How to Hide Your Following List on Instagram Without Private Account

Instagram is a massive networking tool- building your brand, making connections all while the world’s watching. Anyone can scroll through your “Following” list. That’s not always ideal, especially if you don’t want competitors or clients mapping out your network. It can be a privacy headache.

Instagram doesn’t offer a “hide your following” button- unless you want to set your account to private. But you can still review your followers, or use the “restrict” feature to control who sees what. You don’t have to sacrifice your public presence for privacy. There are practical ways to manage your “Following” list visibility and keep your business relationships under wraps. Let’s break down the steps so you can stay in control of your brand image- one smart setting at a time.

Table of Contents

How Instagram’s Following List Works

On a public Instagram profile, the following list is fully exposed to any visitor. There’s no built-in mechanism or configuration to obscure this data while your account remains public. Instagram’s system doesn’t support hiding your following list in this mode. If restricting visibility is necessary, the only viable method is changing your profile to private. At present, modifying access to your following list isn’t supported for public accounts under current Instagram functionality. But there are certain other steps that can be taken.

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Step-by-Step: How to Hide Your Following List Without Making Your Account Private

1. Restrict Specific Accounts

The Restrict feature limits how a specific user can interact with your account.

Open Instagram and go to the profile of the user you want to restrict.
Tap the three-dot menu icon in the upper-right corner.
Select “Restrict” from the dropdown list.
Once restricted, that person cannot see when you’re online or if you’ve read their messages.
They also won’t easily see your likes, comments, or following list updates.
While they can technically still view your following list, restricting them makes your account less interactive and visible to them.

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2. Block the User

Blocking is the most direct method to prevent someone from seeing your following list.

Go to the profile of the person you wish to block.
Tap the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner.
Select “Block”, then confirm your choice.
Once blocked, the user won’t be able to view your profile, following list, posts, or stories.
This method is effective for individual cases where you want to completely cut off visibility.

3. Remove Followers to Limit Access

Public accounts can now manually remove followers without alerting them.

Go to your profile and tap on “Followers”.
Scroll through the list or search for the person you want to remove.
Tap the “Remove” button next to their name.
Once removed, the person can no longer see your stories, posts, or following list unless they refollow you.
This helps curate a cleaner audience that respects your privacy boundaries.

4. Change Activity Status Settings

Disabling activity status reduces real-time visibility on your account.

Go to your profile and tap the three horizontal lines (menu).
Navigate to “Settings and Privacy”.
Tap “Messages and Story Replies”, then select “Show Activity Status.”
Turn off the toggle next to “Show Activity Status.”
This stops others from seeing when you’re active, which adds a layer of privacy to your account.

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5. Hide Your Story from Specific Users

Although this doesn’t hide your following list directly, it limits overall visibility.

Go to Settings > Privacy > Story.
Tap “Hide Story From” and select the users you want to exclude.
These users will not be able to see your stories, which often show who you engage with or follow.
This limits clues into your activity and who you follow or support.

6. Limit Interactions via Close Friends List

Using the Close Friends list ensures certain content is only visible to trusted users.

Go to your profile and tap on the menu icon.
Tap “Close Friends” and add the people you want to share your stories with.
When posting a story, select “Close Friends” before uploading.
This keeps your activities visible only to select users, limiting indirect exposure of your following preferences.

7. Mute Users You Follow

Muting does not hide your following list, but it limits how much engagement they can draw from you.

Visit the profile of someone you follow.
Tap the “Following” button, then select “Mute”.
Choose to mute Posts, Stories, or both.
This reduces the likelihood of mutual followers seeing your name on their posts, lowering your overall visibility.

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8. Avoid Interacting With Sensitive Accounts

Interaction on public profiles increases visibility to your followers.

Avoid commenting, liking, or sharing content from accounts you don’t want others to know you follow.
Even if someone can see your following list, not interacting with those accounts reduces chances of exposure in followers’ feeds.
Keeping a low engagement profile makes your digital footprint more discreet.

9. Turn Off Similar Account Suggestions

Instagram sometimes suggests similar accounts to follow based on your activity.

Visit Instagram via desktop at instagram.com.
Log in and go to your profile.
Click Edit Profile.
Scroll down and uncheck “Include your account when recommending similar accounts people might want to follow.”
This prevents your account from being recommended to people who follow accounts similar to yours, limiting exposure.

10. Create a Secondary (Decoy) Account for Sensitive Following

If there are accounts you wish to follow discreetly, creating a secondary account can help separate public activity from private interests.

Go to Instagram’s settings and tap “Add Account”, then select “Create New Account.”
Set up the new account with a different email address or phone number.
Keep this secondary account private and avoid linking it to your main profile.
Use this decoy account to follow profiles you don’t want others to associate with your public-facing account.
This strategy allows you to keep your primary account clean and professional, while still following content you enjoy privately.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Can I keep my following list private if my Instagram is public?

No, unfortunately Instagram doesn’t allow you to hide your following list (unless your account is private). However, you still have control on who sees what you share through restrict, block, and other mechanisms.

Q2. Will they find out when I restrict or block someone on Instagram?

No, when you restrict or block someone Instagram will not notify users. However, if you blocked someone they may notice when they can no longer find your profile.

Q3. What happens to my follower count when I remove a follower?

Your follower count will decrease by 1 when you remove someone. They will not be notified they were removed.

Q4. Will using third-party apps to remove the following list work?

No, using third-party apps to do so is not safe, and may violate Instagram policies. Only use your Instagram native features.

Q5. Will business accounts be able to use these same settings as well?

Yes, the options discussed are available for personal, creator and business accounts.

Conclusion

Running a public Instagram account while trying to keep things private? It can be a challenge since Instagram doesn’t hand you a discreet “hide” button for your following list. Still, you’re not out of options. Start by blocking or restricting users who don’t need insight into your activity. Disabling your activity status is another efficient move. The Close Friends feature is another effective way to share select content with your core audience while keeping the rest of your followers at arm’s length.

These steps can help you keep your brand’s image polished and your boundaries intact. Your Instagram presence is an extension of your business and it pays to regularly review your privacy settings and adjust who can interact with your content. Finding that sweet spot between public visibility and professional privacy is crucial.