Instagram’s Active Status feature is designed to update your real-time activity on the photo and video sharing platform. While it might be fun to see how long it has been since your friend last opened the app, some users feel pressured to reply to direct messages (DMs) from friends who can see that they are online. Thankfully, the Meta-owned platform allows you to turn off the Active Status entirely, which means you can scroll away without worrying about who knows that you are online.
If you’re looking to spend less time on Instagram, turning off your Active Status on the platform will let you get to messages without worrying whether your friend has seen you online. You can disable Active Status on one device, and the setting will automatically be turned off wherever you are logged in.
Why You Might Want to Disable Active Status on Instagram
Like any other messaging platform that shows when you’re “online”, you might feel a little pressured to respond to a friend’s DM on Instagram if your Active Status setting is enabled and others can see a green dot that reveals your online presence. This feature is turned on by default, so you need to turn it off manually by heading into Instagram’s settings menu in the app.
Once you turn off your Active Status, your friends will no longer be able to see when you are using the app. You can reply to messages at your own pace, and browse Instagram without others seeing when you last used the app. Keep in mind that once you turn off the setting, you won’t be able to see other users’ Active Status.
How to Turn Off Active Status on Instagram for Android
You can follow these steps to turn off Active Status on both Instagram for Android and Instagram Lite.
- Open the Instagram or Instagram Lite app.
- Navigate to your profile.
- Tap the three-line menu in the top‑right corner of the screen.
- Under the Settings and Activity menu, scroll down and select Messages and story replies.
- Select Show Activity Status and turn off the toggle on the screen that appears.
How to Turn Off Active Status on Instagram for iPhone
If you want to turn off Active Status on Instagram using your iPhone, you can follow these steps, which also work on the Instagram app for iPad.
- Open the Instagram app on your iPhone or iPad.
- Go to your profile and tap the three-line menu.
- Under the Settings and Activity menu, select Messages and story replies.
- Select Show Activity Status and tap the toggle, which switches off the Active Status setting for your account.
How to Turn Off Active Status on Instagram Web
Following these instructions will let you disable Active Status on your Instagram account, while browsing the service on your browser. This works on the Instagram web app on desktop and mobile devices.
- Visit instagram.com using a web browser and sign in to your account.
- Click on More (the three-line menu) on the navigation bar.
- Navigate to Settings > Messages and story replies > Show Activity Status.
- Click or tap on the toggle to turn Active Status off.
After you turn off Active Status on your Instagram account, the green dot that shows when you are online will no longer be visible. Similarly, your friends won’t see when you were last active on Instagram. Keep in mind that you will not be able to see your friends’ Active Status or when they last used the app, as long as the setting is disabled on your Instagram account.
