50 Removing Toxic Friends Quotes to Set You Free from Bad Company

Our compilation of toxic friends quotes is for those who want to get some advice and motivation for cutting unhealthy ties from their lives.

There comes a time when we realize not all our friends are actually our friends. Usually, we become pickier about our social connections in our 30s. This is when we see that some people are just not worth our time.

Your college friend doesn’t seem so fun to be with anymore. Your co-worker turns out to be just a person to spend lunch breaks with. At some point in our lives, we inevitably outgrow some of our friends. And it’s normal.

But what about those people who are not just wrong for us but also are a bad influence? We call them toxic friends and they are not always easy to spot. Some people may poison your life for years until you see their true colors.

This may be a friend who is secretly jealous of your success, so she gets bitter every time you accomplish something. Or a friend who is always in need, so you end up getting him out of trouble every now and then.

If you suspect that you have unhealthy connections in your circle, our list of quotes about toxic friends will open your eyes, helping you see that removing them from your life is the best choice you could make.

50 Removing Toxic Friends Quotes

1. Keeping bad company is like being in a germ-infested area. You never know what you’ll catch.

-Frank Sonnenberg

2. It’s so nice when toxic people stop talking to you. It’s like the trash took itself out.

-Unknown

3. When dealing with toxic people, always choose distance over disrespect.

-Germany Kent

Do you have disrespectful people in your circle? Read this article to recognize the signs of a friend who doesn’t respect you.

4. Toxic people will pollute everything around them. Don’t hesitate. Fumigate.

-Mandy Hale

5. Some of the most poisonous people come disguised as friends and family.

-Unknown

6. It takes a special kind of person to be a hater, but only a true loser will give the impression of being your friend while resenting every progress/success in your life.

-Cory Stallworth

7. Save your skin from the corrosive acids from the mouths of toxic people. Someone who just helped you to speak evil about another person can later help another person to speak evil about you.

-Israelmore Ayivor

8. You never know how toxic something is until you breathe fresher air.

-Unknown

You never know how toxic something is until you breathe fresher air

9. I’ve finally acknowledged that some “friends” are simply toxic, so they’ve been cut loose.

-Unknown

10. You realize you don’t want the fake friends, or the toxic relationships, or the people telling you how you should live your life when they can’t even run their own. Some find it in their thirties. Some–in their forties.

-Kandi Steiner

11. Toxic people attach themselves like cinder blocks tied to your ankles, and then invite you for a swim in their poisoned waters.

-John Mark Green

12. I’d rather had an enemy who admits they hate me instead of a friend who secretly puts me down.

-Unknown

Do you have a friend who constantly puts you down and criticizes everything you do? Check out this article about judgmental people to see if your friend fits the bill.

13. Toxicity at work, relationship or in life works as a slow poison, which often ends its survivors as disillusioned or embittered.

-Abhysheq Shukla

14. There is no better self-care than cutting off people who are toxic for you.

-Unknown

There is no better self-care than cutting off people who are toxic for you

15. The greatest win is walking away and choosing not to engage in drama and toxic energy at all.

-Lalah Delia

16. When you notice someone does something toxic the first time, don’t wait for the second time before you address it or cut them off.

-Shahida Arabi

Do you like this quote about removing toxic friends from your life? Then you will probably also like our compilation of quotes about cutting people off.

17. As we grow older, we let go a little at a time: a bad memory, a negative habit, a toxic friend. Bit by bit, we shed what no longer serves us until we reveal who we are underneath it all.

-Emily Maroutian

18. Some people are like moths. They come to be around you when your life is bright and nice. They come to amuse themselves through your light. But they also flee as soon as the lights go off.

-Mitta Xinindlu

19. There’s folks you just don’t need. You’re better off without em. Your life is just a little better because they ain’t in it.

-William Gay

20. Toxic friends may actually keep you around because you provide an audience for them, provide validation, and elevate them.

-Ramani S. Durvasula

21. Some friends are here for a day, a weekend. And you learn something from those friends, for sure. Some friendships are toxic, and you have to walk away.

-Julie Abe

Of all the quotes about toxic friends, this one shows that some connections are not meant to last. Could some people in your life be just situational friendships that are not going to endure the test of time? Read this article about the different levels of friendship to know for sure.

22. Don’t let getting lonely make you reconnect with toxic people. You shouldn’t drink poison just because you’re thirsty.

-Unknown

23. Sometimes friends are like pennies – two-sided and worthless.

-Unknown

Sometimes friends are like pennies - two-sided and worthless

24. The less you see of your toxic friends and the more you see of your enthusiastic friends, the better you will feel about yourself, and the better you will become. We are such social creatures that we all tend to become like the people we hang out with. It is human nature.

-Bear Grylls

Do you agree with this quote on toxic friends? If you are not convinced yet, check out this article that explains how the people you hang out with affect you.

25. While toxic food is bad for your health and well-being, so are negative and unethical people.

-Frank Sonnenberg

26. You got nothing to lose. You don’t lose when you lose fake friends.

-Joan Jett

27. If you have a bad friend, tell them off. The longer you have to do it, the brighter the truth that they aren’t a great friend shines. Don’t be afraid to cut ties with someone who is hurting you. It won’t be the end of the world, just the end of a toxic relationship.

-Gerda R. Fiske

If you are not sure whether you need to end a toxic friendship, as this quote suggests, check out the signs you need to stay away from someone in your circle.

28. Not all friends know they have lost you.

-Joyce Rachelle

29. The first of those rules is that you cut toxic people out of your life. No matter who they are, friends or family. You can’t heal when someone is holding you in place. And toxic blood is not thicker than water.

-Victor Methos

30. Friends are supposed to be there for you when you cry, not the reason you cry.

-Unknown

31. Even if toxic people are right about what is “good,” they are wrong if the approach is not healthy.

-John L. Lund

32. If you walked away from a toxic, negative, abusive, one-sided, dead-end, low vibrational relationship or friendship–you won.

-Lalah Delia

If you walked away from a toxic, negative, abusive, one-sided, dead-end, low vibrational relationship or friendship – you won

If you suspect you might have toxic connections in your life, the first step is to spot the signs. Read through this guide to learn how to recognize a one-sided friendship.

33. If toxic friends can be hard to spot because of a blind spot, toxic complacency friends are ten times harder to spot. This is the kind of person who might be unhappy or dissatisfied with their life, but they seem perfectly content to stay in their dissatisfaction. They complain about everything and yet they refuse to change anything. Sometimes you wonder if they actually like being miserable.

-Jason Zook

34. Look around you at the people you spend the most time with and realize that your life can’t rise any higher than your friendships.

-Mandy Hale

35. Simplify your life by clearing out toxic friends and habits that take you nowhere.

-Unknown

36. Beware the person who stabs you and then tells the world they’re the one who’s bleeding.

-Jill Blakeway

37. When you remove toxic people from your life, you realize what peace and joy truly mean.

-Unknown

38. You tell your friends your most personal secrets, and they use them against you.

-Sophie Kinsella

39. Fake friends walk away when your world crumbles to pieces. Real friends stay and help you put your life back together.

-Christy Ann Martine

40. Some people are like clouds. Once they disappear, it’s a beautiful day.

-Unknown

Do you have a negative friend in your circle that drains the energy out of you? Read this article to learn why it’s better to stay away from negative people.

41. The greatest win is walking away and choosing not to engage in drama and toxic energy at all.

-Lalah Delia

42. As you remove toxic people from your life, you free up space and emotional energy for positive, healthy relationships.

-John Mark Green

43. It’s not healthy to stay with people who don’t even ask how you are.

-Unknown

44. Always sleep with one eye open. Never take anything for granted. Your best friends might just be your enemies.

-Sara Shepard

This is one of those toxic friends quotes that prompt you to be cautious about the people you surround yourself with. You may want to read a related article that explains why not everyone is your friend.

45. Removing toxic people from your life is not the difficult part. Not feeling guilty about it is.

-Unknown

46. Not all toxic people are cruel and uncaring. Some of them love us dearly. Many of them have good intentions. Most are simply toxic to our being simply because their needs and way of existing force us to compromise ourselves and our happiness. They aren’t inherently bad people, but they aren’t the right people for us.

-Daniell Koepke

47. It makes no sense to try to extend a friendship that was only meant to be a season into a lifetime.

-Mandy Hale

It makes no sense to try to extend a friendship that was only meant to be a season into a lifetime

48. I no longer have the energy for meaningless friendships, forced interactions, or unnecessary conversations. If we don’t vibrate on the same frequency, there’s just no reason for us to waste our time. I’d rather have no one and wait for substance than to not feel someone and fake the funk.

– Joquesse Eugenia

49. Sometimes your dearest friend whom you reveal most of your secrets to becomes so deadly and unfriendly without knowing that they were not really your friend.

-Michael Bassey Johnson

50. Toxic people are like Cancer. If you keep them in your life, they will destroy your dreams, hopes, and ambitions.

-Dee Dee M Scott

Remove Toxic Friends, As the Above Quotes Suggest

These quotes are right: toxic friendships are not going to take you anywhere. They are only going to waste your time and drain your energy.

Yes, it may be difficult to cut ties with a person you considered your friend. But if you are cautious about burning bridges, you can at least try to distance yourself from them for some time.

If you see that your life and mood got better without this person, it means that you had a toxic friend around all this time. And it also means that you are better off without them.

Every time you have doubts or feel guilty about removing people from your life, re-read our list of toxic friends quotes. They will remind you that what you did was right. Your peace of mind is more important than social obligations.


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