How to hide the story in instagram


How to Hide Instagram Stories from Other People (and Mute Theirs)

Instagram Tips & Resources


By Benjamin Chacon

Updated on August 21, 2019

4 minute read

If you’ve ever wondered how to mute (or hide)stories on Instagram, we’ve got you covered!

Published August 21, 2019

If you’ve ever wondered how to mute stories on Instagram (or how to hide Instagram Stories from other people), we’ve got you covered!

Instagram’s mute feature lets you silence stories from accounts you follow without having to actually unfollow those accounts — which is perfect if you’ve ever had a friend who posts *way* too many Instagram Stories!

But did you know that you can hide your stories from other users as well?

In this post, we cover everything you need to know about how to mute stories on Instagram + how to hide Instagram Stories from other people: 

How to Hide Instagram Stories From Other People

You have a few different options when it comes to hiding your Instagram Stories from other people.

If you want to prevent someone from seeing anything you post to your story in the future, simply head to your profile and open your account settings.

Next, tap Privacy.

And then Story.

Tap the number of people next to Hide Story From.

Select the people you’d like to hide your story from, then tap Done.

You can also choose to hide your story from specific users from as you’re looking at who’s seen your story.

Just tap the ellipsis button to the right of their name and select Hide Story From [Username].

If your story is appearing on a location or hashtag page, you’ll see it at the top of the list of people who have seen your story. You can tap “x” to the right of a location or hashtag page to hide your story from it.

Note: When you hide Instagram Stories from certain people, they won’t be able to see anything you post to your story in the future.

Hiding Instagram Stories from someone is also different from blocking them and doesn’t prevent them from seeing your profile and posts.

How to Mute Other People’s Instagram Stories

To mute an account’s Instagram Stories, all you have to do is tap the ellipsis button (“…”) in the top-right corner of any post and tap Mute.

From there, you can choose whether to mute posts or mute posts and stories from an account.

You can also mute posts and stories by pressing and holding on a story in your tray or from a profile.

This moves the account’s story to the end of your queue and prevents it from auto-playing.

Note: The accounts you mute will not be aware that you’ve muted them — and you can always unmute an account to get their stories back in your tray! Just re-follow the steps above and select Unmute.

Why You May Want to Mute or Hide Instagram Stories

We all have one… an irritating Instagram account that clogs your stories with photos and videos you have no intention of engaging with.

It could be an old friend or recent ex, but whatever the social dynamic, the ability to hide an accounts’ Instagram Stories from appearing in your tray without actually unfollowing them gives you way more control over the content you see!

It’s also a lot less drastic than unfollowing someone.

With the ability to mute stories on Instagram, you can avoid seeing the content you dislike (or prefer not to see) without affecting your real-life relationships with those users.

There’s also a possibility that Instagram algorithm takes this information into consideration when deciding what kind of content to serve up in your feed and Explore page.  

Finally, it can also be helpful for mental health. Muting other people’s Instagram Stories gives you a greater ability to personalize your feed — so you can focus on engaging with content that has a positive impact on your mental health.

Have you muted anyone one Instagram? Let us know what you think of this feature in the comments!

Always stay up-to-date with Instagram! Join over 1 million Instagram marketers and subscribe to the Later newsletter to keep up with all the latest Instagram trends:

About the Author

Benjamin Chacon

Benjamin is a Content Marketing Strategist and recent transplant from Toronto. You can follow his day-to-day on Instagram @benjaminchacs.

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How To Hide Instagram Stories From Specific Users

By Jam Kotenko

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Users can hide Instagram stories from individuals to stop them from viewing or sending reactions. It won't block them from the profile or posts.

Controlling who can view Instagram Stories can be essential to any active user's regular use of the app. For starters, it can keep the direct message inbox from being too cluttered by too many Instagram Story reactions. In addition, users who frequently attract the curiosity of creepy people who tend to view every single story post can keep unwanted attention to a bare minimum.

Instagram Stories are designed to disappear after 24 hours. Users can post their stories publicly—which means strangers can see snippets of a person's everyday life—or limit it to just close friends. However, some users may still want to share their daily moments with a bigger viewer base, minus specific individuals they'd rather not interact with. The ability to hide Instagram Stories from particular users enables a certain level of privacy without sacrificing the desire for a wider audience reach.

Related: How To Save Instagram Stories Before They Disappear

If a person has seen who liked their Instagram Stories and found users they'd prefer to hide their stories from in the future, they can do that. Start by launching the Instagram mobile app and tapping on the profile photo in the bottom-right corner of the page to get to the user's profile page. Next, tap the 'Menu' (hamburger) icon in the top-right corner of the screen and pick 'Settings' (gear icon). Go to 'Privacy' then tap 'Story.' Tap the number of people next to 'Hide story from' then select the people to block from future Instagram Stories. Tap 'Done' (iOS) or tap back in the top-left corner (Android) to finalize. Users can always go back to the 'Hide story from' page in the future to unhide stories from specific users by unselecting them.

Another way to hide Instagram Stories is through the main Instagram feed. Tap on the 'Home' icon on the lower-left corner of the Instagram interface to get there and hit 'Your story.' Next, tap 'More' (three-dot icon) on the bottom-right corner and select 'Story settings.' Tap the number of people next to 'Hide story from,' choose the people to hide stories from, then hit 'Done' (iOS) or tap back in the top-left corner (Android) to finalize. Users can also choose people to hide their story from as they are reviewing who has seen their story. Tap 'Your story' on the main Instagram page and swipe up on a story to see a complete list of Instagram Story viewers. Scroll down to find people to hide stories from, tap the three-dot icon next to their username, pick 'Hide your story,' then 'Hide' to confirm. Bear in mind that these methods will all result in the same thing—users selected for Instagram Story-hiding will not be able to see any photos, videos, or live videos added to Instagram Stories from that point onward. They will need to be unselected by following the same processes to give them viewing permissions back. They will still be able to see posts on the user's profile page.

Hiding Instagram Stories is incredibly useful for people who have a massive following on the platform. Users who keep a close eye on their followers may have an inkling of who among them is notorious for taking screenshots of Instagram Stories and use this feature to stop them from doing so. If any followers have a habit of replying to every single story, this can also prevent them from clogging up the Instagram inbox and lets the user restrict replies to only people they like hearing from. And on the rare occasion an Instagram user wants to talk about another user in their stories without them knowing from the user's posts, they can temporarily hide their stories from the person in question for a day. Then they can decide to grant them viewing permissions again after the 24 hours are up.

Next: How To Limit (Or Completely Turn Off) Instagram Story Replies

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About The Author

Jam Kotenko (132 Articles Published)

Jam Kotenko is a long-time freelance writer with focus on cool tech, social media, entertainment, and lifestyle. Her bylines have appeared in publications such as Digital Trends, The Daily Dot, and Bustle and was often tapped to test and review new mobile apps, compile best-of lists, and share details on her OKCupid success story. She recently contributed articles relating to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic for Nautilus Magazine. She is a full-time stay-at-home mom to two rambunctious boys and a nap-loving dog. She is currently bnb-hopping from Seattle to Las Vegas with her family in search for their next home. She enjoys listening to comedy podcasts on Spotify and fantasy books on Audible and has discovered the joy of K-dramas on Netflix. She and her husband are currently catching up on old TV faves and watching season 10 of The Walking Dead and Survivor: Samoa (yes, they're verrrry delayed).

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How to hide your Instagram story from a specific person?

Help Center

Instagram Features

Stories

You can hide your story from certain people. To do this, follow the steps below.

Instagram app for Android

Tap the or icon on your profile picture in the bottom right corner of the screen to go to your profile.

Click the icon in the upper right corner of the screen and select Settings.

Click Privacy and select History.

Click on the number of people under Hide history from.

Select the people you want to hide the story from, and then tap in the upper left corner of the screen. To show your story again to a specific person, click next to their username.

You can also select the people you want to hide your story from by viewing the list of people who have seen your story. Click to the right of the person's name, select Hide my story, and click Hide.

Instagram app for iPhone

Tap the or icon on your profile picture in the bottom right corner of the screen to go to your profile.

Click the icon in the upper right corner of the screen and select Settings.

Click Privacy and select History.

Click on the number of people next to Hide my story from.

Select the people you want to hide your story from, and then click Done. To show your story again to a specific person, click next to their username.

You can also select the people you want to hide your story from by viewing the list of people who have seen your story. Click to the right of the person's name, select Hide my story, and click Hide.

Instagram Lite app for Android

Hiding your story from someone doesn't block that person or stop them from seeing your profile and posts. Your privacy settings also affect where your story appears.

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Instructions for setting up restricted access

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Is it possible to hide stories on Instagram and how to do it

9002 Features that make life easier for users appear on Instagram every year. One of them is customizing the display of stories. With its help, you can easily control which users can view your stories, as well as hide from the feed the stories of those whose content you are not interested in.

How to hide your Instagram stories

How to hide other people's Instagram stories

FAQ

How to hide your Instagram stories

; hide from users who are not subscribed to you; Broadcast stories only to selected people on your Close Friends list. Depending on the goals, brands and bloggers choose the method that suits them. For example, they are used during contests/draws or during closed sales (for example, only for subscribers or loyalty card holders). Also, the restriction on viewing stories is applied when the account is both personal and work, so as not to broadcast moments from life to the entire audience, but only to a narrow circle of friends.

Hide stories from the user - does not mean blocking him. In addition to stories and live broadcasts, he will see your other content (posts in the feed, Reels), and will also be able to comment on publications and write to you in Direct.

Method 1. How to restrict viewing stories for some subscribers

In the Instagram app, go to Settings ― Privacy ― History. In the "Watching" section, select "Hide history from". In the list, mark the subscribers from whom you want to hide your stories, and click "Done". You can change the choice (add or remove a person from the list) at any time. If a user has unsubscribed from you, the settings for restricting viewing for him will be saved.

Method 2. How to hide stories on Instagram for those who do not follow you

To hide stories from a person who is not your follower, go to his profile and click on the three dots in the upper right corner. Select Hide My History. Now this user will not be able to view any of your stories. To remove restrictions, also click on the three dots and select "Show my story again."

Method 3: Show stories only to a select list of people

The Close Friends list makes it easy to separate public and private content. To customize the list, go to the settings menu and select Close Friends. In the search, find and mark users (you can add both subscribers and those who are not subscribed to you) and click "Finish". Now select "Close Friends" when posting a story. After publication, such stories will be marked with a green circle, and only users from the list will see them. You can edit the list at any time.

How to hide other people's stories on Instagram

You may need to hide other people's stories in your feed if their content is uninteresting or distracting to you. For example, you are subscribed to some expert, but he publishes the content you need only in posts, and broadcasts his personal life in stories. Since this content is not interesting for you, you can hide its stories.

Go to the account of the person whose stories you want to hide, and in the profile header, click on the "You are subscribed" button. Select "Hide" and turn on the toggle switch opposite "History". Now his stories will not be shown in your feed. The person whose stories you have hidden will never know about it. To see his stories again, turn off the toggle switch.

If you have many accounts where stories were hidden and you can't remember them all, you can find them in a separate list. To do this, go to Settings - Privacy - Hidden Accounts.

Frequently asked questions about hidden stories on Instagram

How do I know if another person has hidden their stories from me?

Unfortunately, there is no 100% way to determine this, since Instagram does not notify that someone has hidden their stories from you. You can ask friends or log in with a different account and see if the user has published stories. If you see them under another account, but not under your own, stories have been hidden from you. But if a user publishes stories only for the "Close Friends" list, it is impossible to find out about this and view these stories.

Is it possible to hide already published stories from the user?

Yes, to do this, go to your stories and click "More" at the bottom. Select "History settings" - "Hide history from" and mark the desired user.

Can I watch someone else's stories anonymously?

Yes, there are several ways to hide your view of someone else's stories. More detailed in the article. Also, these methods will be relevant if you have limited access to viewing stories.

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