212 212 people found this article helpful Updated on December 1, 2021 Learn to use Instagram settings to make your account private
What to Know
If you decide to make your Instagram account private, your posts will be seen only by your followers, and any hashtags you use will be hidden from searches. Here's how it works on the Instagram app on Android and iOS devices.
Make Your Instagram Account Private
Making your profile private is quite simple. Here are the steps to getting it done, as explained using the Instagram iPhone app:
Tap your profile icon in the lower-right corner of the screen.
Tap Menu (three horizontal lines) in the upper-right corner of the screen.
Tap Settings.
Tap Privacy.
Under Account Privacy, toggle on Private Account.
If it's not your whole profile you want to make private, but just a few pictures, you also have the option to hide select photos on your Instagram account. The option is in the photo menu.
Making Your Profile Public
If you change your mind and want your profile to be visible again, return to the Account Privacy screen following the steps above and toggle Private Account off again. Additionally, if you're 16 or under when you create your Instagram, your profile will be set to private by default. You'll need to turn the privacy setting off manually to let everyone see your feed.
FAQ
What if I tag a user or add a hashtag to one of my Instagram posts when my profile is set to profile? Can people still see it?
Only the users who follow you will be able to see it. Tagging other users who don't follow you or putting a hashtag in the description does not override the privacy of the post. It will not be visible to anyone else who does not follow you already.
What if I want to share an Instagram post on other social network sites when my profile is set to private?
If you decide to share a post to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Flickr, or another social network, it will be publicly accessible to view as a standalone post. Anyone viewing it will be able to click on the Instagram permalink to view it in full, but if they click on your username to view your full profile, they will not be able to see your other content unless they follow you already.
If someone decides to follow me while my profile is private, will they be able to see my posts?
Not until you approve them. When one user taps the Follow button on a user whose profile is private, it only sends a follow request message. So if you get a follow request from someone, they will not be able to see any of your content until you manually approve their request to follow you.
Someone is following me, but I don't want them as a follower anymore. How do I get rid of this person?
To stop someone from following you, block the account. Open their profile, tap the three dots in the top-right corner, then tap Block User to remove that account from your followers. (If the account holder is behaving inappropriately, consider reporting the account.)
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Are you curious about who's following a private Instagram account? As you've probably noticed, you can't see a private Instagram account's followers unless you're following them. But if curiosity is getting the best of you, we have a few simple tricks for finding out more information about private accounts, including whether any of your friends are followers. This wikiHow article will teach you different ways to see content on private Instagram accounts.
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While many websites and apps claim they can show you private Instagram profiles, none of them work. Some of these sites seem very convincing, but after much testing, we've found that they are all scams.
- Most of these fake viewers are mostly harmless—they make money from visitors completing "verification" steps, like watching videos and clicking ads to generate ad revenue, but they never show any private Instagram details.
- Other "viewers" are more malicious, asking for peoples' Instagram credentials or credit card information in an attempt to steal that data.
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Private accounts have private follower lists. Unfortunately, there's no tool or trick that can accurately show you the followers list for a private Instagram account. The only true way to find out who is following a private account is to send them a follow request and wait for them to accept.[1]
- If you're feeling nervous about sending a request from your personal Instagram account, you could always create a new account. You might want to focus your new account on something interesting or funny to intrigue the person you want to follow, such as inspiring self-help quotes, hilarious memes, toys from the 2000s, or chihuahuas in costumes.
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When you visit the private profile from your own account, you'll see which of your friends follow them at the top of the profile. If several friends follow the account, you'll see the first 2 or 3 names, followed by "and 15 others" (the number will vary). Tap the "and 15 others" link to see a full list of all of your friends who follow that account.
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The person with the private Instagram account might have a public Facebook friends list. Just head over to Facebook, go to their profile, and click or tap Friends at the top. There's usually a bit of crossover between people's Facebook and Instagram accounts, so it's likely that a lot of the people they're friends with on Facebook also follow them on Instagram.
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While Googling won't show you who follows the account, you might come across some private photos. This is especially true if the private account was ever public in the past—there's a chance some of the account's photos are available on other websites.
- If the username is pretty common, try adding "Instagram" to your search to narrow down the results.
- You can also click or tap the Images link at the top of Google to view only images in your results.
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