Facebook Settlement: Payouts, Status, and What Is Still Open
Last updated: September 4, 2026
If you came here wondering when a check arrives, whether a notice in your inbox is real, or whether you can still sign up, here is the short answer. All three of the well-known Facebook settlements are closed. That is the 725 million dollar privacy settlement, the 650 million dollar Illinois settlement over face tagging, and the 90 million dollar tracking settlement. Payments from the privacy settlement went out in rounds starting in 2025. This page walks through each one, how to check on a payment safely, and what Meta is actually being sued over now.
For the broader litigation picture, see Facebook Lawsuit and Meta Lawsuit.
This page provides general educational information about closed class settlements and is not affiliated with any settlement administrator. Claim deadlines for the settlements described here have passed. Never pay a fee or share banking details in response to an unsolicited settlement message. This page is not legal advice.
The 725 Million Dollar User Privacy Settlement
The biggest one came out of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Users said Facebook handed their data to outside companies without permission. Meta agreed to pay 725 million dollars, covering anyone who used Facebook in the United States between May 2007 and December 2022. The deadline to file a claim was August 2023. Court approval and appeals took until 2025, and payments went out in rounds after that.
Individual payment amounts depended on how long a claimant had an account and how many valid claims were filed, which is why most payments were modest. Anyone who did not file by the 2023 deadline cannot claim now.
The 650 Million Dollar Illinois Biometric Settlement
Facebook paid 650 million dollars over the face-scanning system behind photo tag suggestions, under an Illinois privacy law. It covered Illinois users. The claim period closed in 2020, and people who filed got several hundred dollars each starting in 2021. It is still one of the largest privacy payouts ever, which is why people keep searching for its status. Those payments finished years ago.
The 90 Million Dollar Internet Tracking Settlement
The internet tracking litigation involved claims that Facebook tracked logged-out users' browsing on sites with Facebook features during 2010 and 2011. It settled for 90 million dollars, claims closed in 2022, and payments followed after approval and appeal. People still search variations of this settlement's name to ask whether the notice they received years ago was real; it was a legitimate court-approved settlement, and it is now closed.
How to Check Payment Status Safely
The safe path is the same for any settlement. Type in the official settlement website named in the court notice, or look the case up in court records. Do not click links in emails or texts. Real administrators never call to demand your personal information. They never charge a fee to release your money. They never handle claims through social media messages. If you filed a claim and no payment came, contact the administrator through the official settlement site.
Settlement Scams to Watch For
- Messages offering to add you to a closed settlement for a fee
- Sites with new sign-up forms for the 725 million dollar settlement, which closed in 2023
- Callers requesting banking details to release a settlement check
- Lookalike settlement websites that are not the administrator's official domain
- Promises of specific large payout amounts from any Facebook settlement
What Is Actually Open Now
What Meta is actually fighting now is the youth harm litigation. Thousands of families and school districts say Facebook and Instagram were built to hook minors. The cases are grouped in federal court and in a California state court. There is no company-wide settlement, though 2026 brought the first jury verdicts and some confidential individual settlements. Each family's case is looked at on its own facts, so there is no claim form to fill in. The full picture is at Social Media Addiction Lawsuit and Meta Lawsuit.
Did your child experience serious mental health harm tied to compulsive Facebook or Instagram use? You may qualify for a free case review.
Check My EligibilityRelated Lawsuit Topics
Facebook Lawsuit
The full map of Facebook cases, from the privacy class actions to the youth harm claims.
Meta Lawsuit
The company-wide picture: the 2026 verdicts, the MDL, the AG cases, and the antitrust win.
Social Media Addiction Lawsuit
The active youth harm litigation, the legal theories, and who the claims involve.
Instagram Lawsuit
Why Instagram sits at the center of the youth harm claims against Meta.
What Is a Settlement?
Learn how settlements work, how they are negotiated, and what accepting one means.
Class Actions
Learn how class actions work, including claims, deadlines, and payment distribution.
Frequently Asked Questions About Facebook Settlements
What is the Facebook settlement everyone is searching for?
Usually the user privacy settlement. Meta paid 725 million dollars to settle claims that Facebook handed user data to outside companies, the case that followed the Cambridge Analytica scandal. It covered anyone who used Facebook in the United States between May 2007 and December 2022.
When do Facebook settlement payments come out?
They started going out in 2025, once the appeals were done, and the administrator sent them in rounds. What each person got depended on how long they had an account and how many valid claims came in.
Can I still file a claim for the Facebook settlement?
No. The claims deadline for the 725 million dollar privacy settlement passed in August 2023, the Illinois biometric settlement closed in 2020, and the internet tracking settlement closed in 2022. There is no way to join a closed settlement, and any site offering a new sign-up for these is not legitimate.
Why did I get a check or email about a Facebook settlement?
If you filed a valid claim in time, payment came the way you chose. Administrators do sometimes email about reissued checks. Check that any message points to the official administrator's site. Never pay a fee to receive a settlement payment. Never give bank details to someone who called you.
What was the Facebook biometric settlement?
Facebook paid 650 million dollars over its face-scanning tagging feature, under an Illinois privacy law. Illinois users who filed a claim got checks of several hundred dollars, starting in 2021.
Is there any open Facebook settlement right now?
The big privacy settlements are closed. What Meta is fighting now is the youth mental health litigation. There is no company-wide settlement there, though the first verdicts and some confidential settlements came in 2026. A family with a possible claim can have it looked at on its own facts.
Find Out If You May Have a Case
The privacy settlements are closed. If your child suffered serious mental health harm tied to heavy use of Facebook or Instagram, you can request a free case review on Lawsuit Center.
Educational purposes only. Submitting a case review request does not create an attorney-client relationship.
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