How to Hide a Story from Someone on Instagram

Lee Stanton March 31, 2023

Instagram is one of the first apps that introduced Stories to its platform. They’re a great way to share information about your life with your followers and boost engagement. They remain up for 24 hours, but you can always delete them sooner or keep them up longer by adding them to your profile as Story highlights.

How to Hide a Story from Someone on Instagram

However, sometimes you might wish to block content from certain people but don’t want to go as far as blocking them. Fortunately, Instagram allows you to limit who can see your Stories.

This article will tell you how to prevent who can view your Stories in two ways.

How to Hide a Story from Someone Before You Post It

You can hide your Stories from multiple users before you post them in your profile settings. Here is how you do it.

Launch the Instagram app on your phone.
Click on your profile icon in the bottom right corner.
Click on the hamburger menu in the top right corner.
Tap “Settings and privacy.”
Find “Hide Story from”
Type in the usernames of the people from whom you want to hide your Stories or tap the empty circle next to the profiles of people who are suggested.
Once you’re done, simply go back. Now you can start posting your Stories whenever you want.

How to Hide a Story from Someone While Posting It

You can hide your Instagram Stories while you’re posting them. These are the steps.

Open the Instagram app on your phone.
Click on “Your Story” in the top left corner of your feed or the icon at the bottom of your screen to add your Story.
Click on the gear icon in the top corner to access camera settings.
Tap “Story” to open Story settings.
You’ll see “Hide Story from” and “0 people” as the default. Click on “0 people.”
Now you can type in the usernames of everyone you wish to hide your Stories from or simply tap the empty circle next to profiles of people who are suggested.
Go one step back to Story settings and click “Done.”

You can access your Story settings later in the same way if you want to change who can see your Stories. You can also choose a circle of close friends and only allow them to view your Stories.

How to Hide a Story from Someone Who has Already Seen It

You can also hide Stories from people who have already seen them and prevent them from viewing your Story again. For this, you’ll need to access the archive of your Story’s views. You can do this within 48 hours after you’ve posted your Story. Here are the steps.

Launch the Instagram app on your phone.
Add your Story or view the Story you already posted.
Swipe up to see who viewed your Story.
Tap on the three vertical dots next to the username of the person from whom you wish to hide your Story.
Click “Hide your Story.”
Tap “Hide” to complete the process.

You can undo this by clicking on the same three dots and “Unhide your Story.”

FAQs

Can a user know that I hid my Story from them?

A person won’t know that you hid a Story from them. They might be able to conclude that you’ve limited their access to your content if someone else tells them that you posted a Story but they can’t find it on your profile.

Can I limit who can see my highlights on Instagram?

Yes, you can limit who can view your Instagram highlights by applying the same methods used for the Stories.

Can I limit whose Instagram stories I see?

Yes, you can mute other people’s Stories by opening them and clicking on the three dots in the top right corner.

Don’t Let People Stop You from Sharing What You Want

People often use one Instagram account to stay in touch with family, friends, and coworkers. But not every piece of your content is for everyone. However, that shouldn’t stop you from sharing Stories with the specific people you choose. Use these easy methods to hide your Stories from certain people and tailor your Instagram experience.

Have you already tried to restrict some people from seeing your Stories? Which method did you use? Let us know in the comments below.