Facebook Settlement: Payouts, Status, and What Is Still Open
Last updated: June 10, 2026
Millions of people search every month for the Facebook settlement: when payments arrive, whether a notice is real, and whether anything is still open. The short version: the three famous consumer settlements, the 725 million dollar privacy settlement, the 650 million dollar Illinois biometric settlement, and the 90 million dollar tracking settlement, are all closed, and the privacy settlement's payments went out in rounds beginning in 2025. This page explains each one, how to check status safely, and what litigation is actually active 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 largest and most searched Facebook settlement resolved the user privacy litigation that followed the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which plaintiffs alleged Facebook shared user data with third parties without consent. Meta agreed to pay 725 million dollars to a class covering people who used Facebook in the United States between May 2007 and December 2022. The claims deadline was in August 2023, court approval and appeals followed, and payments were distributed to approved claimants in rounds beginning in 2025.
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 to resolve claims under Illinois's biometric privacy law over the facial recognition system behind photo tag suggestions. The case covered Illinois users, the claims period closed in 2020, and eligible claimants received payments of several hundred dollars beginning in 2021. The case remains one of the largest biometric privacy recoveries ever, and the search tail it generates, including claim status and check questions, refers to payments that were completed 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
For any class settlement, the safe path is the same: go directly to the official settlement website named in the court-approved notice, or look up the case on the court's docket, rather than clicking links in emails or texts. Settlement administrators do not call to demand personal information, do not charge fees to release payments, and do not process claims through social media messages. If you filed a claim and believe a payment never arrived, the administrator's contact information on the official settlement site is the right channel.
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
The active litigation involving Meta today is not a privacy class action. It is the youth harm litigation: thousands of individual cases by families and school districts alleging Facebook and Instagram were designed to addict minors, consolidated in a federal MDL and a California state proceeding. No global settlement exists there, but 2026 brought the first jury verdicts and confidential individual settlements, and the cases are evaluated individually rather than through a claim form. 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 Facebook user privacy settlement: a 725 million dollar class settlement resolving claims that Facebook shared user data with third parties, the litigation that followed the Cambridge Analytica scandal. It covered people who used Facebook in the United States between May 2007 and December 2022.
When do Facebook settlement payments come out?
Payments from the 725 million dollar privacy settlement began going out to approved claimants in 2025, after appeals resolved, and were distributed in rounds by the settlement administrator. Individual amounts depended on how long someone had an account and how many valid claims were filed.
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 before a deadline, payments arrived by the method you selected, and administrators sometimes send follow-up emails about reissued payments. Verify that any message points to the official settlement administrator's site, never pay a fee to receive a settlement payment, and never give banking details to an unsolicited caller.
What was the Facebook biometric settlement?
Facebook paid 650 million dollars to resolve claims under Illinois's biometric privacy law over its facial recognition tagging feature. Eligible Illinois users who filed claims received payments, with checks of several hundred dollars distributed beginning in 2021.
Is there any open Facebook settlement right now?
As of mid-2026, the major consumer privacy settlements are closed. The active litigation against parent company Meta involves youth mental health harm, where no global settlement exists, although the first verdicts and confidential individual settlements arrived in 2026. Families with potential youth harm claims can have a case reviewed individually.
Find Out If You May Have a Case
The privacy settlements are closed, but if your child experienced serious mental health harm tied to compulsive use of Facebook or Instagram, you can request a free, no-obligation case review on Lawsuit Center.
Educational purposes only. Submitting a case review request does not create an attorney-client relationship.
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