Short answer: you cannot export your Facebook friends' phone numbers anymore, and honestly that is a good thing. Facebook removed the feature and the API that allowed it, because mass-harvesting other people's contact details is a serious privacy problem. What you can do is download your own data. Here is the honest picture and the legitimate alternatives.
Why this used to be possible, and why it stopped
Years ago, some tools and a Facebook contacts export could pull friends' phone numbers into a file. After several high-profile data-scraping scandals, Facebook shut those doors: friends' phone numbers are no longer exportable, and the developer APIs that enabled bulk contact access were locked down. Any old tutorial promising to "export all your friends' numbers" is both outdated and describing something that is now blocked.
Why that is actually good for you
Think about it from the other side: you would not want a casual acquaintance exporting your number into a spreadsheet they might upload anywhere. The same protection that stops you from bulk-exporting others also stops others from bulk-exporting you. Privacy that applies to everyone protects you too.
What you CAN do legitimately
Download your own Facebook data
- Go to Settings & privacy > Settings > Your Facebook information.
- Choose Download your information (or "Download profile information").
- Select what to include, pick a format (HTML or JSON), and request the file.
- Facebook prepares it and notifies you when it is ready to download.
This gives you your own posts, photos, messages and the contact info you personally added, not other people's private numbers.
Save individual contacts you legitimately have
If a friend has shared their number with you directly, add it to your phone's contacts the normal way. That is consent-based and appropriate, unlike bulk scraping.
A note on protecting your own number
While you are in settings, check who can see your phone number: Settings > Privacy > How people find and contact you. Set your phone number visibility to "Only me" and turn off letting search engines link to your profile. This keeps your own details out of reach.
The non-obvious tip: treat contact data as borrowed, not owned
Even the numbers you legitimately have belong to the people they identify. Do not upload your contact list to random apps that ask for it, that is exactly how numbers leak into spam and scam databases. Grant contact access only to apps you truly trust.
Frequently asked questions
Can I export my Facebook friends' phone numbers?
No. Facebook removed that ability and locked down the APIs that allowed it, because bulk-harvesting other people's contact details is a privacy violation.
How do I download my own Facebook data?
Go to Settings > Your Facebook information > Download your information, choose what to include and a format, then download the file when it is ready.
Why did Facebook remove contact export?
After data-scraping scandals, Facebook restricted access to protect users. The same rule that stops you exporting others also protects your number from being exported.
How do I hide my phone number on Facebook?
Under Privacy > How people find and contact you, set your phone number visibility to Only me and disable search-engine linking to your profile.
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