Facebook Marketplace is a great place to discover, buy and sell items listed within your local community. However, you might stumble across some sellers' listings where contact information is masked with the "hidden information" text. This can be inconvenient if you prefer to contact the seller directly on your preferred chat platform.
In this article, we go through five quick ways to see Facebook Marketplace hidden information on product listings, and the reasons why such information is hidden.
Why Can’t I See Hidden Information on Facebook Marketplace?
There are a few possible reasons why Facebook hides the seller's contact information on the platform.
Reason 1: Keep Spammers, Hackers and Scammers Away
Revealing one's phone number is risky as it can be used as a point of contact to send unwanted or malicious messages, calls, or even compromise their mobile device. Hackers can also use this information to steal users' personal or financial data through phishing attacks or other methods. Scammers can also use this information to trick you into giving them money or sensitive details.
When Facebook hides the seller's phone number or email address on the Marketplace platform, it actually safeguards the user against such risks. This is why you may encounter Facebook Marketplace phone number hidden situations.
Sellers should be extra careful before sharing their real phone numbers with interested buyers, and consider getting a second phone number from an app like Phoner. The next time you're trying to figure out how to see hidden phone number on Facebook Marketplace, you should always remember that phone numbers are easy access for malicious spammers, hackers and scammers.
Reason 2: Keep Users on Facebook Messenger
By keeping the seller's Facebook Marketplace phone number hidden, Facebook messenger becomes the more convenient communication method. There are a few features on Messenger that makes it a useful tool to communicate with sellers:
- In-app notifications: Messenger notifications are more prominent and frequent than on Facebook.
- Conversations synchronization: Messenger automatically synchronizes across all devices, making it easier for users to continue conversations on the go.
- Payment options: Messenger offers an integrated payment system, allowing users to send and receive money within the app.
- Customer service: Messenger has a feature that allows businesses to interact with customers directly through the app, making it more convenient for both parties.
Reason 3: Keep Transactions on Facebook Marketplace
The third reason for Facebook Marketplace hidden information could boil down to profits for Facebook at the end of the day. When sellers make a sale on Marketplace, Facebook deducts a fee from the seller's payout automatically. Known as the "selling fee", it costs the seller 5% per shipment, or a flat fee of $0.40 for shipments of $8.00 or less. Hence, there is an incentive for Facebook to keep Facebook Marketplace phone number hidden so that they can keep the transaction on the platform.
Now that you know the reasons for Facebook Marketplace hidden information on product listings, let's go into how to unhide hidden information on Facebook Marketplace app.
5 Quick Ways to See Facebook Marketplace Hidden Information
Personal phone numbers and email addresses are often hidden on Facebook marketplace. To find Facebook Marketplace hidden information, you can simply browse any listing and identify if there are any [[hidden information]] text located within the listing.
Encountering Facebook Marketplace hidden information might be annoying when you are browsing on the platform. Let's take a look at the following methods to see the hidden information on Facebook marketplace.
Method 1: Contact the Facebook Marketplace Seller Directly
The easiest way to see hidden information on a Facebook Marketplace listing is to simply contact the seller directly. You can do this by clicking the "Contact" button on the listing. This will open a chat window on Messenger where you can ask the seller any questions you have about the item, including any information that may be hidden in the listing.
Method 2: Check the Facebook Marketplace Seller's Profile
If you're having trouble viewing Facebook Marketplace hidden information on a listing, you can check the seller's profile for more information. This may include their contact information, feedback from other buyers sharing the seller's phone number, or other items the seller has listed for sale previously which may contain their contact information.
Method 3: Look for Clues in the Facebook Marketplace Listing
Sometimes, sellers will intentionally hide information in a listing for privacy purposes, but will still give subtle clues about it. For example, if a seller is keeping their Facebook Marketplace phone number hidden, they may mention in the listing that they will "only respond to serious inquiries". This is a big clue that there may be hidden information in the listing.
There are a few other phrases that sellers may use to show their Facebook Marketplace contact information is deliberately hidden, including:
- 'only respond to serious inquiries'
- 'dm for serious inquiries'
- 'serious inquiries only'
Method 4: How to See Hidden Information on Facebook Marketplace Mobile App
If the above methods did not work, you can try to access the listing from your mobile browser. This will involve copying the link on the Facebook Marketplace mobile app first, before pasting it onto your mobile browser. Here's how to see hidden information on Facebook Marketplace mobile app:
- Open up your mobile device's browser e.g. Tempest browser, and login to your Facebook account.
- Go back to Facebook Marketplace on your mobile app to find the product listing.
- Tap on the "Share" button, which will reveal a menu showing the sharing options.
- Choose "More options".
- From the list, tap on "Copy" or "Copy Link".
- Next, open the browser that you were logged into with your Facebook account.
- Paste the URL into the search box. Edit the URL by replacing “www” with the “m” key.
- You should now be able to view Facebook Marketplace hidden information that was previously inaccessible on your mobile app.
Method 4: Use Chrome's Developer Tools on Desktop to see Facebook Marketplace Hidden Information
If you're trying to see Facebook Marketplace hidden information on listings from a desktop, you can also try to use the Developer Tools from Chrome to simulate a mobile viewport.
- On your desktop, open the Chrome web browser.
- Login to your Facebook account and go to the Facebook Marketplace product listing.
- Tap on the F12 key (Windows) or Command+Option+J (Mac), which will open Chrome Developer Tools.
- Next, select “Toggle Device Toolbar” to open the toolbar that allows you to choose the device type that you wish to simulate.
- Now, you should be able to see the seller's Facebook Marketplace hidden information such as their phone number. Otherwise, refresh the browser to unhide the hidden information.
Final Words
It's important to remember Facebook Marketplace hidden information such as phone numbers are concealed for a reason. For example, a seller may not want to share their contact information publicly to protect their privacy. However, if you're interested in purchasing an item and need more information, the methods listed above are a quick how to view hidden information on Facebook Marketplace, be it on the mobile app or desktop version.
Facebook Marketplace is a great platform for buying and selling items within your local community, but sellers may hide certain information about a product in their listing, such as their contact information or the condition of the item.
How to find hidden information on Facebook Marketplace product listings is easy, including contacting the seller directly, looking for clues in the listing, checking the seller's profile, accessing via mobile browser, and using Chrome DevTools. Remember, if all else fails and you are not comfortable with the transaction, it's best to avoid it.