Facebook’s redesign focuses on friends, photos, Marketplace, and more

Do Metaverse is out Is Facebook back in? That’s one way to look at Tuesday advertisement From the company formerly known as Facebook: Meta is revamping its main app with a number of features focused on connecting friends, along with design changes, including a renewed focus on what still works, like the popular Facebook Marketplace.

The changes come days after news of the Meta study Big discounts for her metaverse effortswhich, before the boom in artificial intelligence, aimed to make virtual worlds and virtual reality the company’s next big bet in the field of social networking. Meanwhile, Facebook is still up Billionseven if it is Growth remains steady In major markets such as the United States

As Facebook’s population ages, the app remains in heavy use among baby boomers and Generation Xers. This led to Meta trying to find a niche among a younger demographic. After failed attempts Facebook rebooted as a home for college kidsThe company has been making more noise lately Giving Facebook a Gen Z makeover.

But what resonated with young people It is Facebook Marketplace.

The company’s online marketplace is used by more than half of Gen Z users in the United States, according to A E-marketing report 2025 On social media users. Last month, dead This trend is confirmednoting that Marketplace was used by one in four daily active young adult Facebook users in the United States and Canada.

Despite the appeal, Marketplace remained buried in the “More” menu within users’ profiles in the Facebook app.

This new update, coming soon, will add Marketplace to the app’s bottom navigation bar, along with other creator-focused social features like Reels and Friends.

Reels and direct messaging are the most popular features on Instagram, and here’s why, the company said earlier this year Testing began on the redesign centered on those In the mobile experience. Now Facebook is getting a similar treatment in terms of returning friends as part of the experience.

The Profile tab will remain in the navigation bar, and users will be able to Personalize the experience.

Another part of the change will allow users to double-tap photos in their feed to like them, similar to Instagram. These images will be arranged in a unified grid, and users will be able to see the images full screen by clicking on them.

Search is changing to include a more comprehensive grid layout to support all types of content. Facebook will also be testing a new full-screen viewer that will let you explore photo and video results without losing your place.

Additionally, Facebook says it’s making it easier to create regular Stories and posts by making the tools for adding music or tagging friends clearer, and eliminating other distractions. Your audience and cross-posting settings will now be displayed more clearly as well.

Commenting via feed, groups and rollers gets its own set of adjustments. Replies are simpler, badges will be clearer, and users will get new pinners. Meta says this will make following conversations easier, and the expanded controls will allow creators and admins to monitor conversations more easily. Additionally, everyone will be able to anonymously report irrelevant comments and users who disrupt the conversation.

In feed, users will be able to provide feedback on why they didn’t like a post or video to better personalize their experience.

The latest change sees Facebook trying to regain its reputation as a place to connect friends. This is what it was known for back in the day, before prioritizing other types of content like news, creator videos, and You try Copy or Acquires all last half–successful social program.

The company is rolling out updated user profiles, allowing people to add more information about their interests, hobbies and travel. Here, users can include more information about themselves, such as TV shows they like, music they stream, favorite travel locations, and more.

These are the types of things people used to share more freely before they realized Facebook was just using their data to better target ads. The company is now giving users a big shot in terms of new functionality, at least — if you share that you enjoy something like baking your own bread, or are planning a trip to a particular city, for example, it will connect you with friends who share your interest or who can offer advice.

Of course, Facebook has long made a habit of trying to increase engagement by pushing every update to your profile to your feed, as if you changed your profile picture or background photo — a feature many Facebook users have Found annoying Even embarrassing.

However, with this revamp, users will be able to decide whether these updates are shared in their feed, a decision that could increase adoption, Facebook hopes.

The changes could impact how content is categorized in users’ feeds, which is already a personalized experience.

The company says the new features will be rolled out globally in the coming weeks. Some changes are mobile-only, including updates to navigation, search, new comments, double-tap to like, as well as redesigned feed and stories author.