Open the Facebook app on your phone and go to Your information and permissions in your Accounts Center. That is where Facebook sends you to export your Dating information. From there you can export a copy of your Facebook information to your device or to an external service, look through your activity log and settings, and review your search history.

Where to find it

  1. Open the Facebook app on your mobile device.
  2. Go to Accounts Center.
  3. Tap Your information and permissions.
  4. Choose the export option and follow the steps.

Facebook points to the mobile app for this, so start there rather than hunting through settings on a laptop.

What that section lets you do

Your information and permissions is more than a download button. Facebook says it lets you:

  • Export a copy of your Facebook information to a device or to an external service.
  • Access your activity log and your settings.
  • Review your search history.

The export is the part most men come for. The activity log is worth a look too, especially if you want to see what you have been doing on Facebook before you tidy anything up.

When a copy is worth having

Most men look for this at one of two moments.

The first is right before deleting Dating. Facebook says that when you delete your Dating profile, your answers, likes, matches and conversations are gone and cannot be recovered. If there is anything in there you want to keep, the time to act is before you tap Delete, not after.

The second is plain curiosity about what Dating holds on you. That is a fair thing to want to know, and this is the place Facebook gives you to find out.

Check what is actually in it

Facebook's help page tells you where to export. It does not list every item the copy contains.

So do not assume. Once the export is ready, open it and look for the things you care about before you delete anything or rely on the file. If something you expected is missing, it is far better to find out while your account still exists.

A copy is not a way back in

A download is a record. It is not a backup you can restore.

If you delete your Dating profile, nothing in an exported file brings it back. Facebook also says you cannot make a new Dating profile for seven days after deleting. Men who delete in a hurry and regret it learn both of these the hard way. Export first, think it over, and delete only when you are sure.

Save the people, not just the data

A file cannot do one thing for you. A copy of old conversations does not let you keep talking to the women in them.

If there are women on Dating you want to keep seeing, the thing to save is a phone number, not a download. Before you delete, send each of them a short, honest line: "I'm taking a break from this app, but I'd like to keep in touch. What's your number?" A woman who was enjoying the conversation will usually send it.

If you already have a date set, confirm the day, time and place by text. A first date that falls apart because nobody can remember the bar is a painful way to lose a good match.

Look around while you are there

Since you are already in Your information and permissions, spend two minutes on your activity log and your search history. It is a quick way to see what Facebook has recorded about how you use it, and there is no better moment to look than when you are deciding what to keep.

Then close the app and get on with your evening. Your information is a few taps away whenever you need it. The women worth keeping are the ones who now have your number.