How to Turn Off Active Status on Instagram (2025 Guide)

Ever feel like Instagram is a little too good at letting people know when you’re online? That tiny green dot next to your name in DMs, yep, that’s your active status.

It tells your followers and friends when you’re online or when you were last active. If you’re seeking a bit more privacy like me or just want to scroll in peace without being seen, turning off your active status is a smart move. I also turn it off when I want to scroll through the feeds for getting content ideas or enjoy my favourite Instagram Reels.

Here, I will break down how to turn off active status on Instagram and why it might be the best move for your digital well-being.

Key Takeaways

• Instagram’s active status feature shows when you’re online or last active, indicated by a green dot in DMs. It was introduced to make messaging more real-time, but many users prefer more privacy.
• Turning off your active status helps you browse Instagram without others knowing you’re online, and it also hides their activity status from you.
• To disable Instagram active status on mobile:
• Go to Settings and Privacy > Messages and Story Replies > Show Activity Status
• Toggle it off
• To disable active status on desktop: Go to Settings > Privacy and Security
• Toggle off Show Activity Status

Follow these steps to turn off active status on the Instagram mobile app.

• Open the Instagram app on your Android phone.

• Tap your profile icon (bottom right).

• Tap the three horizontal lines (top right).

• Select Settings and privacy.

• Scroll down to How others can interact with you. Tap Messages and story replies.

• Tap Show activity status.

• Toggle Show Activity Status OFF.

By disabling the activity status, other users will no longer see your online status as well as the last time you visited Instagram. Hence, you can keep your privacy intact.

Following are the steps to hide or turn off the active status on Instagram:

• Open Instagram on a web browser.
• Click on the More button found on the bottom left of the screen.

• Choose the Settings from the pop-up.

• Scroll the settings panel to reach the Message and Stories Reply option.

• In the new window, click on Show activity status on the right bar.

• Toggle the button to shut down the activity status on the Instagram website.

What Happens When You Turn It Off?

• No one can see when you’re online or your last active time.
• But you also won’t be able to see others’ active status

Related article you may like to read: How to See Viewer List on Instagram Highlights

Turning off your active status is a small tweak that can make a big difference in how you use Instagram.

Instagram, being a highly popular social media platform, provides you with all the necessary tools to keep your experience intact and secure in this highly inflated digital world. Besides dismissing the online status, you can also have your hands on some other privacy measures, such as private account creation or archiving posts for an enhanced experience.