Unfollow on Instagram: Everything You Need to Know

There are many ways to customize and enhance your Instagram app experience. You can toggle privacy settings, tailor your discover page and manage your Instagram followers and follows. But what if you need to unfollow on Instagram?

It seems like a simple enough task, right? However, you’ll need to play by specific rules to keep your Instagram account in good standing.  We’re covering those rules, reasons why you should hit unfollow, and alternative features to use instead.

Why Would I Want Unfollow People on Instagram

We’re about to deep-dive into how to unfollow Instagram accounts. First, let’s discuss why you’d want to eliminate followers from your app experience. Everyone has their own motivations for manually removing someone from their Instagram feed. But here are the four most common ones. If you’re debating whether or not to delete one of your friends, use this as a guide.

Mental Health

Multiple studies link social media to declining mental health, especially in teens and young adults. This is why experts recommend limiting time on Instagram or similar apps in general. Following certain users amplifies these adverse effects even more. For example, you should delete anyone who uses their platform to bully you or your loved ones. 

However, some Instagram users hurt your mental health unintentionally. For instance, loads of folks use IG and Twitter as news sources. But constantly seeing bleak headlines takes a toll. Or what if you have a friend who continually posts bikini photos, and you’re struggling with body image issues? Again, this person isn’t purposefully putting you down. But you’re not in a healthy place to engage with them. 

No longer Interested in an Account’s Content

A lot of people get caught up in the numbers game of IG. But at the end of the day, it’s a social media platform. You’re there to connect with others and check out content. The main reason to follow any Instagram page is your interest in the photos or videos they post. When that stops being the case, it’s time to say goodbye.

Unfollow Instagram Accounts for Professional Reasons

One of the trickiest things to navigate in the internet age is work-life boundaries. What you do privately on Instagram and any other social media app can bleed into your professional life. Including who you follow and your followers. 

If you have a public IG account or plan on befriending anyone at your workplace, you need to clean house. You don’t want your boss or a potential employer to catch you following an account that posts inappropriate photos. Certain Instagram features revoke access to viewing your followers and follows. But it’s better to be safe than sorry. 

The Follow/Unfollowed Method

Another reason to hit unfollow accounts on Instagram is the “follow/unfollowed method.” This is a get-followers-quick scheme some users employ as a helpful way to gain followers. 

The idea is that you request to follow a list of accounts, hoping they’ll follow you back. Then, once you’ve gotten your follower count up, you stop following them. While this technique sometimes works, it can get you into trouble with IG’s limits.

The Unfollow Limit on Instagram Explained

Did you know about the unfollow limit on Instagram? That’s right. The app has rules for this action. You can’t just run around following and unfollowing people on Instagram willy-nilly. Here are the two essential rules:

1. Instagram imposes a daily and hourly limit on certain platform activities, including unfollowing and following multiple accounts. 
2. Instagram considers following and unfollowing as the same action. This means that the number of follows and unfollows per day all go towards your daily limit. 

How Many People Can You Unfollow on Instagram

Now that you know follow limits exist on Instagram, we know your next question. “How many people can you unfollow on Instagram?” Technically, you can stop following as many people as you want over the lifetime of using the app. However, here’s more information on Instagram limits per day and hour.

What Is the Instagram Unfollow Limit per Day

Instagram doesn’t “officially” specify the rules of daily limits. Collected evidence suggests that the Instagram unfollow limit per day varies for different accounts. This depends on the age of the account, the number of followers, and the engagement rate. 

The best estimates further suggest that up to 150 unfollows/follows a day are safe for accounts older than three months. Accounts 3 months and newer can go up to 100 Instagram profiles. 

How Many People Can You Unfollow on Instagram per Hour

Wondering, “how many people can you unfollow on Instagram per hour?” Like daily limits, IG keeps mum on the official number per hour. But from testing, we’ve found that ten unfollows an hour is a safe range. This keeps your account activities organic. We’ll expand on the importance of this in the next section.

Why Does Instagram Limit Unfollow Count

At this point, you might be scratching your head, thinking, “Wait a minute. Why does Instagram limit unfollow counts?” Here’s the inside scoop.

The daily limits exist to deter abuse, spam, and/or automated activities. It’s a way to level the playing field for all users. Small businesses, for example, won’t be able to compete against big names buying followers and other app statistics. Those with financial resources can easily hire a list of people to follow as many accounts as possible. Or they can use Google Play or App Store to buy unfollow apps that automate activities on the platform. 

Instagram’s algorithm can detect if a certain action, such as unfollowing, occurs too often in a very short period. Mass purges flag as bot-like activity or spam. That’s why it’s best to do things manually. Don’t download third-party apps claiming to mass unfollow IG accounts for you. Your account may be temporarily suspended or permanently banned for such activities. 

How to Unfollow Someone on Instagram

Here are the five easy steps on how to unfollow someone on Instagram on the app:

1. Log on to your Instagram account
2. Tap on the small icon of your Instagram profile picture in the bottom right corner.
3. Click on the “Following” section. You’ll see a list of your friends and Instagram followers.
4. Scroll down to the account you want gone, or type the name into the search bar.
5. Next to their name, you’ll see a “Following” button. Tap that button. 

Here’s how to do it on a desktop:

1. Log on to Instagram.com.
2. Click on the “Following” list on your profile. Or if you know they’re one of your followers as well, click on your “followers” list.
3. Scroll through until you find the user you’re looking for, and click the “Following” button.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully unfollowed someone. You won’t see any more of their posts on the app.

Alternatives To Hitting Unfollow on Instagram

Tapping unfollow on Instagram isn’t the only way you can curate your newsfeed. There might be moments when you don’t want to go with the “nuclear” option and want something less intense. Or you might not like the other person to know you went as far as to delete them. (Especially if you send them a follow request again in the future.) On the other hand, sometimes unfollowing isn’t enough, and you need to take things a step further. Here are your options for all of those scenarios. 

Mute Accounts Instead of Using Instagram Unfollow

The mute option on IG is an excellent alternative to unfollowing. It eliminates a user’s content from your Instagram page while keeping them on your list of followed accounts. Not sure how to mute someone on Instagram? You’ll find this option when you click on the three dots in the upper right corner of any of their posts. Should you change your mind later on, you can easily unmute them. 

Blocking an Instagram Account

When unfollowing isn’t enough, you can block followers altogether.  You don’t have to tolerate harassment, spamming, or trolling from any Instagram user. If reporting them does not solve the problem, don’t hesitate to declare them blocked from your Instagram account. 

When blocked, users can’t find you on the app, and you can’t find them. This option hides your Instagram posts from specific followers and all of your other activity on the app. At the same time, you can’t see anything from their page either.

Want To Avoid Unfollowing on Instagram? Be More Selective

Do you know what’s the best way to avoid having to go down the Instagram unfollow rabbit hole? Not following them in the first place. Don’t just add an account because you have mutual friends or want them to follow you back.

 Before hitting the follow button, spend some time browsing through a user’s profile. Ensure you have shared interests and that their content will be of value to you. This way, you’ll avoid having to scrub Instagram accounts later. 

Keep an Eye Out for Fake Accounts or Ghost Followers

Like other apps, Instagram is teeming with inactive or fake accounts. These accounts exist to inflate follower counts of different profiles falsely. Bots are a big no-no on Instagram. Don’t feel obligated to reciprocate a new follow immediately. Again, do your research and verify that your new follower is a real person. 

How to Check Who Unfollowed You On Instagram

There’s no quick way to find out if someone unfollowed you in the IG app. Instagram doesn’t send a notification for unfollowing. If you’re really curious about who stopped following you, you’ll have to don your detective hat and investigate. 

If there’s a particular user you’re interested in, you can go to their profile and check their following list. Once there, look for your name. Another option is to check your list of followers. Type the user’s name in the search box. If their name doesn’t appear on your list of followers, then they may have recently unfollowed you.

It’s tempting to download third-party Instagram apps, like Follower Analyzer, that claim to keep track of follows and unfollows. Instagram doesn’t authorize such apps, and using them could put your account at risk. Practice extreme caution before using unauthorized Instagram third-party apps. Most of these apps use bots and have privacy issues. Your curiosity about who unfollowed you could lead to more severe problems, including account suspension.  

Unfollow on Instagram: Final Thoughts

Maintaining a standard of quality makes for a more enjoyable IG app experience. Especially since social media is synonymous with a toxic environment these days.  Creating a place of comfort and value online is the smart thing to do. 

Unfollowing people on Instagram is valuable to your account’s regular “quality maintenance.” If you want to grow your account and ensure you’ll get genuine and quality followers, check out Path Social. Path Social offers organic growth through proprietary AI targeting technology and an in-house team of social media app experts. With our tools, you’ll reach real, targeted, interested, and engaged users.  Ready to build an Instagram community that lasts? Start growing and gaining Instagram followers today.