How to mute someone on Instagram

As fun as social media is, it can be stressful. Sometimes we feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of content. Other times, the feeling of competition becomes unhealthy.

Some may respond to this stress by taking a break from these platforms. But if that sounds a little too drastic, you can take smaller steps to keep your peace of mind while staying up to date on the content you love.

One of the easiest steps is muting certain people you follow. But if they’re someone you chose to follow, you might wonder why you’d want to mute them. Sometimes we follow friends and family members just to be nice. Perhaps it’s a college friend with a jet-setting lifestyle we envy. Maybe it’s a beloved former professor who reposts 10 different scientific articles a day, none of which you have the time (or desire) to read.

In these cases, muting is the perfect option. Before you ask how to mute someone on Instagram without them knowing, we can offer some quick reassurance: the user you mute will never be notified. It’s a guilt-free way to take a breather from someone’s content while remaining IG friends.

How do you mute someone on Instagram?

Let’s jump right into the instructions you came for. You’re ready to pause the constant barrage of glossy beach pics and high-altitude selfies from that friend who’s living large. Here’s how:

1. Open the Instagram app on iPhone or Android.
2. Open the Instagram profile page of the account you’d like to mute.
3. Tap on the Following above the user’s photo grid.
4. From the pop-up menu, select Mute.
5. You can mute posts, Stories, or both by moving the respective sliders to the “on” position. The slider will turn blue when activated. Once you complete this step, you’ll no longer see the type of content you muted from this user.

You can also mute someone’s Instagram Stories while watching them. When you get to that photo that makes you say “enough,” just click on the three little dots in the upper right-hand corner of the Story screen. From the pop-up menu, tap Mute to silence this user’s Stories.

How to unmute someone on Instagram

Maybe you’ve decided you actually miss the constant stream of new baby photos, or you finally have time to read all those articles your former professor posts. Reinstate content from an account you muted with the following simple steps:

1. Open the Instagram app on iOS or Android.
2. Open the profile page of the account you’d like to unmute.
3. Tap on Following above this Instagram user’s photo grid.
4. From the pop-up menu, select Mute.
5. You can unmute the user’s posts, Stories, or both by moving the respective sliders to the “off” position.

How to mute someone’s Instagram messages

Perhaps you follow someone in sales. You’re not ready to completely block them, but they’re a little too persistent. You can mute their messages with the following steps:

1. Open the Instagram app on iPhone or Android.
2. Click on the messaging icon in the upper right-hand corner of the screen.
3. Find the conversation you’d like to mute and click on it.
4. Now tap on the username at the top of the screen.
5. Use the sliders to mute calls, messages and chat activity notifications according to your preferences.

How to mute someone from seeing your posts on Instagram

Keeping your content out of other users’ scrolls is a bit of a different issue, and there’s no easy fix. The best thing to do if you don’t want certain users viewing your content is to keep your account private, make a Close Friends list for your Stories, and use your Story settings to prevent certain people from seeing that content. This last option is easy to implement:

1. Navigate to the three little dots on the bottom of the screen of a current Story.
2. Click on the Story settings option from the pop-up menu.

Tap on Hide story from and select the users you want to prevent from seeing this content.

What’s the difference between muting and blocking?

Muting and blocking are very different actions to take on social media. Muting is a way of controlling what content you see. Blocking can be a way of protecting yourself from a user who’s acting inappropriately or disrespecting your social media boundaries.

Just like Instagram doesn’t notify users when you unfollow or mute them, it also doesn’t let them know if you block them. However, users might put two and two together if they no longer see your account in their list of followers.

How to block someone when muting isn’t enough

Blocking can be a wise step if you’re dealing with unwanted interactions with another user or if someone is ignoring your boundaries. Blocking doesn’t have to be permanent, but it will keep this user from contacting you and viewing your content. This move also deletes all comments and likes this user has made on your posts.

If you want to distance yourself from a user on Instagram by blocking them, do so with the following steps:

1. Go to the profile of the person you wish to block.
2. Tap on the three dots in the top right-hand corner of their profile.
3. From the pop-up menu, select the Block option.
4. You can block this account or any others the user may create. If you believe Instagram should be aware of this user’s behaviors, choose the Block and Report option. You’ll have the opportunity to explain why you’re reporting this user so Instagram can decide whether to take action.

There are several other ways to block a user, including from the chat interface or while watching their Stories. Instagram explains all of the different routes on its help page.

If you decide to unblock someone, navigate to the list of accounts you’ve blocked in your privacy settings. Click the Unblock button next to this user’s name.

What does it mean to restrict a user?

You may have heard of restricting, which is yet another option for limiting your interactions with a user. Here’s how this move is different from blocking or muting them:

Restricted users can’t:

• See when you’re online
• See if you’ve read their messages
• Publicly comment on your content (only you can see their replies)

You come first on social media

The first rule of social media is to stay safe. If you’re feeling uncomfortable, take steps to limit your interactions, prevent disrespectful users from interacting with you, and control which posts others can see. Your mental health and safety always come first.