After testing for some time, Instagram has now announced that everyone on Instagram and Facebook will be able to hide their public like counts.
Instagram started testing hiding like counts around two years ago, as a way to “depressurize people’s experience” on its platform.
Now, instead of taking away like counts entirely, Instagram is letting all users decide what’s best for them, by giving them the option to hide their like counts.
Related | YouTube Tests Hiding Dislikes From Videos
The decision to give people a choice – rather than force something on them – resulted from numerous consultations with users and experts. The feedback Instagram received has been mixed.
Some found it annoying to not be able to see like counts, and some others found it beneficial. Others use likes to “get a sense for what’s trending or popular.” Therefore, Instagram decided to give them the flexibility they want, to keep likes or hide them.
All users will now be able to hide like counts on their own posts so that others can’t see the number of likes they get. This way, they can concentrate on the content itself – not the number of likes.
To hide like counts on others’ posts, your can visit the Posts section in Settings to toggle the option. The option will apply to all posts in your feed. Furthermore, you’ll also be able to hide like counts before sharing a post or turn the setting on or off, even after it’s live.
Within the next few weeks, the new controls will also start appearing on Facebook.
Instagram and Facebook have been testing hiding like counts for quite some time. It’s taken nearly two years to start rolling out as Facebook realized just how strongly some people (especially creators) felt about the possibility that they wouldn’t be given a choice in the matter.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CPVlyAFpJPH/
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