Instagram and Facebook started experimenting with the idea of removing like counts from a person’s home feed back in 2019 and it seems like the companies are finally ready to implement the idea. Both the companies announced that everyone on Instagram and Facebook will now have the option to hide their public like counts, so they can decide what works for them.
Not seeing like counts was beneficial for some and annoying to others as Facebook tested it in a way to depressurize people’s experience on Instagram. But as people also use like counts to get a sense of what’s trending or popular, the feature has arrived as an optional one and not standard across the platforms.
New Options to Hide Public Like Counts are already rolling out on Instagram and Facebook. You’ll also have the option to hide like counts on your own posts, so others can’t see how many likes your posts get. “This way, if you like, you can focus on the photos and videos being shared, instead of how many likes posts get”, says the social media platform.
You can hide like counts on others’ posts by visiting the new Posts section in Settings. This control will apply to all the posts in your feed. You can also choose to hide like counts before you share a post and you can turn this setting on or off, even after it goes live. In the next few weeks you will see both of these controls come to Facebook.
Instagram says it’s also funding more external research about people’s experiences on Instagram, and how it can improve its policies and products to support its community. “As part of these efforts, we collaborated with The Jed Foundation and creators such as Bunny Michael (@bunnymichael) and Schuyler Bailar (@pinkmantaray) on a new Instagram Guide, which offers advice on how to manage pressure online”, the company notes.