Sharing links on Instagram is different from other social media platforms. This is because Instagram is primarily geared towards sharing images and has allowed some flexibility to share links over the years. Users love to share links to their product pages, petitions, causes, and blogs. You can browse hundreds of such stores and sites on Instagram, but you won’t be able to remember them if you have to recommend them to a friend or colleague.
Fortunately, Instagram has thought of adding a way to rediscover these websites or links to your profile for later viewing. Now you can view all the websites you have opened on Instagram in one location. Let’s learn how to use the official Instagram apps for Android and iOS. This does not work in the Instagram web app.
This does not mean that the desktop or web application is completely unnecessary. You can still check your DMs or view Instagram stories. All that being said, adding a link to comments or an Instagram post is still a challenge. You will need at least 10,000 users to post a link to your Instagram stories. Leaving that aside, let’s check out how to view all the links you’ve visited so far.
How to View and Delete Visited Websites on Instagram Android
Stage 1: Open the Instagram app and tap your profile icon at the bottom of the screen on the right. Now select the menu icon in the top right.
Step 2: Select your Activity from the right-floating drop-down menu. You will find all opened links and websites under the Links tab.
The time tab will tell you how much time you spend on Instagram mindlessly scrolling through your feeds. Fair warning, it may come as a shock to some!
There is no search button here. You can scroll through the list and tap any URL to open the link again. Links are organized by date, starting with the most recent, and open in Instagram’s in-app browser, with no way to open directly in your preferred browser.
The Hide History button actually deletes the links instead. You may find it misleading, but there is a reason behind it. Instagram means these links will be deleted for you, but will remain in their archives as per their Data Policy. You will receive a warning from Facebook that the information will continue to be used to ‘improve your experience’. Offer relevant ads and content.
To hide/delete individual links you don’t need or don’t want anyone else to see, touch and hold that link. You will be greeted with the same popup as above.
How to View and Delete Visited Websites on Instagram iOS
There’s a slight difference in how things work in Instagram’s iOS app, but that’s just because of UI elements and Apple’s design policy.
Stage 1: Tap the profile icon in the bottom bar and select the menu icon at the top.
Step 2: This will show a popup where you tap your Activity from the bottom of the screen. You will find all the links and open websites you have visited under the Links tab.
All links will be organized by date and time, starting with your most recent visit. No way to search and like Android, all links will open in Instagram’s in-app browser.
We have already discussed that hiding links is not the same as the name suggests. It deletes the links on your end and there is no way to recover them. The links will be saved on Facebook’s (Instagram’s parent company) servers and used to serve better content and ads.
Tap the Hide Links button to delete all links, but I wouldn’t recommend doing that. You will lose all connection history. Instead, swipe right to left on the link you want to delete to find the Hide button. Either way, you’ll be greeted with a popup explaining what happens when you hide links that contain a link to the app’s Data Policy. Most users don’t read the Terms of Service and other similar agreements before using an app, but they should.
Insta Satisfaction
Now you know how to view all the websites you visit on Instagram. This is one of the reasons why Instagram is so addictive. Compared to the likes of Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, it’s still not very suitable for link sharing. Mostly because Instagram continues to promote images and short videos as a way to share content with others. That said, I’ve seen plenty of athletes, beauticians, celebrities, and influencers posting links to their products on their Instagram profiles for fans.
You don’t need to open links in a separate app. Instagram will do this for you so you can go back and check later.
Next: Want to mute an account on Instagram? Click on the link below to learn everything there is to know about the mute function on Instagram.
