is ineligible for deletion. Learn More about why and how to fix this.” I’ve followed *all* of the steps listed in both the “learn more” and “troubleshoot” pages and nothing has worked.
Oh man! I think this problem can probably only be solved from the inside. There are instances where a client will have me work on an issue and I find a way to get on the phone (or email) with a tech. I file complaints then talk about wanting to spend money but not being able to because my account isn’t set up right. They respond to people wanting to spend money. Let me know if this is something you’d like my assistance with and I’m sorry I don’t have a digital solution for you. Sometimes only a human will do.
How did you resolve this? I am getting this now it is extremely infuriating. Thanks
Keith, the blog tells you how I resolved the situation. It’s the story and instructions. If you need assistance, let me know. It’s a regular problem I solve for my clients.
THANK YOU!!! Worked Like A Charm- It wouldn’t let me delete the business manager account- once I followed the 2018 instruction it let me delete it!
I’m so glad to hear it was helpful!
I deleted myself off as an admin from my business page and now when I am trying to delete or add a page it’s not allowing me because they said I have to be an admin, but the thing is I am the only admin for my business page. I noticed when I signed up for business manager I regretted it completely and I am in the process of deleting the business manager. I have to wait 24 hours. Does this do anything to my business page? I am needing help and Facebook is not helping one bit.
Getting yourself back in as an admin takes work and there’s no guarantee it will work but here’s a good set of instructions: https://www.wikihow.com/Reclaim-Admin-Rights-to-a-Facebook-Page
This might be a dumb question but this whole business manager thing is so confusing! I’ve removed all pages from the business manager account. I want to now delete the account – if i do this it will NOT affect any of the pages (that I’ve already removed). My mind says – this is correct…but then I question it. haha
I had this same worry the first time I took myself out of Business Manager (I’ve since put myself back in so that I could update this blog and haven’t left though I highly disklike it). I created a “Test” page and removed my valuable pages. Then I deleted Business Manager all together. It worked for me but it’s a scary proposition.
Is this through the “Permanently Delete Business” button? Is that what you are referring to when you say delete it altogether?
I don’t recommend hitting that button simply because the wording concerns me. You should be seeing a view very similar to the screenshot in the blog. The Remove button is what you are looking for.
Maybe you can help. On FB I have my personal page, then I have photography company page (linked to an IG business acct). Then I also have a mortgage business page. The photography page is under Business Manager (no clue how that happened). But when I want to join a group that allows PAGES to join. Only me personal and mortgage page show as options…not the photography page which is what I want. Any idea how to fix this? Searching all over and on FB leads no where. I even made a new test page (one in my business manager and one not tied to it) and neither one show as options to JOIN. Any thoughts on how to fix this?
Yes, I did this myself the first time. If you have a test page, you can put it in the Business Manager and remove your photography page from BM. It’s a trade off. The page isn’t deleted, simply removed from under the cloak of BM. I hope this is helpful!
Thank you SO MUCH. You have saved my day and kept me from looking like a complete incompetent in front of my clients!!
Yay! I’m so happy to hear it was helpful for you :)
Just clarifying — If I do this, it won’t delete my FB business page, right? It just removes it from Business Manager, right?
I’m asking because for some reason (it’s Business Manager related), I can’t link my business page to my group.
Thanks so much for this info. I greatly appreciate it.
Yes, it just removes from Business Manager. I had to do this just yesterday for a client that runs movie theaters. I had to remove 12 pages(!) from Business Manager using this same process.
What if when you go to the Remove button and a pop up says this ==>You can’t remove Pages from a business account that’s restricted from advertising. If you need my assistance, you can book time with me to help you solve this problem: https://kerryregoconsulting.com/contact/
Troy, it’s an order of operations issue. You’ll have to solve the advertising restriction before you can solve this problem.