View Instagram stories by tapping a profile picture at the top of your newsfeed.
When you view a person’s story, they can see that you’ve watched it. There is currently no way to block this feature. So, be aware if you’re looking at an ex's story. They know!
You can see who saw your story by tapping on the Seen By link at the bottom left of the screen.
Instagram stories are also accessible from the top left of a person’s profile page. If the person has an active story, their profile picture has a multicolored ring around it.
You don’t need to be following the person to see their stories, as long as their account isn’t private. Tap the profile picture, and the story opens full-screen for you to watch. After that person’s stories have finished, the stories page closes and you’re returned to their profile page.
View Instagram stories from a person’s profile page by tapping their profile picture.
If you want to watch a continuing sequence of stories from people you follow, you must access the stories from the top of your Home feed. Instagram always takes you to the content you haven’t seen in that person’s story.
For instance, if you watched two out of five stories by someone, Instagram would play the third story in the sequence when you came back within the 24-hour window of the post.
Each person’s story has white dashes at the top that indicate the number of stories for that person that day.
Instagram stories continue to play through each person’s entire sequence, and then go directly to the next person you’re following who has a current story, until you tap the X to exit (iPhone) or swipe down (Android) from Instagram Stories. (You’ll see some ads interspersed with stories from the people you follow.)
On iPhone, tap the X at the top right of a story to exit. On Android, swipe down.
To forward through one story within a person’s full story sequence, simply tap on the right side of the screen. You’ll skip to that person’s next story, unless it’s their last or only story; in that case, you’ll be taken to the next person’s story.
To forward through a person’s entire sequence of stories, swipe left from the right side of the screen. You’ll skip that person’s full set of stories and move on to the next person’s stories.
If you’re searching for a particular person’s story, it may be easier to go directly to their profile and watch, or you can scroll through the profile circles at the top of your Home page to find the person whose story you want to watch. Tap that person’s circle to see their story.
When you’re finished watching, tap the X at the top right of the screen or swipe down to be returned to your Home screen.
If you’ve already watched a few stories from one person, and you want to rewatch one or more stories from them, tap the left side of the screen until you reach the story you’re seeking.To go back to a different person’s sequence of stories, swipe right from the left side of the screen until you get back to that person’s story.
Similar to forwarding, if you’re seeking a certain person’s story, it’s easier to go directly to their profile to watch, or scroll through the circles at the top of your Home screen to find that person.
When you’re finished watching, tap the X at the top right of the screen or swipe down to be returned to your Home screen.
To send a direct message in response to a story, follow these steps:
Send a message by tapping in the Send Message box and typing.
You can turn the camera for selfie mode by tapping the circle arrows at the bottom right.Use the slider at the bottom to choose your viewing method and tap the profile picture to Send.
The best size for an Instagram story image is 1,080 x 1,920 pixels.
If you take a photo or video within Instagram stories in portrait mode, you won’t have to worry about these size ranges — it will automatically fit. If you import photos, graphics or videos from other sources, you need to pay closer attention to sizing.
You can upload photos, graphics, and videos that are not in these image size ranges, but the Stories editor will likely either cut off part of your image or zoom in to wherever it likes, causing poor image quality.
If you need to record for longer amounts of time, there are several apps available to help you. Try CutStory, Continual, StoryCutter, or Storeo. They all work in a similar manner, allowing you to record a single longer video on your smartphone outside of Instagram, and then splitting it up into 15-second segments that are placed on your camera roll so you can upload them one-by-one. The app also makes the transition between stories more seamless than when you film them within the Instagram app.
When viewing Instagram Stories, it's important to note that the user who posted the story is able to see who viewed it. Generally speaking, this doesn't cause a problem, but there may be a time that you want to view someone's Instagram Stories discretely.
There are a few different ways you can go about viewing stories without letting the poster know it was you, though each method will have varying degrees of success.
Note: If you're looking to view a private account's stories anonymously, you'll need to be following it; otherwise, the below methods will only work for public accounts.
There are three ways to view Instagram Stories without the other person knowing.
Perhaps the best way to anonymously view someone's Instagram Stories is by using an Instagram account that isn't automatically identifiable as you.
If you already have another account set up, it's as easy as adding the account on Instagram and switching between the two whenever you want to view someone's Instagram Stories without them knowing.
If you haven't already created an additional Instagram account, you'll need to sign up for a new one before adding it to your app.
It's possible to view someone's Instagram Stories anonymously by ensuring your mobile device has airplane mode enabled before you tap on them.
Because Instagram automatically preloads several stories to enable instant viewing even when you're without a reliable Wi-Fi or data connection, you can theoretically view one without being seen.
Toggle on airplane mode for potentially anonymous Stories viewing.
Devon Delfino/Insider To try this out, you need to pull up the account's profile in the Instagram app, then enable airplane mode on your device before heading back into the app and tapping on the user's stories.
However, if the user in question has posted many stories sequentially, the app likely won't have preloaded them all so they won't all be viewable on airplane mode.
There are a number of third-party apps and websites that purport to allow you to view someone's Instagram Stories anonymously, without the need to log in. Many of these sites aren't particularly secure and some don't even work, so them use at your own discretion.
If you are looking to use one, though, in a test we conducted, the website InstaStories successfully viewed a public account's stories without notifying the user of a view.
Simply enter an account handle on the site's homepage to view an account's stories.
Note: This site only works for public accounts, and won't be able to access a private account's stories.
Jennifer Still
Jennifer is a writer and editor from Brooklyn, New York, who spends her time traveling, drinking iced coffee, and watching way too much TV. She has bylines in Vanity Fair, Glamour, Decider, Mic, and many more. You can find her on Twitter at @jenniferlstill.
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Devon Delfino
Devon Delfino is a Brooklyn-based freelance journalist specializing in personal finance, culture, politics, and identity.
Her work has been featured in publications such as The Los Angeles Times, Teen Vogue, Business Insider, and CNBC. Follow her on Twitter at @devondelfino.
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