Home » Social Media » Facebook » How to Fix Search Not Working on Messenger

How to Fix Search Not Working on Messenger

Is the search feature not working on Facebook Messenger?

If so, you might get a “No results found” error message when you use the search feature.

This can happen if you’re trying to find a message in one of your chats.

It can also happen if you’re searching for your friend’s name on the app.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to fix search not working on Facebook Messenger (can’t search for friends/messages) on iPhone or Android.

Why is the search not working on Messenger?

Search is not working on Messenger because of a bug/glitch on the app.

Users from Reddit and YouTube are reporting that they can’t search for friends or messages on the app.

This can happen if the latest Android or iOS update conflicts with Messenger.

If that’s the case, you need to wait for a Messenger update to be released to fix it.

However, there are fixes that you can try to get the feature to work again.

How to fix search not working on Messenger

To fix search not working on Messenger, you can try uninstalling and reinstalling the app or clearing the app’s cache.

You can also try using the Messenger desktop app, downloading an older version of the app, or downloading a copy of your information on Messenger.

Fix 1: Uninstall and reinstall the app

  1. Tap and hold the Messenger app and delete it.
  2. Open the App Store/Google Play Store.
  3. Search for “Messenger” and reinstall the app.
  4. Open the app and sign in to your account.
  5. Try using the search feature again.

Fix 2: Clear the app’s cache

  • For iPhone: Open the Settings app > General > iPhone Storage > Messenger > Offload App > Reinstall App.
  • For Android: Open the Settings app > Apps > Messenger > Storage > Clear cache,

Fix 3: Use the Messenger desktop app

  1. Download the Messenger desktop app on a computer: www.messenger.com.
  2. Open the app and sign in to your account.
  3. Try using the search feature again.

Fix 4: Download an older version of Messenger (Android only)

  1. Uninstall the Messenger app.
  2. Go to facebook-messenger.en.uptodown.com/android/versions.
  3. Download an older version (APK) of Messenger.
  4. Open the app and sign in to your account.
  5. Try using the search feature again.

Fix 5: Download a copy of your information on Messenger

  1. Open the Messenger app and tap on the menu icon.
  2. Tap on the settings icon and scroll down to the bottom of the page.
  3. Select “See more in Accounts Centre” followed by “Your information and permissions”.
  4. Select “Download your information” followed by “Download or transfer information”.
  5. Choose the account that you want to search your messages from and tap “Next”.
  6. Select “Specific types of information”, select “Messages”, and tap “Next”.
  7. Select “Download to device” or “Transfer to destination”.
  8. Choose “All time” as the date range.
  9. Tap “Create files” and wait for your download to be ready.
  10. Once the download is ready, download your files.
  11. Open the files and search for the message that you want to find in a specific chat.

Further reading

How to Turn Off Sound When Scrolling on Facebook

How to Disable End to End Encryption on Messenger

How to Fix Chat Heads Not Showing on Messenger

About the author

Lim How Wei

Lim How Wei is the founder of followchain.org, with 8+ years of experience in Social Media Marketing and 4+ years of experience as an active investor in stocks and cryptocurrencies. He has researched, tested, and written thousands of articles ranging from social media platforms to messaging apps.

Lim has been quoted and referenced by major publications and media companies like WikiHow, Fast Company, HuffPost, Vice, New York Post, The Conversation, and many others. One of his articles about the gig economy was quoted by Joe Rogan who hosts The Joe Rogan Experience (arguably the most popular podcast in the world), in the This Past Weekend podcast by Theo Von.

In his free time, Lim plays multiple games like Genshin Impact, League of Legends, Counter-Strike, Hearthstone, RuneScape, and many others. He creates guides, walkthroughs, solutions, and more on games that he plays to help other players with their progression.