Facebook · Disabled account
Can you get your photos off a disabled Facebook account?
Prefer a click-by-click walkthrough with screenshots? See the full guide →
First, which situation are you actually in?
The word "disabled" gets used loosely, and your odds depend on which of these is true:
- Deactivated (you did it) — your account is just paused. Your data is fully intact and you can reactivate and download anytime. No urgency, and the standard download steps work normally.
- Disabled or restricted (Meta did it) — the account is locked, usually over a suspected policy issue. You may still be able to reach the download tool, but you're on a clock before permanent deletion. This is the situation where acting fast matters most.
- Permanently deleted — the account and its photos and videos have been fully removed (after the grace period). At that point the data is gone and cannot be retrieved by anyone, including everkept.
If you're in the middle case — locked out but not yet permanently deleted — keep reading. There's a real chance you can still save everything.
Step-by-step: download your photos from a disabled account
This works if you can still sign in enough to open your account settings. The tool is inside Meta Accounts Center:
- Sign in and open Accounts Center. In the Facebook app or on facebook.com, go to Settings & Privacy → Settings → Accounts Center (also reachable at accountscenter.facebook.com).
- Go to "Your information and permissions." Then choose "Download your information."
- Select "Photos and videos." You can choose more, but Photos and videos keeps the file smaller and is what matters for saving your memories. Leave the date range as "All time."
- Set media quality to High. The default is sometimes lower — choose High so you get the best resolution available.
- Request the download. Submit the request. Facebook prepares the file and notifies you by email — often within a few hours, sometimes a day or two.
- Download the ZIP as soon as it's ready. Go to the "Available files" section and download it right away. Don't leave it sitting — if the account is deleted, the file disappears with it. Large archives arrive as several ZIP files — grab all of them.
Need it in more detail, with screenshots? Follow the full walkthrough: how to request your archive step by step.
What if you can't log in at all?
If you're fully locked out, you have fewer options — but not zero:
- Try the login screen anyway. When you attempt to log in to a disabled account, Facebook often shows a notice with a choice to download your information or request a review. Take the download option if it appears.
- Appeal to regain access. You usually have around 30 days to appeal a disabled account (some cases allow longer). If the appeal restores enough access to reach Accounts Center, you can then request your photo and video download.
- Move quickly either way. Every path here depends on the account not being permanently deleted yet. The longer you wait, the more likely the window closes.
What about a disabled Instagram account?
Instagram is the same idea but less reliable. The "Download your information" tool sometimes still works for a disabled Instagram account, but many people hit a frustrating loop where the download link just bounces them back to the login screen — and if the account is fully banned, the option may be gone. If you can reach it, request your data immediately. See saving Instagram photos for the steps.
From a ZIP you fought to keep, to this — every photo and video organized by year and by the people in them.
Once you have the file — give those memories a real home
Getting the ZIP out of a disabled account is the hard, urgent part. But a ZIP folder of files isn't something you'll actually revisit — it lands in nested folders with cryptic names, the original dates are often stripped, and videos sit apart from photos. If these are memories you fought to keep, it's worth putting them somewhere you'll see them.
That's what everkept fixes. Upload the ZIP and you get one private gallery — every photo and video together, organized by year and grouped by the people in them, with the dates restored. Only you can access it, your uploaded files are deleted from our servers after 30 days unless you keep your gallery, and it's never sold, shared, or used to train anything. Free to see what we found; one-time price to keep it, no subscription.
Common questions
What's the difference between disabled, deactivated, and deleted?
Deactivated is a pause you chose — fully recoverable. Disabled/restricted means Meta locked the account; you may still reach the download tool but you're on a clock. Deleted means the account and photos are permanently removed and cannot be recovered.
What if I can't log in to my disabled account at all?
Try the login screen — Facebook sometimes offers a download-your-information option on the disabled-account notice. Otherwise appeal to regain access (usually ~30 days, sometimes longer), then download from Accounts Center. If it's already permanently deleted, the photos can no longer be retrieved.
Does everkept recover my account or my photos?
No — everkept doesn't recover accounts, and it can't pull photos back from an account that's already permanently deleted. It turns the archive you download from Facebook into a private gallery organized by person and year. Download your photos and videos while you still can, then upload that file to everkept.
Can I get photos off a disabled Instagram account the same way?
Sometimes, but it's less reliable than Facebook — the Instagram download tool often loops back to the login screen, and a fully banned account may lose the option. If you can reach it, request your data right away.
You saved them. Now keep them somewhere worthy.
Once you have your export, see it turned into one private gallery you control — organized by year and by person, free to browse everything we find for 7 days.
Browse your whole gallery free →No password needed · Your files are private and deleted after 30 days unless you keep your gallery · One-time price, no subscription