I have been using Instagram for over ten years. In those ten years, I’ve followed, unfollowed, liked, saved, and shared more posts than I can count. It must be in the hundreds of thousands. Through all my activity on Instagram, an algorithm was born about who I am and what I like, categorized specifically for me through artificial intelligence.
At this point, Instagram knows me as a Taylor Swift-loving, book-loving, liberal mom from middle America with a penchant for cooking videos and 90s nostalgia. So what if I want Instagram to forget all about it? What if somehow my algorithm takes a weird turn and I don’t know how to get it back to normal? What if every ad you saw on your feed was a gross misrepresentation of everything you were actually interested in?
What if you realize food culture is toxic, or change careers, or you’re in an echo chamber?
What if you just changed?
In the past, you really had two options when it came to controlling the algorithm. First, you can tell Instagram that you don’t want to see these types of posts and actively seek out other types of content, or start over with a new account.
Now, Instagram will make everything easier for you and let you reset your algorithm.
Meta announced the changes in a blog post. The company is currently testing the ability for users to reset their recommendations. Once cleared, you’ll find posts on the Explore page, Reels tab, and your main feed that you might not have encountered before, and you might have missed posts that you saw under the previous algorithm.
Now, this is not to say that the concept of algorithms has completely disappeared. You just start over. Again, the app will learn your habits over time and start showing you personalized content based on your activity and the pages you follow.
If you redo it carefully, this new algorithm may be better than the old one.
How to reset the Instagram algorithm
Once the option rolls out to your phone, you’ll find it in Instagram settings. Open the app, click on your profile, then click on the hamburger menu in the upper right corner. Scroll down and click Content preferences under “What you see,” then click the new Reset suggested content option.
Before you pull the trigger, Instagram will warn you that the reset can’t be undone, and you’ll see posts you wouldn’t normally see. As an added deterrent, Instagram will recommend that you unfollow certain accounts rather than reset your recommendations entirely.
If you’re ready to start over, select “Reset suggestions” and click the option again in the pop-up window. Instagram will return you to the main feed with a subtle alert confirming that your suggested content has been reset.
This feature is especially helpful for parents of teenagers, who may find that their children’s social media footprints have drifted away from them.
“In addition to recommendations, we offer a range of tools to help teens shape their Instagram experience,” the press release states.
“For example, teens can switch to “Follow Sources” to view content from accounts they follow in chronological order, viewing the most recent posts first. Or, they can add accounts to a favorites list so they follow them more frequently users see content from these accounts higher up in their feeds, and when they want to get a quick overview of their posts, they can see only their favorite content dedicated updates.
The version continues, “Features like Close Friends give teens more control over who can see their Stories, while the ‘Your Activity’ section in Settings lets teens view and manage their previous stories in one place. All interactions, giving them more control over their digital footprint. We also encourage teens to regularly review their following lists to make sure the accounts they follow are still the ones they like to see content from.
If you’re ready to start over (and who isn’t right now?), be patient! New features will be rolled out slowly.
