Instagram Notes: How to Post, Reply and Mute Them
A note is a line of text, 60 characters at most, shown above your profile picture and at the top of your inbox. Instagram Notes last up to 24 hours, you can have one at a time, and only followers you follow back, or Close Friends who follow you back, can see yours. They can like it or reply, and every reply arrives in your inbox as a private conversation.
Notes belong to the messaging side of Instagram, which our guide to every Instagram feature covers task by task. For the inbox they sit in, see what Instagram Direct is.
Table of Contents
- What are Instagram Notes?
- How to post a note on Instagram
- Who can see your Instagram Notes?
- How long do Instagram Notes last?
- How to reply to or like a note
- How to mute or turn off Notes
- FAQ
What are Instagram Notes?
Notes are short text updates for an audience you choose, and each one lasts up to 24 hours. Instagram describes Notes as a space to share updates and thoughts as short posts with certain people. Here’s what its help pages pin down:
| Notes | What Instagram documents |
|---|---|
| Length | Up to 60 characters |
| How long a note shows | Up to 24 hours |
| How many you can have | One; a new note replaces the current one |
| Where it shows | The top of the inbox, and above your profile picture on your profile |
| Who can see it | Followers you follow back, or Close friends who follow you back |
| Extras on a phone | A mention, music, a GIF or your location (from the inbox) |
| Who sees the likes and replies | Only you |
| Not available on | Meta Quest devices |
Checked against Instagram Help Center: Share a note with others on Instagram.
Checked against Instagram Help Center: Interact with notes you see on Instagram.
One exception to “above your profile picture”: Instagram says notes with GIFs or videos don’t appear on your profile.
How to post a note on Instagram
Tap Messages, tap your profile picture at the top of the inbox, write up to 60 characters, choose who can see it and tap Share. You can also start from your own profile by tapping your profile picture there.
On iPhone: from your inbox:
- Tap Messages at the bottom.
- Tap your profile picture at the top of your inbox.
- Enter a note of up to 60 characters. You can also mention someone (if they allow it), add music, add a GIF, or add your location.
- Select to share your note with Followers you follow back or your Close friends.
- Tap Share.
On iPhone: from your profile:
- Tap Profile or your profile picture in the bottom right to go to your profile.
- Tap your profile picture.
- Enter a note of up to 60 characters. You can also mention someone (if they allow it) or add music.
- Select to share your note with Followers you follow back or your Close friends.
- Tap Share.
Checked against Instagram Help Center: Share a note with others on Instagram.
Android uses the same steps. On a computer, you start from Messages or from your profile, and Instagram’s steps list no extras:
On the web: from your inbox:
- Click Messages on the left.
- Click Your note below your profile picture.
- Enter a note of up to 60 characters.
- Select to share your note with Followers you follow back or your Close friends.
- Click Share.
On the web: from your profile:
- Click your profile picture on the left to go to your profile.
- Click Note... above your profile picture.
- Enter a note of up to 60 characters.
- Select to share your note with Followers you follow back or your Close friends.
- Click Share.
Checked against Instagram Help Center: Share a note with others on Instagram.
The extras depend on where you start. From the inbox on a phone, you can mention someone (if they allow it), add music, add a GIF or add your location. From your profile, you get mentions and music. Music notes aren’t available in all countries, and adding a location needs location services turned on. Instagram’s article also mentions notes with videos, but its steps don’t cover adding one.
To change what your note says, tap it and tap Leave a new note. The new note replaces the old one.
What to write in 60 characters
A note reads best as a single line: a question for your followers, the song you have on repeat, a plan for the weekend. Replies arrive as private messages, so a question gives people an easy way to start a chat with you. For wording, our short Instagram captions are one-liners you can trim to fit.
Who can see your Instagram Notes?
Only the audience you pick when you share: Followers you follow back, or your Close friends list. With Close friends, the note reaches only the close friends who follow you back. Those are the only two audiences Instagram documents.
From the other side, you see someone’s note only if you follow each other, or if you’re on their Close Friends list and follow them.
Two details matter for privacy:
- A location is visible to everyone who can see the note. Instagram says so directly. Checked against Instagram Help Center: Share a note with others on Instagram
- Close Friends changes are silent. People aren’t notified when you add them to the list or remove them, and no one can ask to be added. Checked against Instagram Help Center: Create a Close Friends list on Instagram
To change who is on your Close Friends list:
On iPhone:
- Tap Profile or your profile picture in the bottom right to go to your profile.
- Tap Menu in the top right.
- Below Who can see your content, tap Close Friends.
- Tap Select next to the people you want to add to your Close Friends list. You can also tap Search to search for a friend.
- To remove someone on your list, tap Done next to their name.
- Tap Done at the bottom to save your changes.
Checked against Instagram Help Center: Create a Close Friends list on Instagram.
Android uses the same steps, and on a computer the same list is in Settings.
How long do Instagram Notes last?
Up to 24 hours. After that, the note is no longer visible on Instagram. You can take it down sooner by tapping it and then tapping Delete note, or replace it by leaving a new note. Notes have to follow Meta’s Community Standards, and Instagram says a note that has been reported can still be reviewed after the 24 hours are up.
Checked against Instagram Help Center: Share a note with others on Instagram.
How to reply to or like a note
Tap someone’s note at the top of your inbox or on their profile, then tap Like, or type a reply and tap Send. Double-tapping a note likes it too.
In the Instagram app:
- Tap someone's note you see at the top of your inbox or at the top of their profile.
- Tap Like to like the note, or tap Send message… or Reply to [name], enter your reply and tap Send.
Checked against Instagram Help Center: Interact with notes you see on Instagram.
What the other person gets:
- A like is visible only to the person who shared the note.
- A reply is sent as a direct message and starts a conversation between the two of you only. You’ll find it in your inbox, where you can also change the chat’s background.
Instagram’s article on interacting with notes opens with a caveat: the feature isn’t available to everyone.
On your own note, tap it to see the list of people who liked it, and tap Messages next to a name to start a conversation. Instagram’s Help Center describes this list of likes but no list of who viewed a note. Checked against Instagram Help Center: Share a note with others on Instagram
How to mute or turn off Notes
Instagram documents no setting that turns Notes off. What it does document: you can delete your own note whenever you like, and mute notes from specific people by tapping and holding their note in your inbox. Checked against Instagram Help Center: Mute or unmute notes from someone on Instagram (no Notes off switch found)Not verified
In the Instagram app: mute notes:
- Tap Messages at the bottom.
- Tap and hold a note.
- Tap Mute notes, then confirm your choice.
In the Instagram app: unmute notes:
- Go to a profile that you've muted notes from.
- Tap Following at the top of their profile, then tap Mute.
- Tap the toggle next to Notes to unmute their notes.
Checked against Instagram Help Center: Mute or unmute notes from someone on Instagram.
People aren’t notified when you mute their notes. Notes have their own mute: muting someone’s posts, stories or messages doesn’t mute their notes. Checked against Instagram Help Center: Mute or unmute someone on Instagram For posts, stories and messages, see how to mute people on Instagram.
To keep your own note away from one person, share it with your Close friends list and leave them off it.
Notes are written in Instagram itself:
Plan your Instagram feed posts in Outfeed AI
FAQ
Can you see who viewed your Instagram Note?
Instagram’s Help Center doesn’t describe a list of who viewed a note. It says only you can see who liked or replied to your note: tap your note to see who liked it, and replies arrive as private conversations in your inbox.
How do you add music to an Instagram Note?
In the Instagram app, start a note from your inbox or your profile and tap Add music before you share it. Instagram says music notes aren’t available in all countries, and its steps for instagram.com on a computer don’t include music.
Why can’t I see Notes on Instagram?
You only see someone’s note if they shared it with followers they follow back and you follow each other, or with a Close Friends list you’re on and you follow them. Instagram also says interacting with notes isn’t available to everyone, Notes aren’t available on Meta Quest devices, and muted notes stay hidden until you unmute them from that person’s profile.
How long do IG notes last?
Up to 24 hours, after which the note is no longer visible on Instagram. You can delete yours sooner by tapping it and tapping Delete note, and leaving a new note replaces the current one. A note that has been reported can still be reviewed after the 24 hours.
Can you turn off Instagram Notes?
Instagram documents no setting that turns Notes off. You can delete your own note at any time, and you can mute notes from specific people: tap Messages, tap and hold their note, tap Mute notes and confirm. They aren’t notified.