Blocking someone on Instagram is a good way to take control of your engagements on the social media app, but blocking someone you know in real life can make things pretty awkward. After all, they'll know you've blocked them.

Luckily, Instagram's Restrict feature helps you avoid those awkward situations. This article will help you understand what the Block and Restrict features do on Instagram and how they differ so that you can decide which option is best when trying to avoid someone.

What Does Restricting Someone on Instagram Do?

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We know what blocking does—it prevents someone from interacting with you on Instagram and viewing your posts. But what does restrict mean on Instagram and what happens when you restrict someone on Instagram?

To put it plainly, it helps you avoid unwanted interactions with other users without alerting them. Introduced as an anti-bullying feature, restricting on Instagram gives you more control over what comments both you and your followers see on your posts by limiting what restricted accounts can post on your profile.

It's different from muting and blocking someone on Instagram. When you restrict someone in the Instagram app, their comments and messages will be hidden from your profile. It’s like keeping the restricted user behind a privacy window where they can see you, but they can't exactly interact with you as normal, and they don't realize that this is the case.

The tool comes in handy when dealing with repeat bullies who leave negative comments on your Instagram posts and who may harass you in your Direct Messages. Think of it as a soft block—a toned-down version that offers similar capabilities.

How to Restrict Someone on Instagram

There are three methods to restrict a person on Instagram: directly from your comments, through your account settings, and from their profile.

How to Restrict a User From Your Comments

On an Android phone, follow these steps:

  1. Tap and hold the comment from the person you want to restrict.
  2. Tap the information icon (an exclamation point in a bubble) at the top and then the Restrict button.

On iOS, follow these steps:

  1. Swipe left on the comment.
  2. Tap the information icon (an exclamation point in a bubble) and then Restrict.

How to Restrict a User From Your Settings

To restrict a user from your account settings, you can follow these steps:

  1. Go to your profile and tap the three-bar menu icon in the top-right corner.
  2. Go to Settings and Privacy > Restricted.
  3. Now search for the account you'd like to restrict, then tap the Restrict button next to the chosen account.

How to Restrict a User From Their Profile

You can also restrict an account using their profile page.

To do this, follow these steps:

  1. Go to the Instagram profile you want to restrict.
  2. Tap the three-dot menu in the top-right corner.
  3. Select Restrict.

Instagram Restrict vs. Block: How It Affects Access to Your Profile

When you block someone, your Instagram profile is hidden from them. They won't be able to find it if they looked. That means they won't have access to your posts, Stories, and profile information—unless they access your profile through another profile you haven't blocked.

As for you, you'll still be able to view the blocked profile, although it will appear empty. You won't be able to see their profile information and content. If you're concerned that someone's Instagram posts violate community guidelines, you can report their profile on Instagram before blocking it.

When you use Instagram's restrict function on someone, not much changes on their end as they continue to see your profile and posts. They can still view your Stories and feed, and you can see theirs. While there are ways to tell if you are blocked on Instagram, it's much harder to figure out if you have been restricted.

Blocking vs. Restricting: The Effect on Comments

Blocking someone prevents them from commenting on your posts. But when you restrict them, you can both comment on each other's posts. The difference is that the comments from the restricted profile will only be visible to them and no one else.

In other words, they will not know their activity has been restricted. Essentially, they will continue to enjoy the ability to comment on your posts, without these comments impacting you or other followers. As for your comments on their posts, nothing changes. They will still be able to see them.

Toxic comments can cause emotional distress. If you want to enjoy a peaceful experience online, consider filtering toxic comments on social media.

How to View Restricted Comments

The restricted person's comments appear along with others under your post but under a protected message. You will not receive a notification when they comment on your post, so you can only view their comments by opening the post and going through the comments section.

To view the comment, tap See comment. You can then choose to either Approve or Delete it. If you approve it, it'll be visible to everyone, like the rest of the comments. If you delete it, neither you nor the restricted person will be able to see it.

Either way, they will not be notified of the action you have taken.

Block vs. Restrict: How It Affects Messages

When you block someone on Instagram, you can't message each other. But it works differently when you restrict an account.

Here are the implications:

  • A restricted person can message you. However, their messages arrive in the Requests folder.
  • You will not receive notifications when they message you. You will only be able to see their messages if you manually view your message requests.
  • If you do view their message, they will not be notified by the "seen" text in the chat. This means they won't know when you've read the message.
  • If you find yourself in a group chat with someone you've restricted, Instagram will give you a heads-up that you'll see a restricted account's messages. You can then choose to leave the group or stay.

To reply to a restricted person's message, tap Unrestrict at the bottom of the screen. You can also select Delete to get rid of the message. If you do not wish to engage with that person further, tap Block.

Other Differences Between Blocking and Restricting Someone on Instagram

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There are some other differences between blocking and restricting on Instagram. This applies to seeing activity status, tags, mentions, and notifications. Just like the block option, when you restrict someone, you can no longer see each other's active status, so you will not know when they were last online and vice versa.

A person you've blocked can't mention or tag you. However, a person you've restricted can tag you—although you won't be notified. The only exception is when you've placed limitations on who can tag you in your Instagram settings. You can allow only the people you follow to tag you or no one at all.

In these instances, an account you've restricted won't be able to tag you. Unfortunately, you'll be notified when they mention you.

Block vs. Restrict: Will the Affected Person Know?

There is no direct way to know if someone has blocked you. However, there are ways you can find out, like looking for their profile. If you can't find it on Instagram, even though you know that their profile is active, you'll know they've blocked you. You can confirm this by searching for their profile using another Instagram account.

This isn't the case with the Restrict feature though. A restricted person will never know if they have been restricted. Everything appears normal on their end as they can still comment on your posts, send you messages, and view your profile like another user. The difference is only on your end.

If you're dealing with bullies, restricting them isn't the best course of action against them as they can still reach you. Instead, you can hide your social media profiles from bullies to avoid them contacting you. Or better yet, you can block bullies altogether.

How to Block Someone on Instagram

To block a user, go to their profile, tap the three-dot icon at the top-right of your screen, and select Block.

You can also go to your profile > Settings > Privacy > Blocked accounts > plus icon. Enter their account name in the search box and tap the Block button next to it.

Should You Use Instagram Restricting or Blocking to Avoid People?

Your decision to block or restrict someone on Instagram depends on your reasons and how much access you want to give that person to your profile. If you don’t want them to interact with you in any way or to see anything on your profile at all, you should block them.

Just ensure you're okay with them knowing that they've been blocked. If you want to avoid someone without them knowing, then restricting is your best bet.