Social networking platforms can be inspiring and keep you connected but it can also be toxic. Many people swear by feeling better, happier, and less anxious after taking a self-imposed social media detox, whether temporarily or permanently. This, however, could be harder with Instagram, which involves a lot of precious photos uploaded through the years. In this article, you will learn how to delete your Instagram account without losing your photos thereafter.

Make a Backup of Your Instagram Photos

If you are thinking of kissing your Instagram account goodbye for good, wouldn’t you like to download everything you have ever uploaded onto the photo-sharing platform first, for sentimental and documentation purposes maybe? Fortunately, getting a copy of all the photos and even the comments you have posted on Instagram is not impossible. Simply follow these simple instructions.

Open the Instagram app on your mobile phone.

Click on the profile icon on the bottom right corner of the screen.

Choose the menu icon on the topmost right part of the app.

Tap on the gear icon below for the Settings.

Choose Request Data Download option under Privacy and Security.

On the email address you used to create your Instagram account, you will receive a message notifying you when the download is finished along with a link to the files with your requested data. A little caveat: the entire process may take as long as 24 hours, so make sure you are not waiting for an important call for you may not be able to use your mobile device fully during that time.

Instaport is an online application that allows you to conveniently download your Instagram posts and have them available for posting on other social media platforms such as Facebook or Twitter. You just have to connect Instaport with your Instagram account, give it permission to access your files, and to begin the download. Your Instagram data will be ready in a ZIP file after.

How to Deactivate Your Instagram Account Temporarily

If you are only looking for a short social media break and are still planning to come back to Instagram after a few weeks of no scrolling and double-tapping on anything, Instagram gives you the option to disable your account for the meantime.

To temporarily disable your Instagram account, all you need to do is:

Open Instagram.com on a browser, not from a mobile application.

Log into your Instagram account.

Click on the profile icon on the topmost corner of the screen.

Select “Edit Profile” option.

Click on the option that says “Temporarily disable my account.”

You will be asked to choose from an array of reasons that explains why you wish to disable your Instagram account.

Confirm this step by providing your Instagram password.

Choose “Temporarily disable my account.”

After this, your Instagram account along with your photos and the comments you have posted on other users’ accounts will automatically be hidden from everyone else. They will become visible again once you decide to come back from your social media hiatus and reactivate your Instagram account again.

How to Delete Your Instagram Account Permanently

On the contrary, if you have made up your mind and have finally decided to walk away from Instagram for good, here is a step-by-step procedure on how to delete your Instagram account forever.

Open the Instagram's Account Deletion page on your browser.

Log into the site with your credentials.

Select a reason that explains why you are leaving the Instagram community.

Confirm this irreversible step by entering your Instagram password.

Choose “Permanently delete” at the bottom of the page.

Again, if you are contemplating taking on this route, make sure you have downloaded all your picture-perfect Instagram moments first. (Refer to how to download your Instagram photos section above.)

More importantly, once you have successfully deleted your Instagram account, you will not be able to reactivate it and/or have the option to reuse your old Instagram username should you wish to make a come back. You will have to create a new Instagram account, choose a brand new handle, and start everything from scratch.

How to Hide Instagram Photos Without Deleting Them

Okay, while we are at it, now that you know it is possible to hide your Instagram account temporarily and then bring it back to life again, you may be wondering if it is possible to make specific Instagram photos disappear out of everyone’s view for the moment and then have them back on your feed once the dust settles.

An excellent example would be if you and your boyfriend broke up and you would like to purge all trace of your relationship from your Instagram feed but at the same time you still prefer to have the option to put them back on in the event that it was just a false alarm, if you know what I mean. This feature is also applicable for risque photos that you regret posting but not really. #sorrynotsorry

For all of these situations, there’s the Instagram archive feature. This lets you hide a post temporarily in the archive and then unarchive it whenever you feel like it. To do this cool Instagram trick, follow these steps.

Open the Instagram app on your mobile device.

Go to your own profile.

Tap on the particular Instagram post you want to archive.

Click on the three dots icon found at the top right of the post.

Choose Archive.

This automatically makes your post vanish from your Instagram feed.

How to Unarchive an Instagram Post

Now, bless the minds behind Instagram for understanding the ever-changing minds of its users. Whether you have only accidentally archived a post or you feel it is time to put it back out there, here is how you do undo and unarchive an Instagram post.

Open the Instagram app on your mobile device.

Tap on your photo to open your own profile.

Choose the clock-like icon at the top right corner of the screen.

This will take you to your Archive page which shows all your Instagram memories.

There is a drop-down prompting you to choose between Stories or Posts.

Choose post you wish to unarchive.

Select the “Show on profile” option, and voila! It’s back on your Instagram feed like nothing happened. If you want to remove it for good, choose to delete instead.

Interestingly, aside from finding all posts you have chosen to archive, this secret section also stores automatically archived IG stories which you can save, republish again as a story, or share as a post.

Date: February 1, 2019 / Categories: Tips, / Author: Rich Drees