Dying To Unfriend Somebody On Facebook But You Just Can’t? There Are 3 Alternative (And Just As Good) Ways To Do It

Do you have an over-sharing Facebook buddy that won't stop with the food/baby/shopping photos? Or a Facebook friend that you wouldn't really call your friend (ie. you don't want them creeping on your photos)?

You could hit the "Unfriend" button but we all know that's an extreme social crime in today's world. So why not use the alternative ways to delete them, there are a few ways to keep marginal Facebook pals at arm’s length without cutting them off altogether...

1. Add The "Over-sharers" To Your “Acquaintances” List

We've all been there. You've added a long-lost friend you remember fondly from high school, but now they’re constantly peppering your news feed with random links about their favorite TV shows, silly cat photos, and endless snapshots of their daily activities (no, we don't care that your sandwich is massive and delicious-looking and we haven't even attempted to make lunch yet).

It’s not that you want to slam the door on all their updates, just, well, some of them...

Want to see a little less of a friend in your news feed? Just add them to your Acquaintance list. Once you do, Facebook will automatically pare down the number of news feed updates you receive from them to a bare minimum.

For example, you might still get notified that a far-flung Facebook acquaintance got married or landed a new job, but you’ll get sweet relief from the daily kitty snapshots.

And don’t worry, your friend will never know that you relegated them to your Acquaintance list.

To add a friend to your Acquaintance list, just…

• Hover your mouse over their name on their timeline or in your news feed.
• When you see the pop-up window with their profile photo and a “Friends” button, hover your mouse over that button to reveal a new pop-up menu.
• See the “Acquaintances” option? Click it.
• Want a little more control over which updates you’ll see from a specific friend? Instead of “Acquaintances,” click “Settings,” then start unchecking categories (from “Life Events” to “Comments and Likes”).
• If you ever want to hide a post of your own from the folks on your Acquaintances list, you can choose the “Friends except Acquaintances” option from the audience selector (the pull-down menu that sits right next to the Post button).

Pic via Mashable

2. Block Moaners From Your News Feed

Here’s another scenario... you have that friend who just won’t stop with the links to depressing news stories, the “I hate my job” updates, the not-so-funny jokes...

No fear, it's easy to block all of a friend’s updates from appearing in your news feed. Here's someone you don't want to see on the newsfeed at all, even if they do have a good day.

To block your moaners from your News Feed... 

• Again, hover your mouse over the friend’s name on their timeline or in your news feed, then wait for the window with their profile photo to appear.
• When it does, hover your mouse over the Friends button, click Settings, then uncheck “Show in News Feed.”

Enjoy the peace and quiet.

3. Banish An Enemy To Your Restricted List

You foolishly added your boss first week on the job, you envisaged the two of you laughing over cocktails and work-happenings. It didn't turn out like that. You’re thinking twice about every photo upload and every update you post, but “unfriending” your boss isn’t really an option. What to do?

Try this: Put him/her on your “Restricted” list, it's a “friend list” for friends who you’re "this close" to unfriending.

Once you banish someone to your Restricted list, their links, photos and updates won’t appear in your news feed at all (although you might see their name pop up in the ticker, but only once in a blue moon).

Even better, they’ll no longer see any of your updates, photos, or other Facebook activity, or at least, nothing that you haven’t flagged as “Public” in your privacy settings.

Here’s how you do it:

• Once more, hover your mouse over their name in your news feed or on their timeline, wait for the pop-up window to appear, then click the Friends button.
• Select “Add to another list” from the menu, scroll all the way down, then click Restricted.
• Note: While Facebook won’t notify a friend that you’ve put them on your Restricted list, an eagle-eyed frenemy may well notice that they’re not seeing your “friends only” updates anymore.