What is fbclid? How to remove tracking from links

fbclid is a code that Facebook adds to a link when you click it inside Facebook, so the site you land on and Meta can connect your visit to that click. It is one of many tracking parameters, together with gclid, utm_source and friends. The page does not need them to load, so you can usually delete them before you share a link, as long as you keep the parts the page really uses.

What is the part after the question mark?

A web address can carry extra information at the end. Everything after the ? is called the query string. It is a list of parameters, and each one has the form key=value. The parameters are separated by &.

Take this invented link:

https://shop.example.com/shoes/runner?color=blue&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&fbclid=IwAR2xQ9

Here color=blue tells the store which color to show. The other three parameters do nothing for the page. They only record where the click came from. A part after a #, if there is one, is not a parameter: it usually points to a spot on the page.

The common tracking parameters and who adds them

• fbclid (Facebook click ID): added by Facebook, which is owned by Meta, to links that take you out of Facebook. Each click gets its own value.
• gclid (Google click ID): added by Google Ads when someone clicks an ad and the advertiser has turned on automatic tagging. Microsoft Advertising does the same with msclkid.
• utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign: added by whoever made the link, for example a store, a newsletter or a marketing team. They name the source (newsletter), the kind of traffic (email) and the campaign (spring_sale). Google Analytics and most other analytics tools read them. You may also see utm_term and utm_content.
• mc_eid and mc_cid: added by Mailchimp to links in its email campaigns. mc_cid identifies the campaign. mc_eid is an ID for you as a subscriber of that list.
• igshid, and the newer igsh: added by Instagram when you copy or share a link from the app. It is a share ID. Instagram does not document what it contains, but it is widely reported that it can be traced back to the account that shared it.
• si: added by the share button on YouTube and Spotify, among others. It is also a share ID, created each time you press share. It lets the platform tell which share a visit came from, and it is reported to be linked to the account that made it.

What they reveal, and why cleaning is polite

Most of these codes say little on their own. The problem is what they connect. A click ID like fbclid or gclid lets the advertiser and the ad network match a visit to a specific click. A share ID like si or igsh can tell the platform that your friend opened a link that you shared. mc_eid points to you on a mailing list. Even plain utm_ tags can say more than you intend, for example utm_campaign=vip_customers or the name of the store newsletter you read.

When you forward a link with these codes, the person who opens it inherits them. Their visit can be counted as yours, and the platform learns that the two of you are in touch. Cleaning the link first is a small courtesy: the other person gets a shorter address that does the same job, without your IDs attached.

Parameters you must keep

Not everything after the ? is tracking. Some parameters are the page. If you remove them, the link breaks or shows something else:

• Page and product IDs, such as id=4821, product=77 or p=12. Without them the site does not know which page you meant.
• Search terms, such as q=running+shoes or search=.... Without them you get an empty search.
• Video IDs and timestamps. On YouTube, v= is the video itself, and t=95 starts it at 1:35. Keep t= if you want the other person to jump to that moment.
• Choices on the page, such as color=blue, size=40, page=2 or lang=es.

Some links carry a personal token, for example the link to track your order, reset a password, manage a subscription or view an email in the browser. A cleaner will leave that token alone, because the page needs it. That is exactly why those links should not be shared at all: whoever has the link may be able to see your order or change your settings.

Common parameters at a glance

Parameter	Who adds it	Safe to remove?
fbclid	Facebook (Meta), on links clicked inside Facebook	Yes
gclid	Google Ads, on ad clicks	Yes
msclkid	Microsoft Advertising, on ad clicks	Yes
utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign	Whoever made the link, for analytics campaigns	Yes
mc_eid, mc_cid	Mailchimp, in email campaigns	Yes
igshid, igsh	Instagram share button	Yes
si	Share buttons on YouTube, Spotify and others	Yes
v, id, p	The site itself: which video or page	No
q, search	The site itself: your search terms	No
t	Video sites: the start time	No, if you want that moment

How to clean a link, step by step

1. Look at the link. If it is short, such as a bit.ly or t.co address, you cannot see its parameters yet. Go to step 2. If it is already a full address, go to step 3.
2. Expand short links first. A short link is only a pointer. The tracking parameters live in the long address it forwards you to, so a cleaner cannot see them. Paste it into the short link expander. The link goes to our server (api.ethorns.com), which follows each redirect (each jump to the next address) for you and keeps only the result for one hour, so your device never visits it. Copy the final address it shows.
3. Clean it. Paste the full address into the link cleaner. It works in your browser: the links are not uploaded and not opened. You can paste several links, one per line.
4. Check what was removed. For each link you see the address before and after, and the list of parameters that were taken out. The cleaner only removes parameters known to be used for tracking, such as utm_ tags, fbclid, gclid, mc_eid, igshid and si, and keeps everything else exactly as it was, including t=.
5. Test before you send. Press Copy all clean links, open one in your browser and check that it shows the right page. If a cleaned link does not work, share the original instead.

If you are not sure a link is safe at all, read how to check a link before you click first. And if you also share photos, remove the location from them in the same spirit.

Quick checklist

• Short link? Expand it before you clean it.
• Remove fbclid, gclid, utm_ tags, mc_eid, igsh and si.
• Keep page IDs, search terms, choices like size or color, and t= if you want the timestamp.
• Open the clean link once to make sure it still works.
• Never share links for orders, password resets or account settings.

Frequently asked questions

Is fbclid dangerous?

No. It is not a virus and it cannot harm your device. It is an identifier that helps Facebook and the site measure clicks. Removing it is about privacy and tidiness, not safety.

Will removing tracking parameters break the link?

Almost never, if you only remove known tracking parameters. The page does not use them. What breaks links is removing the parameters the page needs, such as IDs or search terms, which is why the cleaner leaves those alone.

Does cleaning the link stop all tracking?

No. The site still sees the visit, your IP address (the internet address of your connection) and its own cookies. Cleaning only stops you from passing IDs from your click or your account on to other people.

Do the store or the video creator lose anything?

Their visit counts stay the same. Your visit or view still happens. They only lose the note about where it came from, for example which ad or which newsletter.

Try it

• 1.12Link cleanerStrip utm_, fbclid, gclid, si and other tracking parameters from links before you share them.
• 1.4Short link expanderSee where a short link (bit.ly, t.co, tinyurl…) really goes before you click it: every redirect, the final URL and warning signs.