Can you see whos viewed your instagram story

Social

Here’s everything you need to know about Instagram Stories.

Instagram launched its Stories feature in 2016 in a bid to compete with rival social media network Snapchat. Since then, it’s become one of Instagram’s most popular functionalities.  

With Instagram Stories, you can share photos, video clips, and posts that are viewable for 24 hours. A day after being posted, most Instagram Stories will disappear forever.

If there’s a specific Instagram Story you’d like to treasure for all eternity, you can save it to your Instagram memories or download it onto your device.

You can even display memorable stories on your Instagram profile as highlights, which don’t have an expiration date.

Overall, Instagram Stories are a great way to give people a glimpse into your daily life without uploading a traditional post. But can you see who views your Instagram Stories, and if so, how do you find out Instagram Story views?

So, can you see who looks at your Instagram Stories?

Short answer: Yes

When you upload an Instagram Story, it can be watched by your followers – unless you block certain users from seeing your Story or only share it with close friends.

And if you don’t have a private account, other Instagram users will be able to access your Stories by typing your username into the Instagram search bar and clicking the profile picture on your profile. 

READ MORE: Who’s the most followed person on Instagram?

Once you’ve uploaded an Instagram Story and people start viewing it, you can find out how many views your Story has received and viewers’ identities. 

How do you see Instagram Story views? 

Short answer: Click on a Story and swipe up

It’s quick and simple to look at your Instagram Story views. Just click on your Instagram Story, and swipe up.

You’ll see an eye icon that indicates how many people have seen your Story. And underneath, there’ll be a list of all the users who have viewed it thus far.

Of course, when you first add a new Instagram Story, it’s quite possible that nobody has viewed it at that point. If this is the case, you’ll see a message saying: “No one has seen this yet.”

Can other people find out that you’ve looked at their Story? 

Short answer: Yes

As well as uploading your own Instagram Stories, you no doubt look at other users’ Stories. Just like you can see which users have looked at your Story, other people will be able to tell when you’ve viewed theirs.

Sadly, Instagram doesn’t currently offer a way to prevent this. That said, a possible workaround is using airplane mode on your smartphone.

You’ll need an internet connection to load an Instagram Story, but once the Story you want to view is visible, simply turn on airplane mode before viewing it.

If you view someone’s Story by accident and don’t want them to know, blocking them should do the trick. Of course, using the block button is typically a last resort.

Think before viewing 

While there are many hacks for unseeing Instagram Stories, perhaps you should just avoid looking at stories uploaded by people who aren’t in your life anymore.

Those could be ex-partners, friends you’ve argued with, or estranged family members. That way, you don’t need to overthink.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

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Nicholas is a freelance technology journalist from the Welsh valleys. He's written for outlets like the Financial Times, Forbes, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, The Next Web, Engadget and Computer Weekly. When Nicholas isn't writing, he's probably listening to Mariah Carey or watching videos of sausage dogs on TikTok.

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