Deleting a scheduled post on social media can be done in just a few quick steps. In the opening section of this article, we’ll provide a high-level overview of how to delete scheduled posts on the major social platforms.
Deleting Scheduled Posts on Facebook
To delete a scheduled Facebook post before it goes live, follow these steps:
- Open the Facebook app on your phone or navigate to www.facebook.com on a computer.
- Click on the Publishing Tools menu at the top of your feed.
- This will open a menu where you can see your published posts, scheduled posts, and drafts. Click on Scheduled Posts.
- Find the post you want to delete and click on the 3 dots icon next to it. Select Delete.
- A popup will ask you to confirm deleting the scheduled post. Click Delete again.
That’s all there is to it! The post will be removed from your scheduled posts queue and will no longer be published at the date and time you originally set.
Deleting Scheduled Posts on Instagram
Instagram makes it easy to delete a scheduled post before it goes live. Just follow these steps:
- Open the Instagram app and tap on your profile icon in the bottom right.
- Tap on the 3 lines menu in the top right and choose Scheduled.
- This will show you a list of any scheduled posts. Tap on the post you want to delete.
- Tap on the Edit option at the bottom of the screen.
- Tap on Discard Post at the bottom to delete the scheduled post.
The post will immediately be deleted from your scheduled posts queue and will not go live at the originally scheduled time.
Deleting Scheduled Tweets on Twitter
On Twitter, scheduled tweets are called “scheduled Tweets.” To delete one before it is posted, just follow these quick steps:
- On the Twitter app or twitter.com, go to your profile and click Scheduled Tweets.
- Find the tweet you want to delete and click on the 3 dots icon next to the tweet.
- Select Delete from the menu.
- Confirm you want to delete the scheduled tweet when prompted.
Twitter will remove the scheduled tweet so that it is not posted at the time you originally set.
Deleting Scheduled Posts on LinkedIn
LinkedIn also makes it easy to delete scheduled posts before they are published. Just do the following:
- Go to the Publishing page under your profile icon.
- Click on Scheduled and find the post you want to remove.
- Hover over the post and click the trash can icon.
- Confirm that you want to delete the scheduled post.
This will delete the post from your scheduled queue so that it is not published.
Why Would You Want to Delete a Scheduled Post?
There are a few common reasons you may want to delete a scheduled social media post before it goes live:
- You made a mistake or typo in the post content.
- Something in the post is now inaccurate, irrelevant, or insensitive.
- You want to change the text, image, or date/time of the post.
- The event or promotion you were posting about was cancelled or postponed.
- You changed your mind and no longer want to share that content.
Deleting the scheduled post removes it entirely, so you can always re-schedule it after editing the content or date/time if needed.
What Happens If You Don’t Delete a Problematic Post?
If you notice an issue with a scheduled post but you don’t delete it before it goes live, here’s what will happen:
- The post will still be published at the scheduled date/time.
- All of your followers will see the inaccurate, irrelevant, or insensitive post.
- You will then have to delete the live post anyway, but not before some damage is done.
- Deleting a live post means your followers still got notified about it before you removed it.
- If the post contained misinformation, your reputation or brand image could suffer.
That’s why it’s always best to proactively delete scheduled posts that you realize should not be published. Going live with an inaccurate or unsuitable post, even temporarily, is something best avoided.
Can You Recover a Deleted Scheduled Post?
Once you delete a scheduled post, it is removed fully from the queue and cannot be recovered. You will have to re-create and re-schedule the post from scratch if you still want to publish the same or similar content at a later date. The platforms do not have an option to retrieve deleted scheduled posts.
If you accidentally delete a scheduled post that you actually still wanted to publish, unfortunately you cannot recover it. Your only option is to recreate the post and schedule it again. This is why it’s important to double check before confirming deletion of any scheduled posts.
Tips for Managing Scheduled Posts
Here are some tips for effectively managing your scheduled social media posts:
- Review scheduled posts regularly leading up to publish date.
- Delete any posts that are no longer relevant, accurate, or suitable.
- When scheduling far in advance, note details like event dates in a calendar.
- Proofread scheduled posts carefully before scheduling to avoid errors.
- If deleting and re-scheduling, make sure the timing still works.
- Always confirm before deleting posts to avoid accidental deletion.
- Have a backup plan if a deleted post still needs to go out.
Conclusion
Being able to easily delete scheduled social media posts is an important tool for avoiding mistakes and keeping your profiles updated. All major platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn make it simple to find and delete posts in your scheduled queue before they go live. With the right management tactics, you can catch any issues with scheduled posts before your followers see them.
Now you know how to quickly delete scheduled posts on any platform. Just visit your Scheduled Posts queue, find the post, and confirm deletion. While you cannot recover deleted posts, you can always recreate and reschedule any that were mistakenly removed. With the right diligence in reviewing queued up posts, you can keep your social media profiles full of timely, relevant, and accurate content.
Platform | How to Access Scheduled Posts | How to Delete |
---|---|---|
Menu > Publishing Tools > Scheduled Posts | Click three dots icon > Delete | |
Profile > Three Lines Menu > Scheduled | Click post > Edit > Discard Post | |
Profile > Scheduled Tweets | Click three dots icon > Delete | |
Profile > Publishing > Scheduled | Hover over post > Click trash icon |
Reasons to Delete Scheduled Posts
- Mistakes or typos in the post text
- Inaccurate, irrelevant, or insensitive content
- Wanting to change text, image, date, or time
- The event was cancelled or postponed
- No longer wanting to share the content
Risks of Not Deleting Problematic Posts
- Inaccurate information is still published
- Must delete live post after followers see it
- Hurts brand reputation and credibility
- Spread of misinformation is harder to undo
Tips for Managing Scheduled Posts
- Regularly review upcoming scheduled posts
- Note key details like dates in a calendar
- Proofread carefully before scheduling
- Confirm before deleting to avoid accidents
- Have a backup plan if you still need to publish
Social media scheduling tools like Buffer, Hootsuite, and Sprout Social also have great features for easily managing, editing, and deleting your queued up posts across multiple networks. Their interfaces and mobile apps can streamline the process of keeping scheduled post content timely and relevant.
With over 4.5 billion people on social media worldwide, keeping your brand’s scheduled content on track across all those platforms is hugely important. A simple typo or outdated post could tarnish your reputation and credibility with a massive audience. So vigilantly monitoring your scheduled post queue and promptly deleting anything problematic is a key social media management practice.
The ability to delete scheduled posts gives you the control and flexibility to maintain quality standards for the content that ultimately goes live under your brand name. While deleting and recreating posts takes a bit of extra work, it pales in comparison to the PR crisis that can erupt from just one inaccurate or unsuitable post being seen by thousands or millions of followers.
So be sure to add “Review Scheduled Posts” and “Delete if Needed” to your regular social media workflow. Get into the habit of checking upcoming scheduled posts across each network at least weekly and even daily as you get closer to the publish date. Those quick periodic checks for errors, relevance, or sensitivity issues are time very well spent.
Just 5-10 minutes once a week reviewing scheduled posts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and more can prevent expensive mistakes down the road. And create a Plan B for recreating any deleted but still relevant posts that may need to go out. With the right systems in place, you can move fast to delete misfires before your followers ever have to see them. Your future self will thank you!
Summary of Steps
To quickly recap, here are the key steps for deleting a scheduled post on each platform:
- Go to Menu > Publishing Tools > Scheduled Posts
- Click the 3 dots next to the post
- Choose Delete
- Confirm deletion
- Go to your profile > Scheduled
- Tap on the scheduled post
- Tap Edit at the bottom
- Tap Discard Post to delete
- Go to Scheduled Tweets under your profile
- Click the 3 dots next to the tweet
- Choose Delete from the menu
- Confirm deletion
- Go to Publishing > Scheduled
- Hover over the scheduled post
- Click the trash can icon
- Confirm deletion
Following these simple steps to delete scheduled posts that need to be pulled can make a big difference in the quality and accuracy of the content you share with your social media followers. Be diligent, stay organized, and review those queued up posts frequently. You’ll be glad you made deleting problematic scheduled posts part of your regular social media work routine.