How to Highlight a Post on Facebook: @highlight, Pinned Posts and Story Highlights

To highlight a post on Facebook, you have three options. Type @highlight in a post or comment to send notifications about it to some of your friends. Pin the post to the top of your profile (or to the Featured section of a Page or group) so visitors see it first. Or save a story to a Highlight on your profile so it stays visible after 24 hours.

Facebook uses the word "highlight" for all three, which is why searches for it return mixed answers. This guide explains what each one does, who sees the result, and the steps to use it or remove it.

Three things "highlight" means on Facebook

Facebook has three separate highlight features: a notification mention, a pinned post, and saved story Highlights. They work differently and suit different goals. Pick the one that matches your goal, using the table below.

Use a mention when you want people to see a post now. Use a pin when you want a post to stay at the top for every visitor. Use a story Highlight when you want photos or short videos from your stories to stay on your profile permanently.

@highlight and @followers mentions

@highlight is a batch mention: when you add it to a post or comment, Facebook sends a notification about that post to some of your friends, not all of them. When you type the tag, Facebook shows the note "Some friends might receive notifications." Facebook decides who gets notified. To use it:

1. Open the post you want to draw attention to, or start a new post.
2. In the comment or post box, type @highlight and select it from the suggestion list.
3. Add your own text if you like, then publish the comment or post.

@followers works the same way but sends notifications to people who follow your profile or Page. In groups, admins and moderators can use @everyone to notify all members. Facebook explains the group version in its @everyone help article and covers regular tagging in its guide to mentions. Facebook rolls these tags out gradually, so the options in your suggestion list may not match someone else's.

Two myths keep circulating. First, @highlight does not show who has viewed your profile: Facebook states that it does not let people track profile views. Second, it does not reach all of your friends. Use it sparingly, because repeated batch mentions feel like spam to the people receiving them.

How to turn off @highlight notifications

To stop @highlight, @followers and @everyone alerts, turn off batch mention notifications in your Facebook settings. They are on by default. The path is the same in the app and on the desktop site:

1. Select your profile picture, then Settings and privacy, then Settings.
2. Open Notifications and select Tags.
3. Switch off the batch mentions toggle (the label can read "Batch mentions" or "Batch notifications").

This only stops the notifications. Posts that use the tags still show up in your feed as usual. If Facebook also alerts you in the browser, you can block website notifications in your browser.

Pin a post to the top of your profile

To pin a post on your personal profile, open your profile, find the post, select the three-dot menu in its top-right corner and choose Pin post. The pinned post appears above your other posts for anyone who is allowed to see it. Only one post can be pinned at a time, so pinning a new one replaces the old one.

1. Select your name or profile picture to open your profile.
2. Scroll to the post and select the three-dot menu.
3. Choose Pin post.

To undo it, open the pinned post's three-dot menu and select Unpin post. Pinning doesn't change who can see the post. A post shared with Friends stays Friends-only, even when it is pinned. If you want every visitor to see it, change the post's audience to Public first.

Feature posts on Pages and groups

Pages and groups pin posts with Pin to Featured, which places them in a Featured section above the regular timeline. Page admins and group admins or moderators can use it. Personal profiles use Pin post instead.

On a Page, open the post's three-dot menu and choose Pin post, or select Manage next to Featured and pin a recent post, event or video. In a group, open the post's three-dot menu and choose Pin to Featured. Group admins can also pin the group rules and some group features. To change the order, use the three-dot menu or Manage and move items left or right. To remove an item, choose Unpin or Unpin from Featured.

Groups often use the Featured section for rules, FAQs and welcome posts. Businesses use it for current offers, opening hours and upcoming events.

Add story Highlights to your profile

Story Highlights keep selected stories on your profile after the normal 24-hour window. You build them from your story archive, so story archiving must be turned on. In the Facebook app:

1. Open your active story and tap the Highlight option, or open your profile and select New in the Highlights row.
2. Choose an existing Highlight or create a new one with a title and cover.
3. To add older stories, go to your profile, open the three-dot menu, then Archive and Story archive, select the stories and add them to a Highlight.
4. Tap Done.

To edit a Highlight, long-press it (or open it and use the three-dot menu). From there you can remove stories, rename it, change the cover or delete it. Deleting a Highlight doesn't delete the stories, which stay in your archive. Highlights can reach more people than the original story, so assume profile visitors can see one before you add it. If an Instagram Highlight won't open, see what to do when Instagram says this story is unavailable.

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Related: Meta's ad-free Facebook and Instagram subscription, reading Reddit without an account or the app