Facebook Live and Instagram Live are great ways to connect with your fellow social media users. However, to know when someone is broadcasting live, you need to enable live notifications for Facebook and Instagram. In this article, we explain how to do that.

There are several advantages to tuning in live, like having the opportunity to ask questions in real time, chat live with other viewers, and potentially be invited to broadcast alongside the person you're watching. So here's how to turn on notifications.

How to Enable Notifications for Facebook Live

On Facebook, you can set your Live notification settings both generally and for specific pages. If you're sick of notifications, see how to turn off Facebook Live notifications. Everyone else should read on...

How to Enable Facebook Live Notifications

Facebook video notification settings
  1. Log in to Facebook and click the dropdown arrow in the top-right.
  2. Click Settings.
  3. Select Notifications on the left navigation.
  4. Click Video, then slide each option On or Off as desired.

How to Enable Facebook Live Notifications for Specific Pages

Facebook page video notification settings
  1. Go to the Facebook page you want to receive Facebook Live notifications for.
  2. Hover over the Following button.
  3. Next to Notifications, click the pencil icon (edit button).
  4. Under Posts, if Standard or Highlights is selected then you will receive Live video notifications from the page. Alternatively, click Off to never receive any notifications from that page.

How to Enable Notifications for Instagram Live

By default, Instagram live video notifications are turned on for all accounts.

Unfortunately, there isn't a way to selectively turn these notifications on and off by profile. Instead, you can simply keep them all turned on, or you can turn them off by doing the following:

  1. Open Instagram, go to your profile and select the three horizontal lines in the top-right.
  2. Tap Settings.
  3. Tap Notifications.
  4. Select Live and IGTV.
  5. Select Off or On depending on your preference.

How to Go Live on Facebook

You should now know how to enable (and disable) Live notifications for Facebook and Instagram. However, if you're sick of watching and would rather broadcast yourself, here's how to go live on Facebook (and the hidden risks).