/ How to

How to Remove and Delete a Facebook Pixel Tracking Code From Your Website

The Facebook pixel is a snippet of code that allows Facebook to track visitor activity on your website. It helps Facebook build targeted audiences for your ads and optimize them over time. However, there may come a time when you want to remove the Facebook pixel from your site. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to delete a Facebook pixel.

Why You Might Want to Remove the Facebook Pixel

There are a few reasons why you may want to remove the Facebook pixel from your website:

  • You no longer want Facebook to track any visitor data or use that data to optimize ads
  • You are switching ad platforms and no longer need the Facebook pixel
  • The Facebook pixel code is outdated and causing errors or issues on your site
  • You want to revamp your marketing strategy and analytics tracking

Whatever the reason, removing the Facebook pixel is quick and easy to do.

Locate the Facebook Pixel Code

The first step is to locate where the Facebook pixel code is placed on your website. There are two main places to check:

1. Header Section

Many websites place the Facebook pixel code in the <head> section of the site.

  • Open your site code and look for a snippet that starts with <!-- Facebook Pixel Code -->
  • This is usually found above the </head> closing tag

2. Body Section

Some sites insert the Facebook pixel code somewhere on the page body itself:

  • Search your site code for fbq('track', 'PageView');
  • When you find it, check the code around it for the full pixel snippet

Once located, you can delete or comment out the Facebook pixel code.

Delete the Facebook Pixel Code

To fully remove the Facebook pixel, delete the full pixel code from your site. Don’t just comment it out.

  • Copy the entire pixel snippet (including opening <!-- and closing -->)
  • Delete or cut it from your site code
  • Save the changes

The Facebook pixel should now be completely removed from your site.

Comment Out the Facebook Pixel

If you want to temporarily disable the Facebook pixel, you can comment it out instead of deleting it.

  • Find the starting <!-- Facebook Pixel Code --> and ending <!-- End Facebook Pixel Code --> comments
  • At the start, add <!--
  • At the end, add -->

This should comment out the entire snippet:

<!--
<!-- Facebook Pixel Code -->

// Facebook Pixel code here

<!-- End Facebook Pixel Code -->
-->

When ready to enable it again, just remove the additional <!-- and --> symbols.

Test Site and Verify Removal

After saving your changes, test multiple pages of your site to verify the Facebook pixel is gone.

You can also check your site code again and do a search for “Facebook” to double check there are no pixel remnants left behind.

Remove Facebook Pixel Tracking Permission

In addition to removing the code from your site, you should also remove Facebook pixel tracking permission:

  • Go to your Facebook Ads Manager
  • Click the Tools icon and select Events Manager
  • Find your website domain and click Configure
  • Toggle the switch to disable data collection via the Facebook pixel

This ensures Facebook no longer has permission to collect any data from that domain moving forward.

Why Completely Removing the Pixel is Better

Rather than just disabling the Facebook pixel, completely deleting it from your site code is better for a few reasons:

  • It keeps your site code clean – No unused snippets taking up space
  • Removes potential conflicts – Old pixels can sometimes disrupt other tracking codes if left dormant
  • Enhances security – Eliminates any vulnerabilities associated with that external code

So if you know you no longer need the Facebook pixel, fully removing it is best practice.

Alternative Tracking Options

Once you remove the Facebook pixel, there are a few alternative options you can implement instead to continue gathering visitor analytics and event data:

  • Google Analytics – Free and comprehensive analytics platform
  • Google Tag Manager – Manage multiple tracking codes through one interface
  • Segment – Robust customer data platform with analytics integrations
  • Heap – User behavior analytics tailored to web and mobile apps

Take time to consider if an alternate platform would better suit your site tracking and ad optimization needs going forward.

Removing the Facebook tracking pixel may feel like a data loss, but it also presents an opportunity to reassess your analytics stack. With a thoughtful replacement, you can gather better visitor insights without the Facebook code baggage.

Recap of Steps to Remove Facebook Pixel:

To fully remove the Facebook pixel tracking code from your website:

  1. Locate the full pixel snippet in your header or body code
  2. Delete the entire Facebook pixel code
  3. Test pages to verify removal
  4. Disable Facebook pixel tracking permission
  5. Consider implementing an alternate analytics platform

Related Posts