Signs to look out for if you suspect you might be muted by someone on Instagram, while keeping in mind the frequent changes in Instagram’s algorithm.
Part of using the Instagram app is following people and people following you. These can be close friends and family as well as other people that you may not know personally.
There may be times when you want to stop following someone but do not know how to. This is why many apps have introduced the mute feature.
The mute feature comes in handy when you really want to stop seeing someone’s posts, but you do not want to be obvious about it by unfollowing them altogether.
You can mute people on Instagram, but will they know that you did?
If someone mutes you on Instagram
There can be different reasons why someone might want to mute you on Instagram.
Either they do not want to see your posts anymore for some reason, or your posts may annoy them or make them feel uncomfortable or unsettled. Whatever the reason may be, they can resort to muting you.
Someone can settle for muting you if they do not want to make it obvious that they no longer care for your content by unfollowing you, which could seem drastic. Muting offers the option of following but not seeing someone’s posts.
How to know if someone muted you on Instagram
Like most online apps, people have the option of muting the accounts or profiles of those whose content they no longer want to see. Muting someone can be a great option if a user does not want to unfollow someone.
Opting to mute someone is the less drastic option if unfollowing is not a preferred option. Some people may be curious to know if you can tell if another user has muted you, and the answer is that there is no definite way of telling.
However, there are signs and short-cuts you can look out for that could suggest that you have been muted. One of these is adding the person to your close friends list and using a third-party app to see if they are viewing your stories.
Adding a person to your close friends list
This is one way to see if you have been muted. You will be able to see if one particular person has muted you or not.
Before you can do this, you have to make sure you do not have an already existing close friends list. Create the close friend list and only add the person you are investigating to it.
You would then have to post a story to your close friends, and wait to see if they will view your story or not. You can repeat this more than once, but if they do not view it, you are likely muted.
Using third-party apps to see if you are muted
A third-party app might be able to tell you if you are muted by someone on Instagram or not. First, visit your app store and search for “Instagram Analytics” or “Instagram Insights.”
This will give you a list of apps to download. After downloading the app, find the Ghost followers or Least engaged followers feature.
This will be a paid feature, but it should give you a list with people who would have muted you, if the person you are investigating is on it, it is highly likely that they have muted you.
Looking through story views
This is another way of telling if you might potentially be muted by someone, but it may not actually be accurate, given how often Instagram’s algorithm changes, which can interfere with who gets to see your stories.
Basically, if you notice that the person is no longer viewing your Instagram stories, it can indicate that you have been muted.
This could also potentially be coupled with them not liking your posts anymore. Be careful with assuming this from a lack of story views and likes, as Instagram’s algorithm changes frequently, affecting who sees your posts.
Final thoughts
Online platforms such as Instagram allow users to build their followings and follow others. This means that you are exposed to people’s content because you follow them.
But in the case where you are no longer interested in seeing someone’s content, instead of unfollowing them, you can mute their account.
If you suspect that you have been muted by someone, there will be signs that will suggest you have been muted, such as them not liking and viewing your Instagram stories, even when they are on your close friends list.
You can also use third-party analytics apps for lists of ghost followers.
