| Case | In re: Facebook, Inc. Consumer Privacy User Profile Litigation, No. 3:18-md-02843-VC |
| Court | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California |
| Status | Closed, no longer accepting claims |
| Claim deadline | August 25, 2023 |
| Estimated payout | Paid. First round (September 2025) averaged $29.43, roughly $4.89 to $38.36 per claimant. Second round from uncashed funds (June 2026) paid about $4.67 to $7.32 to people who redeemed their first payment |
| Proof required | No |
| How to file | Official settlement website (claims closed) |
The big Facebook class action lawsuit, the $725 million Cambridge Analytica privacy settlement, is closed. The claim deadline was August 25, 2023, and as of September 29, 2026 no Meta class action has an open claim form for users. If you filed on time, you’ve likely been paid twice: an average of $29.43 in September 2025, then a smaller second payment starting June 9, 2026. If you didn’t file, there’s no way to join now.
That’s the short answer to “class action lawsuit facebook” searches in 2026. The longer one involves four separate cases that already paid out, two government deals that send money to states instead of people, and a few suits still in court.
Can You Still Get Money? It Depends on What You Did in 2023
Your options come down to whether you submitted a claim before the deadline. Here’s how each situation plays out:
- You filed and cashed your first payment. You were in line for the second distribution too. Those went out in batches over about four weeks starting June 9, 2026.
- You filed but never cashed the check or claimed the digital payment. You were left out of round two, because that money came from payments like yours. Contact the settlement administrator with your claim ID.
- You filed but never heard anything. Check spam folders for mail from the administrator, then email [email protected] with your claim ID.
- You never filed. You can’t join. Class members who didn’t submit a claim by August 25, 2023 get nothing, even though their legal claims were still released.
That last point surprises people. Staying in a class without filing means you gave up the right to sue on your own over the same conduct and received no cash for it. Our guide on how to join a class action explains why the claim form, not class membership, is what triggers a payment.
What the Cambridge Analytica Privacy Case Was About
The case claimed the company let third parties, including the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica, access users’ personal data without their knowledge or consent. It started in 2018 and was consolidated before Judge Vince Chhabria in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
The class covered every U.S. Facebook user who had an account at any point from May 24, 2007 through December 22, 2022. Meta Platforms, the parent company, denied wrongdoing and agreed to pay $725 million, a sum the plaintiffs’ lawyers called the largest ever paid in a data privacy class action.
Why did payments take so long after the deal was approved in 2023? Two objectors appealed the approval and the attorney fee award (25% of the fund, about $180 million). The Ninth Circuit rejected the appeal on February 13, 2025, and the settlement became final on May 22, 2025. The delay is a common pattern, and our explainer on how long class actions take covers why a single objector can hold up payment for years.
How the $725 Million Was Split: The Points Math
Payments weren’t flat. Each claimant got allocation points based on how many months they had an active account during the class period, so someone with 15 years on the platform received more than someone who joined in 2021.
The numbers explain why checks were small. Roughly 250 million people were eligible, but only about 19 million valid claims came in. After fees and costs, the net fund was divided by the total points across those 19 million claimants. The result was an average first payment of $29.43, with most people landing between about $4.89 and $38.36.
One detail most coverage skips: a person’s share depended on how many other people filed, not on how much of their data was exposed. Nobody had to show their own data was actually misused. No proof was required at all, only a valid claim and account details.
The Second Facebook Settlement Payment in June 2026
The second payment was a redistribution of money nobody collected in round one. More than 200,000 paper checks went uncashed and about 3 million digital payments expired, leaving roughly $100 million in the fund. The court approved a second distribution on May 6, 2026.
About 15.7 million class members qualified, and payments ran from about $4.67 to $7.32. Only people who successfully redeemed their first payment were included, since the administrator already knew those payment details worked.
Will there be a third round? When we checked coverage of the settlement in September 2026, no third distribution had been announced. Any leftover from uncashed second-round payments goes wherever the court directs, which may or may not mean another round.
Other Meta Class Actions That Already Paid Out
Four consumer class actions over user data collected by or shared with the company have paid out, counting the privacy case above and one where AARP was the defendant. All are closed to new claims.
| Case | Fund | Who was covered | What claimants got |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer Privacy User Profile | $725 million | U.S. users, 2007 to 2022 | Average $29.43 (2025), plus $4.67 to $7.32 (2026) |
| Biometric Information Privacy (Illinois) | $650 million | Illinois users in photo face-tagging | About $397 each (2022) |
| Internet Tracking (“Like” button) | $90 million | U.S. users, April 22, 2010 to September 26, 2011 | About $40 each (April 2025) |
| Markels v. AARP (video data shared with Meta) | $12.5 million | AARP.org video viewers with an account, since 2020 | Paid April 13, 2026 |
The Illinois case is why people ask “why are people getting $400 from Facebook.” It resolved claims under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), a state law that requires written consent before a company collects face scans. Judge James Donato approved it in February 2021, and about 1.38 million Illinois users received roughly $397 each starting in May 2022. Only Illinois residents qualified. For context on where these rank, see our list of the largest class action settlements.
Meta Settlements With States Don’t Pay Users
The biggest Meta headlines of the past two years aren’t a Meta class action at all. They’re government cases, and the money goes to states.
- Texas, $1.4 billion (2024). The Texas Attorney General settled a facial recognition suit under the state’s biometric law. Meta pays Texas over five years. Texans don’t file claims.
- Multistate youth safety deal, up to $17.1 billion (August 26, 2026). State attorneys general announced a settlement over Instagram and Facebook design features and harm to minors. The Connecticut Attorney General says it also resolves a multistate investigation into sharing nonpublic user data with third parties like Cambridge Analytica. Funds go to states for youth mental health programs, not to individuals.
If a post or ad claims you can “claim your share” of the $17 billion, it’s wrong. There’s no claim process for users in either deal.
Meta Lawsuits Still Working Through the Courts
Several cases against Meta are active but haven’t produced a settlement fund. These include an Illinois BIPA suit over augmented reality face filters and the federal social media addiction litigation, where individual families pursue personal injury claims rather than join a class. Pending cases don’t need sign-ups. If one settles, a court-appointed administrator will publish notice and a claim form.
What to Do If You Think You’re Owed Money
Start with the official settlement website for the Facebook class action lawsuit you filed in, and have your claim ID ready. If you filed in the privacy case and got nothing, email the administrator before assuming the money is lost. If you never filed, watch our upcoming claim deadlines list for any new Meta settlement, and ignore any text or social post asking for a fee to “release” a payment. Real administrators never charge claimants.
Facebook Privacy Settlement FAQ
Can I still join the Facebook class action lawsuit?
No. The claim deadline for the $725 million privacy settlement was August 25, 2023, and late claims aren’t accepted. As of September 2026, no other Meta settlement is taking claims from users.
How much did the Facebook settlement pay per person?
The first payment averaged $29.43, with most claimants receiving between about $4.89 and $38.36 depending on how many months they had an account. The June 2026 second payment added about $4.67 to $7.32 for people who redeemed their first payment.
Why are people getting $400 from Facebook?
Those were Illinois residents paid from the separate $650 million biometric privacy settlement. About 1.38 million claimants received roughly $397 each in 2022. The case applied only to Illinois users and is closed.
Is a Facebook settlement email or text legitimate?
It can be, if it comes from the administrator and only tells you a payment is on the way. Real notices never ask for a fee, your password, or bank login. When in doubt, go to the official settlement website directly instead of clicking a link.
Do I owe taxes on my settlement payment?
Usually not for small privacy payments like these, but it depends on what the payment compensates. Our page on whether settlements are taxable walks through the IRS rules.
This page is general information about legal cases involving Meta, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a licensed attorney.