What Happens When You Archive a Post on Instagram

Picture this: your Instagram profile contains old posts irrelevant to your account. Typically, you would think of deleting such posts. But you might wonder if there’s a way to hide posts on Instagram without deleting them. That’s where the Instagram archive comes into the picture. Let’s learn what happens when you archive a post on Instagram and how to archive Instagram posts.

We have covered what happens to the visibility of posts after archiving them, likes, comments, their place on the feed, and much more. Let’s begin.

What Happens When You Archive Instagram Post

Archive on Instagram means hiding the post or story. When you archive a post on Instagram, it will not be visible to the public. Instagram will move it to the Archived section, which is accessible only to you. Archiving differs from deleting a post, where the post gets deleted permanently. Unarchiving a post means showing the post back on the Instagram profile.

Now that you have understood the meaning of archiving posts, let’s check what happens by archiving a post in detail.

Visibility of Posts

Archiving a post will hide it from your profile grid. That is, your followers cannot see the post when they visit your Instagram profile. However, you can easily see the archived posts in the Archived section of your profile, which is not accessible to anyone else except you. So, if you have been wondering, “Can others see archived posts on Instagram?” the answer is no.

Likes, Comments, and Caption

When you archive an Instagram post, its likes, comments, and caption are retained. You can check them under each archived post from the Archived section. Moreover, when you unarchive a post on Instagram, all three will reappear on the post.

Tip: How to see posts that you have liked on Instagram

Place on Feed

When you unarchive an Instagram post, it will reappear at its original position in your feed without reposting or republishing on your feed. That is, the post will silently reappear. Please remember that the post won’t appear as a new post at the top.

For instance, if you archive a post from Jan 2019, it will show up in chronological order, i.e., between the posts of Dec 2018 and Feb 2019.

Tip: Learn how to rearrange Instagram posts without deleting them.

Can You Share Archived Instagram Posts

No, you cannot share archived posts with others. You will have to unarchive it first to share it.

What Happens to Insights

If you have a business or professional Instagram account, archiving will retain its insight as well. Like other things, you can check the insights even when you archive the post. And the insights will continue to update from the same metrics after unarchiving the post.

What Happens When You Archive a Reel

Archiving a Reel is similar to archiving an Instagram post. That is, the Reel will be hidden from your profile and go to the Archived section. Its insights, comments, likes, and captions will be retained. However, other than that, Instagram will delete the remixes of your Reel and mute any Reel using your Reel’s audio. These will be restored when you unarchive the Reel.

Tip: Learn how to make a reel with photos on Instagram.

How to Archive Instagram Posts on Android or iPhone

Step 1: Go to the Instagram post you want to archive.

Step 2: Tap on the three-dot icon and select Archive from the menu.

The post will immediately vanish from your profile.

How to Archive Instagram Posts on Desktop

Step 1: Open the Instagram website and click on More at the bottom. Select Your Activity from the menu.

Step 2: Choose the Photos and Videos option and click on Select.

Step 3: Choose the Instagram posts you want to hide.

Step 4: Click on Archive at the bottom.

Note: You can check our guide to learn how to unarchive a post on Instagram to see the steps.

Frequently Asked Questions

Hide Posts on Instagram

Archiving offers a great way to organize your Instagram feed. We hope you understood what happens by archiving posts on Instagram. Before you go, know how to delete all Instagram posts.