How to Turn Off Read Receipts on Instagram (2025 Ultimate Guide)

Key Takeaways

• Learning how to turn off read receipts on Instagram takes only a few minutes
• Instagram now offers a built-in option to turn off read receipts in direct messages
• You can disable read receipts for individual chats or all conversations at once
• Alternative methods like airplane mode can provide temporary workarounds
• Certain myths about Instagram read receipts aren’t true and could compromise your privacy

Want to check messages without the sender knowing you’ve seen them? Instagram’s “Seen” notifications can sometimes put unnecessary pressure on users to respond immediately. Luckily, Instagram has introduced ways to turn off read receipts on Instagram, giving you more control over your messaging experience.

This guide covers all current methods to disable read receipts on Instagram in 2025, including the official setting and some creative workarounds that actually work. If you’ve had account issues, you might also want to know how to recover an Instagram account. Let’s get into how to keep your Instagram DM habits private.

What Are Instagram Read Receipts?

Instagram read receipts are the “Seen” indicators that appear in direct messages (DMs) when someone has viewed your message. Once you open a message, Instagram automatically marks it as read and notifies the sender with a small “Seen” label and timestamp below the message.

These read receipts work in both one-on-one conversations and group chats. If you’re in a group conversation, Instagram shows which members have seen the message. The platform designed this feature to make messaging more transparent, but many users find it creates unwanted social pressure or invades their privacy.

How to Turn Off Read Receipts on Instagram?

After years of user requests, Instagram finally added an official option to turn off read receipts. This feature gives you control over whether others can see when you’ve read their messages. You can choose to turn this off for specific conversations or all of your Instagram DMs.

Turn off read receipts for one chat

If you want to hide read receipts for a specific conversation without affecting others, follow these steps:

1. Open Instagram and go to the DM conversation you want to modify
2. Tap the person’s name at the top of the chat screen
3. Select “Privacy & safety” from the menu
4. Find the “Read receipts” toggle and switch it to the off position

This setting only applies to that specific conversation. The other person won’t be notified that you’ve disabled read receipts, but they’ll notice that the “Seen” status no longer appears when you read their messages.

Turn off read receipts for all chats

To disable read receipts for all your Instagram conversations at once:

1. Open Instagram and tap your profile icon in the bottom right
2. Tap the three lines (hamburger menu) in the top right corner
3. Select “Settings and privacy”
4. Scroll down and tap “Messages and story replies”
5. Find “Show read receipts” and toggle it off

Once disabled, no one will see when you’ve read their messages. Remember that this works both ways—you also won’t see when others have read your messages.

Alternative Ways to Avoid Read Receipts on Instagram

If you can’t access the official setting or need additional privacy options, there are several workarounds to check messages without triggering read receipts. You might also want to explore Instagram’s vanish mode for temporary, disappearing messages:

Method 1: Use airplane mode

The airplane mode trick remains one of the most reliable ways to read messages privately:

1. When you receive a new message, don’t open it yet
2. Put your phone in airplane mode (turning off all connections)
3. Now open Instagram and read the message
4. Close Instagram completely (force close the app from recent apps)
5. Turn airplane mode off

The key limitation: this only works until you reconnect to the internet. Once your device goes back online, if you open the conversation again, the message will be marked as “Seen.”

Method 2: Read messages from notifications

For shorter messages, you can read them directly from your notification panel without opening the actual conversation:

1. When you receive a message notification, expand it (pull down on Android or press and hold on iOS)
2. You’ll see a preview of the message content
3. Read the message without tapping the notification

This method only works for short messages that fit within the notification preview. For longer messages, you’ll only see the beginning.

Method 3: Restrict the sender temporarily

Instagram’s restrict feature can help you manage how you interact with specific accounts:

1. Go to the profile of the person sending messages
2. Tap the three dots in the top right corner
3. Select “Restrict”

When you restrict someone:

• Their messages move to a separate “Message Requests” section
• You can read these messages without triggering read receipts
• They won’t know you’ve restricted them

Just remember to unrestrict them once you’re ready to resume normal communication.

Method 4: Unread message hack (Business accounts only)

If you have a business account, you can mark messages as unread after reading them:

1. Open your DM inbox
2. Swipe left on the conversation (or press and hold)
3. Select “Mark as unread”

Important note: This doesn’t prevent the “Seen” status—it only marks messages as unread for your own organization. The sender will still know you’ve read their message.

Method 5: Use Instagram web (Optional benefit)

Sometimes using Instagram on a web browser can delay the “Seen” status:

1. Log in to Instagram on a web browser
2. Navigate to your direct messages
3. Read messages there instead of on the app

This method isn’t foolproof as Instagram has improved synchronization between platforms, but it occasionally works because web experiences sometimes update status indicators more slowly.

Common Myths About Instagram Read Receipts

With so much misinformation online, it’s important to clear up some common misconceptions about Instagram read receipts.

Myth 1: Turning off activity status removes “Seen”

Many users think that disabling their activity status (the green dot) also disables read receipts, but these are separate features:

• Activity status shows when you’re actively using the app
• Read receipts show when you’ve read specific messages

Turning off your activity status under “Settings → Privacy → Activity status” only hides when you’re online—it doesn’t affect read receipts.

Myth 2: Using third-party apps hides your seen status

Some apps claim to let you read Instagram messages without triggering read receipts. Be extremely cautious with these:

• Most third-party apps violate Instagram’s terms of service
• They often require your login credentials, risking account security
• Instagram regularly blocks these apps from functioning

According to Instagram’s Help Center, giving your login info to unauthorized third-party apps puts your account at serious risk. These apps rarely work as advertised and could lead to your account being temporarily locked or permanently banned.

Conclusion

Instagram’s addition of an official read receipt toggle gives users the privacy option they’ve wanted for years. Whether you choose to turn off read receipts completely, disable them for specific conversations, or use one of the alternative methods, you now have more control over your messaging experience.

Remember that communication is a two-way street—while privacy is important, being responsive to messages from friends and family helps maintain healthy relationships. Use these features to reduce social pressure, not to ignore people completely.

For more Instagram privacy tips, check out our guides on Instagram watch history, recovering deleted Instagram messages, how to know if your Instagram has been hacked, or learn about deleting someone’s Instagram.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I turn off seen on Instagram for one person only?

Yes, you can disable read receipts for individual conversations. Open the specific chat, tap the person’s name at the top, select “Privacy & safety,” and toggle off “Read receipts” for that conversation only.

Does turning off activity status stop read receipts?

No, these are separate features. Turning off activity status only hides when you’re online or last active. To disable read receipts, you need to use the specific read receipts setting in your messaging preferences.

What if I delete a message before they read it?

If you delete a message before the recipient reads it, they won’t see the content. However, depending on your deletion choice:

• “Unsend” removes it completely from both sides
• “Delete for you” keeps it visible to the recipient

For maximum privacy, use the “Unsend” option for messages you regret sending.