How to Hide Likes on Instagram (Your Posts and Everyone Else’s)

You can hide likes on Instagram in two ways. To hide the like count on your own post, turn it off in the advanced settings before you share, or open the post’s menu afterward and choose the option to hide the like count. To stop seeing like counts on other people’s posts, open Settings and find the option to hide like and share counts. Either way, you can still see your own numbers, and you can switch counts back on at any time.

Hiding likes changes what people see, not what happens. The likes still exist, and there are a few places where your activity remains visible. This guide covers both settings, their limits, and what to do if the real concern is posts you’ve liked rather than likes you’ve received. Instagram changes its menus often, so we describe steps in general terms.

Why people hide likes on Instagram

Instagram introduced the option to hide like counts after testing whether public numbers made people feel pressured about what they post. The reasons people use it today are practical:

• Less comparison. A post with a modest number of likes can look like a flop next to a friend’s viral one. Hiding the count takes that pressure off.
• Professional accounts. A consultant, coach or small business with a small audience may not want prospective clients judging them on engagement numbers.
• Sensitive posts. An announcement about an illness, a bereavement or a career change doesn’t need a public scoreboard.
• Testing content. Some creators hide counts while they try new formats, so early posts don’t set expectations.

How to hide likes on your own posts

Before you share

1. Create your post or reel as usual and continue to the final screen where you add a caption.
2. Open the advanced settings (usually at the bottom of that screen).
3. Turn on the option to hide the like and view counts on this post.
4. Go back and share. The count is hidden from everyone else from the moment it goes live.

After you’ve shared

1. Open the post on your profile.
2. Tap the menu (usually three dots) on the post.
3. Choose the option to hide the like count. The same menu lets you unhide it later.

This setting works one post at a time. There isn’t a single switch that hides counts on every post you’ve ever made, so if you want your whole grid to be count-free, you’ll need to change older posts individually and remember the setting on each new one.

How to hide like counts on other people’s posts

1. Go to your profile and open Settings from the menu.
2. Find the section about likes and shares, or search Settings for “like counts”.
3. Turn on the option to hide like and share counts.

This only changes your own view. Other people still see counts on posts, including yours, unless the person who posted has hidden them. You can still tap through to see who liked a post where Instagram shows that list.

What hiding likes does and doesn’t hide

What	Hidden when you hide like counts?
The number of likes on your post, for other people	Yes, on each post where you’ve turned it off
The number of likes on your post, for you	No, you can still see your own counts and insights
The fact that a particular person liked your post	Not necessarily; viewers may still see some names of people who liked it
Posts you’ve liked on other people’s accounts	No; your like can appear to people who can see that post
Comments	No; comments are controlled separately
Engagement data on professional accounts	No; your own insights still show your numbers

The key point for your reputation: hiding counts hides a number, not an association. If you’re worried about what your likes say about you, the setting you need is the next one.

How to review and remove posts you’ve liked

Instagram keeps a list of the posts you’ve liked in the “Your activity” section, reached from the menu on your profile. It’s worth a look before a job search, a public appointment or any time your profile is about to get more attention.

1. Open your profile, open the menu and choose “Your activity”.
2. Find the section for interactions, then likes.
3. Sort by oldest first to find the posts you liked years ago.
4. Use the select option to pick posts and unlike them, one at a time or several together.

Look for likes on posts that are offensive, extreme or embarrassing, likes on posts attacking a current or former employer, and likes on accounts you’d rather not be linked to. The same “Your activity” section lets you review old comments and archive or delete your own posts. Our guide on how to archive Instagram posts covers that side.

Other Instagram privacy settings worth pairing with hidden likes

If you’re hiding likes because you want a quieter, more controlled presence, a few other settings do more of the heavy lifting:

• Private account. Only approved followers can see your posts. See how to make Instagram private for what changes and what stays visible.
• Close Friends. Share stories and some other content with a smaller, hand-picked list. Our guide to Close Friends on Instagram explains how the list works.
• Follower and following lists. Instagram gives you limited control over who sees these. Our guide on how to hide followers on Instagram sets out the realistic options.
• Comment controls. You can turn comments off on individual posts, filter comments by keyword, and limit unwanted interactions for a period if a post attracts the wrong attention.
• Restrict. If one person is the problem, restricting them quietly limits what they can do without the confrontation of a block.

A worked example

This scenario is illustrative, not a real client. Dana is a freelance interior designer who uses Instagram as her portfolio. Her account is public, and many of her project posts get far fewer likes than her occasional personal posts.

1. She hides like counts on each of her last thirty project posts from each post’s menu, so prospective clients judge the work rather than the numbers.
2. She makes a habit of turning on the hide setting in advanced settings each time she shares a new project.
3. In “Your activity”, she sorts her likes oldest first and unlikes a handful of posts from a meme account with jokes she’d now find embarrassing to explain.
4. She keeps her own insights, which still show the counts, to see which projects actually attract enquiries.

Nothing about her audience changed. What changed is that visitors now see work, not a scoreboard, and her public activity no longer includes likes she’d rather not defend.

Common mistakes

• Assuming the feed setting hides your counts. Hiding counts in your feed only affects what you see. Other people still see yours unless you hide them post by post.
• Thinking hidden likes are private likes. Your likes on other posts can still be seen. Unlike anything you wouldn’t want associated with your name.
• Forgetting old posts. The setting doesn’t apply backward. Change the posts that matter most, usually the ones on the first few rows of your grid.
• Hiding counts to disguise bought engagement. Buying likes or followers breaks Instagram’s rules and is easy to spot. If growth is the issue, genuine content and consistency work better over time.

When a like becomes a reputation problem

Occasionally a like becomes a story in itself: a screenshot of a public figure liking an offensive post, or an employee liking a post attacking a customer. Unliking stops future views, but not the screenshot. If that’s happening to you, respond calmly and quickly, and read our guide on how to respond to a negative viral post. For ongoing issues across platforms, our social media reputation management service can help.

Frequently asked questions

Can I hide likes on all my Instagram posts at once?

Instagram’s hide option for your own posts works one post at a time. You can turn it on when you share each new post, and change older posts individually from each post’s menu.

If I hide likes, can I still see how many likes I got?

Yes. You can still see the like count on your own posts, and professional accounts can still see their insights. The count is hidden from other people only.

Can people see what posts I've liked on Instagram?

People who can see a post may be able to see your name in its list of likes. Instagram doesn’t offer a public list of everything you’ve liked, but you can review your own likes in “Your activity” and unlike anything you’d rather not be linked to.

Does hiding likes affect how Instagram shows my posts?

Instagram hasn’t said that hiding counts changes how posts are distributed. Hiding is a display choice. The likes still exist and still count as engagement.