How to temporarily deactivate your Instagram account

If you want to take a break from Instagram but you aren’t yet ready to commit to fully deleting your account, deactivating it can be a good alternative. Here’s how to deactivate an account on Instagram.

Instagram is one of the biggest social media platforms out there right now, and has been for years. Millions of daily users use the platform to share pictures and videos from their lives with friends, followers, and more.

However, some eventually decide that they want to stop using Instagram. Sometimes this is because they want to wipe the slate clean and start a fresh new account, and other times it’s because they want to have a break from the platform as a whole.

Although you always have the option to fully delete your account, you are also able to temporarily deactivate it, which is a good idea if you think there’s a chance you may later change your mind.

How to temporarily disable your Instagram account

In order to deactivate your account, you will need to do this process through the website on a computer or a mobile browser.

According to Instagram, if you choose to disable your account, “your profile, photos, comments and likes will be hidden until you reactivate it by logging back in.”

Here’s how to disable your account:

1. Log in to Instagram.com (you can’t disable your account from the app.)
2. Click your profile picture in the top right, before selecting ‘Profile.’
3. Next to your username, click ‘Edit profile.’
4. Scroll down the page, and in the bottom right corner click ‘Temporarily disable my account.’
5. Next to ‘Why are you disabling your account?’ select an option from the menu.
6. Re-enter your password.
7. Finally, click ‘Temporarily disable account.’

To reactivate your account, you will need to log back in.

If you want to know more about how to use Instagram, you can check out our other guides here:

How to link your Instagram account to TikTok | How to see your first-liked Instagram post | How to switch Instagram feed to chronological order | How to re-share a post to your Story on Instagram | How to make money on Instagram