How-To

How to Mute Someone on Instagram

By Brian Burgess

Last Updated on September 28, 2022

Tired of a once-too-often Instagram poster? You can always mute an Instagram friend without removing them from your follower list entirely. This guide will explain how.

Whether it’s friends, family, or co-workers, you don’t have to like every post they make on Instagram. In fact, you can mute someone on Instagram when you’re tired of seeing their posts appear on your feed. Muting doesn’t remove them from your friend list (and they won’t be notified), so it’s an excellent alternative to unfriending or blocking.

It may seem impolite, but it’s sometimes necessary. You can carry on messaging your friend and viewing their posts when you view their profile, but your feed won’t be clogged. There are a couple of ways you can mute someone’s posts, stories, or both on Instagram—here’s how.

How to Mute Someone on Instagram

To start, make sure you’ve installed the Instagram app on your Android or iPhone. After installing the app on your phone, sign into your Instagram account if you aren’t already. The steps to follow next should work for both platforms.

To mute someone on Instagram:

1. Tap the Profile button on the bottom-right corner of the screen.
2. Tap the Following option on the top of the screen.
3. Find the person you want to mute from the list of users you’re following.
4. Tap the three-dot button next to the person’s profile.
5. Tap Mute from the menu that appears at the bottom of the phone’s screen.
6. Another screen will appear so you can mute posts, stories, or both. Toggle on the items you no longer want to see.
7. If you select both, you won’t see the user’s stories or posts—both will be hidden by default.

How to Unmute Someone on Instagram

Muting someone on Instagram isn’t permanent—you can change your mind at any time. Unmuting someone on Instagram will restore their posts and stories to your feed.

To unmute someone on Instagram:

1. Open the Instagram app.
2. Go back to the person’s profile in your Following list and tap the three-dot button.
3. Tap Mute again from the menu at the screen’s bottom.
4. Now, tap the slider next to the posts or stories options to unmute them.
5. Once unmuted, the person’s content will display in your feed immediately.

Customizing Your Instagram Settings

Muting someone on Instagram is just one of several helpful Instagram features you can use to customize your profile. You can do other things, too, like remove your phone contacts from Instagram if you’re worried about your privacy.

You should also consider enabling two-factor authentication on Instagram to make it harder to hack your account. If you have a big enough profile, you might want to learn how to become a verified Instagram user.

New to Instagram? You might want to think about turning off Instagram read receipts so you can view messages without an expectation of an instant reply.