Turn off Instagram notifications in your phone settings or the app itself

You can stop Instagram notifications from reaching your phone in two places: directly inside the Instagram app, or in your phone's notification settings. The app method is faster if you want to silence only Instagram. The phone settings method gives you more control — you can turn off notifications for Instagram while keeping them on for other apps, or silence just certain types (like messages but keep post likes).

Most people find what they need in the Instagram app's notification settings within a minute or two. If Instagram notifications still come through after you've turned them off in the app, your phone's settings are overriding that choice, and you'll need to adjust those too.

Key Takeaways

  • Open Instagram, go to your profile, tap the menu icon, select Settings and privacy, then Notifications to see all your notification options in one place.
  • You can turn off notifications for likes, comments, messages, and story activity separately — you don't have to silence everything at once.
  • If notifications still arrive after you turn them off in Instagram, check your phone's notification settings for the Instagram app and disable them there.
  • On iPhone, go to Settings > Notifications > Instagram; on Android, go to Settings > Apps > Instagram > Notifications.

Turn off notifications inside the Instagram app on iPhone or Android

Open Instagram and tap your profile icon in the bottom right corner. Tap the menu icon (three horizontal lines) in the top right. Scroll down and tap Settings and privacy, then tap Notifications. You'll see a list of notification types: Likes and comments on your posts, Comments on your comments, Messages, Story replies, Reels comments, and others depending on your account type.

Tap each category you want to turn off. For example, if you tap "Likes and comments on your posts," you'll see options like Push notifications, Email notifications, and SMS notifications. Toggle off whichever ones you want to stop. You can turn off push notifications (the ones that pop up on your phone) while keeping email notifications, or vice versa. Repeat for each notification type until you've silenced what you want.

If you want to turn off all Instagram notifications at once, go back to the main Notifications menu and look for an option like "All push notifications" or "Pause all" — the exact wording changes as Instagram updates the app, but there's usually a master switch near the top of the list.

Disable Instagram notifications in your phone's settings if they still arrive

On iPhone: Open Settings, scroll down and tap Notifications, then scroll to find Instagram and tap it. You'll see a toggle for "Allow Notifications" at the top — turn it off. If you want to keep some notifications but silence others, leave "Allow Notifications" on and instead turn off "Sounds" or "Badges" (the red number on the app icon), or change the alert style to "None."

On Android: Open Settings, tap Apps or Application Manager, find and tap Instagram, then tap Notifications. Toggle off "Show notifications." If you want finer control, look for options like "Notification channels" — this lets you turn off notifications for specific types (messages, likes, etc.) while keeping others on.

If you've turned off notifications in both places and they're still arriving, restart your phone. Sometimes the notification system needs a fresh start to recognize the change.

Silence notifications without turning them off completely

If you want Instagram notifications to arrive but not make a sound or vibration, you can mute them instead of disabling them. On iPhone, go to Settings > Notifications > Instagram and change the "Sound" setting to "None." On Android, open Settings > Apps > Instagram > Notifications and look for a "Sound" option, then select "Silent" or "None."

You can also set a schedule so notifications are silent during certain hours. On iPhone, this is called "Scheduled Summary" — turn it on in Settings > Notifications > Instagram, and choose which hours you want summaries instead of individual alerts. On Android, some phones have a "Do Not Disturb" feature that silences all notifications during set times, which you can configure in your main Settings.

Turn off notifications for specific people or conversations

If you want to keep Instagram notifications on overall but silence them from one person, open a direct message conversation with that person. Tap their name at the top, then look for "Mute notifications" or a bell icon with a slash through it. Tap it to silence that conversation. You'll still see their messages when you open Instagram, but you won't get a notification alert.

For notifications about a specific person's posts or stories, you can mute their posts or stories without unfollowing them. Go to their profile, tap the menu icon (three dots), and select "Mute." Choose whether to mute their posts, their stories, or both. You'll still follow them and see their content when you visit their profile, but you won't get notifications about new posts or stories.

What to do if the notification settings don't match what you see

Instagram updates its app regularly, and the exact names and locations of settings change. If you can't find "Notifications" where this article says it should be, search for it instead. In the Settings menu, look for a search bar at the top and type "notifications" — Instagram will show you the right section.

If you've turned off notifications but they're still arriving, check whether you're logged into Instagram on multiple devices. Notifications might be coming from Instagram on a tablet, computer, or another phone. Log out of Instagram on devices you don't use, or turn off notifications on those devices too. You can also check your notification settings on Instagram.com by logging in on a computer, going to your profile, clicking the menu, and selecting Settings and privacy > Notifications.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will turning off notifications affect my messages or direct messages?

Not necessarily. You can turn off notifications for posts and stories while keeping message notifications on, or vice versa. In the Notifications menu, you control each type separately. If you want to keep messages but silence everything else, turn off "Likes and comments," "Story replies," and "Reels comments," but leave "Messages" on.

Can I turn off notifications for just one type, like only likes?

Yes. In Instagram's Notifications menu, tap "Likes and comments on your posts" and toggle off only the push notifications for that category. Other notification types like messages and story replies will keep working. You can customize each one individually.

Why am I still getting notifications after I turned them off?

Your phone's settings are likely overriding Instagram's settings. Go to your phone's main Settings app, find Notifications, locate Instagram, and turn off notifications there. On some phones, you may also need to turn off notifications for specific Instagram notification channels (like "Messages" or "Likes") individually.

If I mute someone's posts, will they know?

No. Muting someone's posts or stories is invisible to them. They won't see that you've muted them, and you'll still follow them and see their content if you visit their profile. Only they can see that you've muted them if they check their followers list.

Can I turn notifications back on for just certain hours of the day?

Yes, but the method depends on your phone. On iPhone, use the Scheduled Summary feature in Settings > Notifications > Instagram to get summaries at certain times instead of individual alerts. On Android, use your phone's Do Not Disturb feature to silence all notifications during set hours, then turn it off when you want alerts again.