Have you been using Facebook for a while now but you are still finding it difficult to use the Facebook search bar? Do you wonder why you have your Facebook search bar not working?
Then look no further as we delve into how best you can remedy this issue as a Facebook user.
The Facebook search bar is very essential, especially during that crucial moment when you just have to get to the profile of a Facebook friend.
Despite how fast it aids users to find friends and followers easily on the app, it is sometimes prone to a number of issues such as:
- Facebook search bar not working
- Facebook search bar not showing on iPad
- Facebook search bar not showing on profiles
- Facebook marketplace search bar not working
- Facebook search bar could not load the results
- Search bar in the Facebook group not working.
You may continue to beat yourself and wonder why your Facebook search bar is not working since you probably do not know the reason that has caused your search bar on Facebook to malfunction.
This issue often happens when you are trying to find a name of a Facebook user and you see an “error” showing up.
Aside from the “error“, you may see, the “we couldn’t find any post to show” message may also pop up, especially when you have searched through the “All” section and you want to be specific about the “Post”.
Users of Facebook on android or even iOS also many find the search section of the app loading for a very long time after they’ve inserted and searched for the post of the profile you are expecting. It is sometimes worrying to wait for an endless time just watching your search bar load.
As a matter of fact, the issue of the Facebook search bar not working is mostly self-inflicted and can therefore be dealt with personally. It is better to know the reasons causing the problem so that finding a remedy to the solution wouldn’t be a difficult task.
Why is my search bar not working on Facebook?
Various reasons for the issues Facebook users find with the app are listed as follows:
- Poor Network Connection
- Facebook bugs
- Facebook server issues
- Copyright issues
- Poor communication between the device and the server.
- Outdated Facebook app
Fixes for Facebook Search Bar not Working
1. Check the Internet Connection
One of the fastest ways to deal with issues such as the Facebook search bar not working is to check and make sure that you have enough internet connection to access the app.
Lack of a strong internet connection gives you very little or no chance to access the app, hence giving you problems like the Facebook search bar could not load any results.
You may first have to check if you have an active data allocation that permits you to access the Facebook app very efficiently and also use the search bar to load results. The lack of an active data allocation limits the ability of the search bar to provide you with the results you need.
To resolve this, first, check if you have an active internet connection or data plan. Also, you should check the strength of your internet connection and this can easily be done by using fast.com to check how fast or slow your internet connection is.
When you are done checking the strength of your internet connection and you realize you are having a speed of your network ranging below 5Mbps, then you should find your internet connection very problematic.
You, therefore, have to either connect to a stronger network or upload your network server with enough data allocation. After doing this try to check if your Facebook pictures are still not loading on your phone.
2. Relaunch the Facebook App
After checking the strength of your Internet connection and you realize it is very strong enough to enable you to access the Facebook search bar correctly, one of the quickest and simplest ways to deal with such issues concerning the Facebook search bar is by quitting the app quickly and relaunching it.
For this, you must leave the Facebook app and clear all running apps in the background. If you are using the browser to access Facebook, then you should clear the Facebook web tab and open it on a new tab.
After quitting the app, relaunch the app and check if you still encounter the issue of Facebook searches not loading.
3. Check the Facebook Server Status
Occasionally, the issue of the Facebook search bar not showing profiles or the Facebook marketplace search bar not working may not be your fault. This is because there are sometimes general glitches that happen in the systems of Facebook, causing all users to get stuck accessing the app.
The Facebook system may be under maintenance which is expectedly to cause the Facebook app to malfunction more than usual when the user is in the course of using the app.
This may occur when you are trying to search for Profiles with the Facebook search bar, upload Facebook stories, or load Facebook pictures. It happens once in a while but if you are unfortunate and it happens, you may not be too sure if it’s actually just you or a general problem.
Due to the fact that the issue may be from the Facebook server, you should endeavor to check using Down Detector to check if the system is actually down or not. Search for “Facebook” on the software and check if they serve you with Facebook outage reports in your region
Aside from this, you can also check Twitter to find out if there has been an official communique from Facebook about their app malfunctions.
4. Launch Facebook with the Facebook Web
After going through all the processes above and the Facebook search bar is still not working, then it may also be a problem with the Facebook app on your android or iOS so you should consider launching Facebook with the use of the Facebook web.
By doing this, use the processes recommended as follows:
- Launch the browser on your phone or personal computer.
- Use the address bar to get to facebook.com and launch it.
- After launching Facebook using the Facebook web, log in to your account and check if you can now load Facebook searches.
5. Clear the Facebook App Cache and Data
Usually, these issues we face such as the Facebook search bar not working is as a result of glitches caused by the app cache or data on the device. It may also be a result of browser cookies and data.
Clearing app cache and data or clearing browser cookies is one option that has helped a lot of Facebook users curb Facebook-related issues. And we will definitely recommend this to you! Below is how to clear the Facebook app cache on your phone.
- Close the Facebook app on your phone
- Long press the app till a sub-window shows and tap on the app info
- Scroll down to look for storage and tap on it
- Go down to tap on the clear cache to clear the Facebook app cache
- Go back to relaunch the app to check whether the issue has been resolved.
If you are using the browser to access your Facebook account, then you should try to clear cookies on the browser rather. To do this, follow the steps given below:
- Launch the browser (Either Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge)
- Tap on the three horizontal dots located at the top corner.
- Click on settings
- Click on Privacy & Security and select clear browsing data.
- Tick the boxes next to Cookies and other site data as well as cached images and files
- Click on clear data
6. Update the Facebook App or Reinstall the Facebook App
If you are still facing issues with the Facebook search bar not working or not showing even after clearing the Facebook app cache and data or clearing browser cookies and browser history, then you should update the Facebook app or uninstall and reinstall it.
This is because you might be using an outdated version of Facebook that does not permit you to use the app entirely. You should update the app as soon as possible so that you can log in to the app without facing problems like, “Facebook search bar not working on android“.
Below are the steps you can use to update your Facebook app
- Close all apps running in the background including the Facebook app.
- Go to the Google Play store or app store on your device.
- Search for Facebook in the search bar.
- Tap on Update to update the app.
- Check to see if the app has been updated successfully and relaunch the app
- After launching the app, check if you still face the issue of “Facebook pictures not loading”.
After updating the app and you still encounter the issue, then you should uninstall the app and reinstall it. This can be done using the steps below:
- Close the Facebook app on your phone
- Long press the app till a sub-window shows and tap on uninstall
- After successfully uninstalling the app, go to Playstore (for android users) or App store (for iOS users)
- Search for the Facebook app in the search bar.
- Tap on the install section to download the latest version of Facebook on either Playstore or App store.
- Launch the app, and check if you still face the issue of Facebook pictures not loading
7. Check Your Facebook Account Status
Facebook does not allow users to load searches or use the app effectively and efficiently if their account has breached Facebook community guidelines. Facebook has community guidelines that you should try as much as possible to avoid as a user just so you don’t breach the set guidelines.
If you have breached some of the Facebook community guidelines, then you should expect a suspension from using the app or permanent removal of your Facebook account. You should check and know if your Facebook account has currently been suspended or not.
If you have been banned by Facebook you will receive an alert from them either when you just log in or in the course of using the app. This may happen just when you are searching for a profile on the search bar and it prevents you from loading the search on Facebook.
8. Contact Facebook Support Center
All of the above options on how to fix Facebook are possible ways to curb the issue and therefore if you still find it very worrying to face the challenge of the Facebook search bar not working, then you should not hesitate to contact the Facebook Support center.
They aid you to resolve the issue in the best way, answering questions like, “Why isn’t my search bar working on Facebook?”. Visiting their site to seek help from them will be the best and the farthest you can go to resolve the issue of Facebook apps not showing after all.
You can do this by contacting them on the app, using the steps below:
- Launch the Facebook app.
- Tap on the three horizontal lines at the top right of your profile
- Go straight to “Report a Problem” and tap on it.
4. These days, when you try reporting a problem, Facebook informs you to do the following, using Facebook Lite:
- Go to where you saw the problem
- Shake the phone.
- Report problem
5. After doing all these, try loading a picture on Facebook after some time to know if your Facebook search bar is working now!
Conclusion
You should not hesitate to check out this article any day to find a better solution or options on how to fix the Facebook search bar not working, and know the reasons that caused you trouble over the issue.
As highlighted in the article already, it may mostly be a result of your internet connectivity, and Facebook bugs among others. Look for a detailed highlight on how to fix Facebook in the article anytime you encounter such an issue.