Instagram, like the other social platforms, keeps on bringing amazing new features. If you want to grow your networking on IG, you must know if the people are online. But how to see if someone is active on Instagram? Is that even possible?
Along with creating reels, sending vanishing messages, add multiple pictures in a single story, there’s a feature that tells you when people are online on IG. Here’s a guide that will answer ‘how to see if someone is active on Instagram?’
What is Last Active On Instagram?
Last Active is a distinct feature that Instagram provides its users. When you go to the direct messages section, you will see “Active 58m ago” below their username. This informs you that the person was active on Instagram 58 minutes ago.
You cannot see the last active status of everyone on IG. But you can view the last active status of the people you chatted with earlier on Instagram and those you follow on IG. You cannot see the active status of strangers.
How Do You Know If Someone Is Active On Instagram?
There are two ways to find out if your friend is online on Instagram:
While sharing post
Instagram is an ocean of entertainment. Once you open the app, you can get lost for hours. When you find an apt quote that your friend should read or a reel you want to share with your squad, you send it to them via Instagram messages! How will you know if your friends are active then? When you tap on the Share icon, you will see a list of followers you primarily interact with. You will see a small green dot beside their user icon that represents their active status.
Direct messages
Another feature this platform offers, like Facebook, is the online status of direct messages. Whenever you search for a username on the search icon in your messages screen, you will see a green dot next to their profile picture if they are active. There will be no green dot if they are not currently active on Instagram. When you open your direct messages on Instagram, you will see a green dot next to the user icon of the person. Also, if the person is not active at the moment, you will be able to see their last active on Instagram under their username.
Why Can’t I See When Someone Is Active On Instagram?
As you scroll through your DM list, you will notice that not all your followers have the green dot or the last active status.
What do you think might be the reason?
- Disabled Activity Status
This happens because some of your followers might have disabled their activity status on Instagram. If they choose to hide their activity status, then even they will be unable to see when you are online too.
- You Both Aren’t Following Each Other
Also, to know the active status of a user on Instagram, you need to be following them, and they need to follow you back. In short, if you are not each other’s followers on Instagram, you can’t see if the other person is active on IG. So if you suddenly stop seeing the green dot next to a profile picture you earlier used to, there’s a possibility they have unfollowed you, or they have simply turned off their activity status.
- You Have Turned Off The Activity Status
So if you have turned off your activity status, then you won’t be able to see if your friends are online. Even if they have switched on their online status, you won’t be able to gauge if they are available. Therefore make sure that your activity status is on.
If any of the above conditions are true in your case, you won’t see when someone is active on Instagram.
If you still want to know if that someone is active on IG, then you need to send them a DM and wait for the seen status. But that’s tricky, too, as Instagram lets users hide their seen status on messages as well. So if the person has turned off their read recipients, you won’t know if they have seen your message or are active on Instagram.