By default, Couchsurfing profiles are public, which means they can show up in search engines like Google. If you'd rather not appear in those results, you've got two options.
Option 1: Update Your Privacy Settings
The fastest fix. Turning on the View My Profile toggle limits your profile to logged-in members only. Once your profile no longer has a public URL, search engines won't be able to index it.
On mobile:
- Tap Library
in the bottom navigation bar
- Tap your profile
in the upper right corner
- Tap Settings
- Tap Privacy Settings
- Enable the View My Profile toggle
- Tap Done
On the web:
- Click your profile
- Click Settings
in the upper right corner
- Click Privacy Settings
- Enable the View My Profile toggle
Your account stays active and your data is kept. The only thing that changes is who can see your profile.
Option 2: Deactivate Your Account
If you want to step away from the platform entirely, deactivating your account will also pull your profile out of public view and search engine results. It's reversible: you can come back anytime by logging in.
To deactivate, head to Settings → Deactivate Account.
Why Is My Profile Still Showing in Search Results?
Even after you've made the change on Couchsurfing, search engines may still display a cached version of your profile for a while. That part isn't something we can speed up: search engines control their own indexing, and we can't force Google or anyone else to refresh on demand.
If your profile is hidden on Couchsurfing but still appearing in Google, Google may be showing a cached page. You can request removal of outdated content directly through Google's tools — search for "Google Remove Outdated Content" to find their request page.
Need more help? Get in touch. You can also reach us anytime through Settings → Contact Support.