How to Know if Someone Blocked You on Instagram [2023]

In Summary

If someone blocks you on Instagram, you won’t be able to follow their profile or like their photos anymore.
If you suspect someone has blocked you on Instagram, check their username to make sure it’s still active.
They may have switched to a new username, so you’ll need to know their new name to confirm if they have blocked you.

Remember that time you posted a group selfie to an Instagram story and tagged a friend who asked you not to? Or maybe you gave them a bit of a hard time in the comments? It may seem harmless to you, but it could have been a trigger for them to block you.

Instagram has become a popular social media platform over the past decade, allowing users to share photos and videos with their friends and family, but it also has its pitfalls. For this reason, the service offers a number of tools that allow you to control how you interact with others to ensure you have a positive experience.

So if you have unknowingly hurt someone and are now wondering ‘how to know if someone blocked you on Instagram,’ read on because below, we may have the answer you are looking for.

Table of Contents

Why Do People Block You on Instagram?

If someone has blocked you on Instagram, it means that they have revoked your access to their account. There are several reasons why someone might block you from seeing their profile or posts:

It could be that they are offended by something you posted, or they just do not like your content.
If they think you are harassing them or spamming their feed or messages.
If you post their photo or tag them without their permission
If they are too embarrassed to confront you about something
It has nothing to do with you; they are just trying to protect their privacy

In any case, do not jump to conclusions. Retrace your steps and consider why this might have happened. It may not be as bad as you make it out to be.

What Exactly Happens if You Are Blocked On Instagram?

With the April 2021 update, Instagram gave its users more control, allowing them to block people and preemptively block new accounts they create. This came after the company noticed that users were experiencing abuse in their inboxes.

Remember, you will not be notified if someone decides to block you on Instagram. So what happens if you are blocked?

Likes and comments: Your likes and comments on their photos and videos will be removed. Your activity on the profile will not be restored even if the person decides to unblock you.
Tags and Mentions: Until you know the person’s new username, you cannot mention or tag them.
Messages: You can not send them direct messages or join their Instagram Live sessions or rooms. Even if they unlock you later, any messages you sent will be lost. However, if you are both members of a shared group, you can still see each other’s messages.

While it is not easy to find out if another user has blocked you, there are certain remedies you can try. Let us take a look at some of the signs that someone has blocked you on Instagram.

Related Read: How to Hide Instagram Profile

How to Know if Someone Blocked You on Instagram – 7 Ways

1. Search for Their Instagram Username From Your Account

As with Facebook, the same is true on Instagram: If someone blocks you, their account won’t appear in your search results.

If you know the exact Instagram username, you can find out if they have blocked you by searching for their account in the search bar of your Instagram app. If they have blocked you, you may see something like “Searching for [username]” or just a black page on their profile page.

2. Search for Their Instagram Profile From An Alternate Account

If you can’t find them using your own account and want to make sure their old username is still active, use a different account. Instagram allows you to have two accounts if you have a business profile: one personal and one business.

If you have a business account, you can switch to a personal account and vice versa. Now, try searching for their old username using your alternative Instagram account or a friend’s; if you find the profile, it means you have been blocked.

Another possibility is that they have soft-blocked you (to get you to stop following them) and changed their username.

3. Search for Their Profile Link Using a Browser

Unlike the app, the Instagram desktop website displays a clear error message when you search for a profile that has blocked you. If you are using a browser, you can pull up the user’s name from the search bar or the link to their profile, which looks something like this: https://www.instagram.com/[username].

If you search for their username in your Instagram feed in a browser and get an error message like “Sorry, this page isn’t available,” it’s likely that the person has blocked you.

4. Go Through Your Followers and Following List

When you block someone, they are automatically removed from your contact list. So, if you have been following each other on Instagram, you can also quickly check if you are blocked by looking through the followers and followers list on your profile page.

If you are picky about who you follow and know how many connections you have, you can easily find their profile page by scrolling through. If you cannot find them there, they have probably blocked you.

5. Look Up Your Comments and Posts

If you have been following each other for a while, you have probably interacted more than once on each other’s profiles. Just go through your previous posts and comments to confirm your doubts.

Check your Instagram profile page if you remember them commenting on one of your recent posts. You can still see their previous comments, but when you go to their profile, it should be empty and display the error message “No posts yet” in case they blocked you.

Alternatively, you can go through one of the photos where you were both tagged. If the person has blocked you, you’ll see their username in the Instagram photo or Story tag, but you will not be able to click on it.

6. Go Through Your Shared Message Threads and Rooms

You can also do a quick check by going through your Instagram messages. Go to your message threads by clicking the airplane icon in the upper right corner of the Instagram app. Please scroll down to find your recent message thread with them.

Under the person’s name, you’ll see something like, “You don’t follow each other on Instagram.” Click on the person’s name to go to their profile page and try following them again. If you cannot follow them, it probably means that they have blocked you.

Do you have Facebook linked to your Instagram? If so, you can also find out by watching the activity in their Instagram Live Rooms. In the message area, click on the “Room” tab and invite the person to a Live Room. If the person has blocked you, you will not be able to join any future Live Rooms they create.

7. Track Who Has Blocked You Using Third-party Apps

Another option is to use third-party apps that detect Instagram blockers, like Unfollowers for Instagram (iPhone) or Followers & Unfollowers for IG (Android), to make your job easier.

These apps can track a variety of metrics, including profile views, unfollows, and so on. They will let you know immediately who has blocked you. If you receive an “Unfollow” alert but are unable to see a person’s full profile, it’s because that person has blocked you.

Ask Them Why They Blocked You

These tips are helpful for your peace of mind, but if you have lost a close friend, you should probably ask them politely why they blocked you.

If you have been blocked on Instagram, do not take it personally. Find out what caused them to behave this way. If all goes well, you can continue to stay friends.

FAQs on How to Know if Someone Blocked You on Instagram

How to tell if someone blocked you on Instagram?

When someone blocks you, you may not be able to find their name on Instagram searches, they might not appear in Your Followers & Following the list, and you might not be able to follow their Instagram account again.

What happens when someone blocks you on Instagram?

If someone blocks you on Instagram, your comments and likes will disappear from their profile, and you cannot mention, tag, or message them or join their Instagram Live Rooms.

How to see blocked accounts on Instagram?

You can use third-party apps like Unfollowers (iPhone), Reports: Followers Tracker (iPhone), Followers & Unfollowers for IG (Android), and others to quickly see who unfollowed or blocked you.

how do you know if someone has blocked you or deactivated their account on instagram?

If you see a message like "Sorry, that page isn't available" (browser) or "User not found" (app) when looking at their Instagram profile, they might have deactivated their account. In order to find out whether the person has deactivated or deleted their account, check the group messages that you both share. It means that they have blocked you if they are still visible in the group but not anywhere else.

How to block someone from seeing your story?

Go to your Instagram profile in the app. Then, on the top right, click on the hamburger icon. Go to Settings > Privacy > Story. Select the audience you want to keep from seeing your story and click Done.

Can the person who blocked me on Instagram still see my profile?

Yes. It is possible for the person who has blocked you to see your profile, but not any of the posts, stories, or highlights you have on the profile. Perhaps you're wondering how. Usually through search results, but sometimes through previous comments, tags, or group messages.

What happens when you message someone who blocked you on Instagram?

Messages sent to someone who has blocked you on Instagram will not be received. Blocking is designed to remove communication between the person blocking and the person being blocked.

Can Instagram accidentally blocked someone?

Very unlikely. One needs to go through several steps in the menu settings in order to block someone. There have been reports of auto-unfollow on Twitter but unknowingly blocking someone on Instagram is highly unlikely.