What Does Active Today Mean on Instagram? IG Status Guide

Instagram is the world’s fourth most-used social media platform, with diverse features. One of its most popular features is direct messaging. In IG chat, you may notice activity statuses on Instagram: “active today,” “active yesterday,” or “active now” below Instagram usernames. Have you ever wondered, ‘what does active today mean on Instagram?’ 

Keep reading to discover what ‘active today’ means and how to control your online activity and visibility on Instagram. 

What Does Active Today Mean on Instagram Exactly?

Activity statuses on Instagram tells others if you’re active and when you last used the platform. Unlike other statuses, it doesn’t mention specific hours of inactivity. 

If a user has opened the Instagram app within the last 24 hours, it shows “Active today.” However, if they have used it within the previous 8 hours, Instagram displays “Active x hours ago.” If users have been inactive for more than eight but fewer than 24 hours, Instagram will display “active today”.

But why does it say on Instagram “Active Today” instead of “ X Hours”? Instagram uses “Active Today” rather than specifying exact hours. That’s because it’s a general status indicating the user was online on the Instagram app in the past 24 hours. 

There are many reasons why Instagram doesn’t show hours. One is that it respects user privacy and avoids disclosing detailed activity information. It also wants to prevent potential confusion, as users aren’t necessarily engaged with the Instagram app continuously when logged in. This simplifies the status display while safeguarding user privacy and avoiding misunderstandings. 

Different Types of Activity Statuses on Instagram

Instagram chat offers various activity statuses to inform others about a user’s online presence and recent activity on the platform.

These statuses help users know when someone is available for a chat. However, remember they aren’t always precise and can show delays of a few minutes.

There are four chat activity statuses on IG: “active now,” “active today,” “active yesterday,” and “active x minutes/hours ago.” Here’s an explanation of the different types of activity statuses on Instagram:

• Active Now: This is the most precise of the activity statuses on Instagram, showing that the user is active. When users briefly open and close the app, Instagram can occasionally display as “Active now” for a few minutes.
• Active Today: This status shows that the user was active on the platform within the past 8-24 hours. 
• Active Yesterday: This status indicates that users were active within the past 24-48 hours. 
• Active X Minutes/Hours Ago: This status shows when users were last active on the platform, specifying the number of minutes/hours ago. If it says ‘Active 10 minutes ago,’ it means the user was last active 10 minutes ago. 

What Does “Active Now” Without Green Dots Mean?

If you see someone as “active now,” but the green dot is missing, what does it mean? It could be a minor delay or a common glitch with IG’s activity feature. It can also mean users hid their activity statuses on instagram. 

However, you can still send messages to users; if they have notifications turned on, they may still see it immediately. Moreover, Instagram offers a “read feature,” so you’ll know whether recipients read your messages.

Things To Consider About Activity Statuses on Instagram

Activity statuses on Instagram provide real-time information about when users are actively using the platform. While this feature can be pretty helpful for staying connected, it also raises important considerations about privacy and communication etiquette. 

Listed below are a few things you should know about activity statuses on Instagram:

• Viewing Activity Status: You can see activity statuses, e.g. “Active now”, of people you message or who message you. If you don’t interact with others on the app, you won’t see their activity statuses on Instagram.
• User Privacy: If users didn’t turn off their activity status, you can easily see when they were “last active” on Instagram. It’s a privacy setting that users can enable/disable.
• Limitation On Users: You can only see the activity statuses on Instagram of the first 25 users you interacted with.

How To Turn off Active Status on Instagram?

Don’t want others to know when you’re online in real time? You can easily hide/turn off your Instagram’s “Show Activity Status” feature. 

However, if you turn off your active status, you won’t be able to see when other users are active either. 

Nevertheless, here’s a step-by-step guide for how to turn off active status on Instagram:

1. Open your Instagram account.
2. Tap on the “profile icon” in the bottom-right corner. 
3. Tap the “menu icon” in the top-right corner of your screen.
4. In a new pop-up, tap “Settings”.
5. Tap on “Privacy” to see your privacy settings.
6. Scroll down to locate “Activity Status” and tap on it.
7. Toggle off the “Show Activity Status” so other users won’t see you online. It also turns off the “Show When You’re Active Together,” which helps hide active status in direct messages.

What Prevents You From Viewing the Last Activity of Instagram Users?

The privacy settings that enable viewing other users’ activities are typically linked to displaying your own activity. It’s a two-way window rather than a one-way window. You can’t see when users were ‘last active’ on the Instagram app for a few good reasons, such as:

• Privacy Settings: If someone decides to hide or turn off their activity statuses on Instagram, you can’t see them. They won’t be visible to anyone, including you, regardless of whether you follow them.
• Not Following Them: Instagram only shows the ‘activity status’ of people you follow. You will only see their ‘last active’ status if you’re following a user.
• Blocked: If someone blocks you on the Instagram app, you won’t have access to their ‘activity status.’ 

These factors are in place to respect users’ privacy and allow them to control who can see their online activity.

Enhance Your Instagram Presence With Path Social 

So now you know what does active today mean on Instagram, including three other active status types. The next step is to grow your Instagram reach and build a genuinely interested and engaged community. 

Choose Path Social – a go-to platform for IG influencers. With a unique AI targeting algorithm and an in-house team of influencers, Path Social can help increase visibility on Instagram. With us as your partners, you can attract passionate, engaged, and organic followers.

Ready to learn the right strategies to go viral? Start growing and gaining Instagram followers with Path Social today!

FAQs

So that’s what active today means on Instagram, in a nutshell. If you have other questions about status indicators on Instagram, check out our frequently asked questions.