How to show or hide likes on Instagram

Likes are practically the currency of social media, but that doesn’t mean they’re always a good thing. Instagram now has the ability to hide like counts from your posts. Here’s how to show or hide likes on Instagram.

Did Instagram hide likes?

Back in 2019, Facebook conducted an experiment in Australia. This experiment hid the number of “likes” a post got to take the “competition” out of posting on the platform.

This was right after a picture of an egg broke the record for the most liked Instagram post of all time.

After running the experiement for around 18 months, Facebook and Instagram decided it might be a good idea to allow everyone to hide their public like count.

Here’s how to do it.

How to show likes on Instagram

It’s a simple process that is now an option in your Instagram app.

Open Instagram on your device
Tap your profile picture on the bottom right-hand side of the bar
Tap the hamburger/three lines menu on the top-right hand side of your profile page
Tap Settings
Tap Privacy
Tap Posts
Toggle “Hide Like and View Counts” on or off.

This process can also be repeated to hide your public likes on Instagram at any time. The change is immediate once you tap the toggle.

Alternatively, you can hide like and view counts on individual posts by going to Advanced Settings and turning on “Hide Like and View Counts on this post”.

Samsung Frame vs LG Gallery TV: which is better?

So you’re on Instagram and not following Redaktor? Follow Redaktor here. And if you’ve got an Instagram account, you’re going to want to keep it secure. Here’s how to fix your security in a hurry.

(Cover image: Eater Collective)