The mass layoffs, first in Meta's 18-year history, follow thousands of job cuts at other major tech companies including Elon Musk-owned Twitter and Microsoft Corp MSFT.O.
The pandemic-led boom that boosted tech companies and their valuations has turned into a bust this year in the face of decades-high inflation and rapidly rising interest rates.
"Not only has online commerce returned to prior trends, but the macroeconomic downturn, increased competition, and ads signal loss have caused our revenue to be much lower than I'd expected," Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg said in a message to employees.
Meta, whose shares have lost more than two-thirds of their value so far this year, rose nearly 3% before the bell.
The company also plans to cut discretionary spending and extend its hiring freeze through the first quarter. But it did not disclose the expected cost savings from the moves.
Meta will pay 16 weeks of base pay plus two additional weeks for every year of service, as well as all remaining paid time off, as a part of the severance package, the company said.
Zuckerberg is among several top U.S. executives who have this year sounded the alarm on an upcoming recession.
Meta had 87,314 employees as of the end of September.
Sophia Wang
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