Why does my link show an old title or image on Facebook?

Facebook caches the Open Graph data (title, description, image) the first time a URL is shared. Updating your page does not update the cache automatically — you have to force a re-scrape through the Sharing Debugger.

Do I need a Facebook developer account to use the Debugger?

You need to be logged into a normal Facebook account. No app registration or developer approval is required to scrape a public URL.

The Debugger shows no errors but the preview is still wrong. Why?

Sometimes the cache takes a few minutes to update across Facebook's systems even after a successful re-scrape. Try again shortly, and confirm the og:image URL actually resolves to an image when opened directly.

Can I use the Debugger on a URL I do not own?

Yes — it works on any public URL. You cannot force a re-scrape of someone else's stale cache without owning the page, but you can view what data Facebook currently has for it.

Facebook Sharing Debugger: Fix a Broken Link Preview

Use the Facebook Sharing Debugger to fix a broken link preview, refresh a stale cached image, and diagnose Open Graph tag errors before sharing a URL.

Updated 2026-08-24

What it is for

The Sharing Debugger reads a URL's Open Graph tags — title, description, and image — and shows exactly what Facebook will display when that link is shared. It also forces Facebook to re-fetch and re-cache that data, which is the actual fix for the most common complaint: a link preview showing outdated information after the page has changed.

Fixing a stale preview

Where to click

developers.facebook.com/tools/debug
paste the URL
Debug
Scrape Again

Facebook renames these menus periodically. If a label does not match, read the screen you are on rather than forcing this exact wording.

Go to the Sharing Debugger and paste the exact URL you are sharing.
Click Debug. It shows the Open Graph data Facebook currently has cached.
If it looks outdated, click Scrape Again. This forces a fresh fetch, ignoring the cache.
Confirm the new title, description, and image match what is live on the page now.

The scrape has to be repeated on every URL variant separately — example.com/page, www.example.com/page, and example.com/page/ are three different cache entries to Facebook, even though they may load the same content.

What the Debugger reports

og:title, og:description, og:image — the core preview content.
Warnings for missing recommended tags, like a missing og:image dimension hint.
Errors for tags that are malformed or unreachable, including a missing or invalid fb:app_id — covered separately in fixing the missing fb:app_id error if that is the specific message you are seeing.

Common causes of a broken preview

No Open Graph tags at all — the page falls back to a generic preview or none.
og:image points to a broken or non-public URL — Facebook's scraper needs to reach the image directly; an image behind a login wall will not load.
A redirect chain — if the URL redirects, Open Graph tags need to be on the final destination page, not just the original link.
A stale cache after a legitimate content update — the page is correct, Facebook's cache is not. Scrape Again resolves this specific case.

After scraping

Test the actual share — post the link (even as a draft or to yourself) to confirm the preview renders as expected before sharing it widely. The Debugger's preview and the live share preview usually match, but confirming with a real share catches edge cases the tool misses.

Official source

Meta's Sharing Debugger is the tool itself, and its Open Graph documentation covers the underlying tag requirements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my link show an old title or image on Facebook?: Facebook caches the Open Graph data (title, description, image) the first time a URL is shared. Updating your page does not update the cache automatically — you have to force a re-scrape through the Sharing Debugger.
Do I need a Facebook developer account to use the Debugger?: You need to be logged into a normal Facebook account. No app registration or developer approval is required to scrape a public URL.
The Debugger shows no errors but the preview is still wrong. Why?: Sometimes the cache takes a few minutes to update across Facebook's systems even after a successful re-scrape. Try again shortly, and confirm the og:image URL actually resolves to an image when opened directly.
Can I use the Debugger on a URL I do not own?: Yes — it works on any public URL. You cannot force a re-scrape of someone else's stale cache without owning the page, but you can view what data Facebook currently has for it.