How To Turn Off Comments on Instagram and Limit Interactions

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Karen Lin

Instagram 101 | Jul 04, 2024

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Most brands and creators would jump at the opportunity to boost the number of organic comments on their Instagram posts. But, for a handful of users, having too many comments on their content is overwhelming. That’s why Instagram allows users to turn off people’s ability to comment on their posts. This small feature is excellent at helping others create a safe space for themselves. Today, we’re learning exactly how to turn off comments on Instagram.

There are plenty of benefits to disabling comments on your Instagram posts. It helps keep things like unnecessary arguments, drama, and spammy comments at bay, thereby safeguarding your online space. So, keep scrolling if you want to disable comments on Instagram for good whether on regular feed posts, Instagram Stories, or Live sessions.

Someone typing a comment under an Instagram post on their phone.

How To Turn Off the Comments on Instagram

There are many reasons why someone might want to turn off the comments on their Instagram posts. Some people want to protect their privacy and keep the voices of others out. Others want to maintain a more professional vibe on the platform. Turning off comments allows people to put the spotlight on their content instead of any potential drama that may be taking place.

It also helps keep the bad stuff out, like spammy and rude Instagram comments. Influencers might turn comments off for controversial posts that might cause a stir and leave a trail of negative comments.

Whatever your reason for wanting to do it, you can easily and quickly disable comments on the platform. Are you ready to learn how to turn off comments on Instagram? Here’s how to do it for an individual existing post:

1. Go to your Instagram profile and look for the post you want to disable comments on.

2. Click the three dots at the upper-right corner of the post.

3. Select Turn off commenting. That’s it!

It’s also possible to turn off comments for a post before you even publish it. On the last page, before you upload your content (where you fill in the caption), click Advanced Settings. Then, select the option to turn off comments for that post.

Afterward, the speech bubble comment icon will disappear underneath your post. That means no one can view or post comments. If you choose to turn commenting back on, you’ll recover all previous comments made on your content.

A man screaming in frustration while holding onto his laptop.

How To Turn Off Comments on Instagram for All Posts Moving Forward

Turning off comments on individual posts one by one can be time-consuming. So, you’re probably wondering how to turn off comments on Instagram for all posts in the future. 

Unfortunately, there’s currently no built-in feature that lets users turn off comments for all their posts moving forward. If you really want to do this, you can only rely on third-party tools to do it for you. These tools can automate the process of turning off comments every time your account publishes a new post. Basically, these tools will follow the exact same steps above without you doing any of the work.

You can also delete comments on Instagram if you want to be more selective and not turn off comments entirely on your posts.

Keep Convos To a Minimum: How To Turn Off Reply Comments on Instagram

It’s perfectly reasonable to wonder how to turn off reply comments on Instagram posts. Maybe you want to prevent people from arguing in your content’s comment section, especially for more opinionated posts. There’s nothing that takes the spotlight away from content more than an unnecessary back-and-forth between two users in the comments. Hiding the Reply button on comments is ideal for creators and brands who want to avoid this.

Sadly, there’s also no built-in feature on Instagram that lets you do that. You can only either turn off all comments or let everyone say what they want, including replying to previous comments.

How To Limit Negative, Offensive Comments

Don’t you want to turn off the comment feature but want to hide future comments that are mean and offensive? That’s possible by limiting comments. To do that, you need to activate the Advanced Comment Filtering. When you do that, Instagram can automatically hide inappropriate comments that go against the community guidelines.

To limit offensive comments on your posts, you need to tell Instagram your trigger words. Then, when someone comments on your posts with one of those words, Instagram automatically hides them. You can also choose to do the same for message requests to keep offensive messages at bay.

Do you want to limit rude comments on your page? Here’s how to hide comments with specific words:

1. Go to your Instagram profile and click the hamburger menu (three horizontal lines) at the top of the page.

2. Scroll to How others interact with you and click Hidden Words. In this section, make sure Advanced Comment Filtering is on.

Path Social’s screenshot of an Instagram account’s settings menu with a red box highlighting “Hidden Words.”

3. Click Manage custom words and phrases. This brings you to the list of words you don’t want to see in comments.

Path Social’s screenshot of the Hidden Words menu with a red box highlighting “Manage custom words and phrases.”

4. Add words you don’t want to see on Instagram. These can include racial slurs and mean names. Add them one by one, or type them all with each phrase separated by a comma.

Path Social’s screenshot of the Instagram page where you add trigger words you don’t want to see in people’s comments.

5. Go back to the previous page.

6. Switch the Hide comments and Hide message requests toggles on. That way, all incoming comments and message requests containing your trigger words will automatically not be visible anymore.

Path Social’s screenshot of the Hidden Words menu highlighting the toggles to hide comments and message requests.

Quieter Story Content: How To Turn Off Hype Comments on Instagram Stories

In December 2023, Social Media Today reported that Instagram was testing out a new feature called “hype comments.” You can leave hype comments on people’s Instagram Stories to cheer them on and hype them up. Anyone who views their Story can see these comments.

This might sound fun to many Instagram users. But for others, it can be a bit overwhelming. People love Stories for their low-pressure nature. You never had to worry about likes and public comments on your Story content. But hype comments make it painfully obvious to others if your posts aren’t flying. It’s also not great for introverts who don’t do well with being “hyped up.”

If that accurately describes you, you’re probably trying to figure out how to turn off hype comments on Instagram Stories.

It seems like the feature is still in the testing phase or is slowly being rolled out. But those who have hype comments available say you can turn them off.

Apparently, you just have to go to your Story settings and find the Hype section. There, there’s a toggle you can switch off to disable hype comments on your Stories. It’s said that you can also block certain users from posting these hype comments on your content.

How To Turn Off Comments on Instagram Live

Some creators also prefer turning off comments when they host an Instagram Live session. This helps minimize distractions so that they can be more focused and confident as they talk to their fans. Plus, it decreases the chances of seeing rude comments while you’re Live, which can deflate your mood as you stream.

Learning how to turn off comments on Instagram Live is super easy. All you have to do is go to your Live’s options menu at the bottom of the screen. Then, click the option that lets you turn off commenting. Easy peasy!

A female content creator on an Instagram Live session doing her self-care routine in front of a mirror.

And Those Are Our Top Tips on How To Turn Comments Off on Instagram!

Turning off the comments on your Instagram content is an awesome way to maintain the positivity in your online bubble. Sure, you’re sacrificing organic engagement on your content. But if it keeps inappropriate comments out, it’s more than worth it for your mental well-being. Plus, it blocks out spammy comments as well.

Knowing how to turn comments off on Instagram might come in handy when negativity abounds. But if you want to grow your page, you have to be comfortable with letting people engage with your content. And when it comes to discoverability and engagement, Path Social is the best service out there.

We use AI to distribute your content to your intended audience so your target market sees it first. This aids in people discovering your page, interacting with your content, and following your account. Soon, you’ll have an army of real, loyal followers. Gain more fans in your community today!