Why Can’t I See Comments on Instagram

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Usually, there’s no issue with comments on Instagram, however, sometimes you may be unable to see comments under someone’s post, or you may not be able to see the comment that you posted. There are many reasons why you may be unable to see comments and if you’re in this situation now, then you can check why this is happening.

Why Can’t I See Comments on Instagram?

1. No Comments Under Someone’s Post

If you can’t see comments under someone’s post, it’s because they’ve blocked people from commenting on a particular post. This can be done by clicking on the post options and turning to comment off. This will disable the option to comment on their pictures. If they enable commenting again, then people will be able to comment on their pictures.

If you’re unable to see comments under someone’s post on the explore page, then you can click on the comment box and view the comments from there. On the explore page, comments are not visible unless you click on the comment box, and from here, you’ll be able to view the comments.

2. Can’t See Your Comments on Someone’s Post

If you can’t see your comments on someone’s post, it’s because your internet connection is poor. If you haven’t established a good internet connection, things like likes and comments won’t be able to go through. Therefore, you can try switching from WIFI to data vice versa to see if you’ll be able to restart your connection. If this doesn’t work, then you need to restart your router in order to establish an internet connection to post your comment.

blocked offensive comments

Another reason why you won’t be able to see your comments is that they’ve filtered words or blocked offensive comments. If you post certain comments with words in it, this comment will automatically be filtered and removed once you posted the comment. Or if they’ve blocked offensive comments, if you post a comment deemed as offensive, then the comment will be automatically removed as soon as you post it.

One more reason why you won’t be able to see your comments is because of a glitch on the app. If this is the case, then you’ll need to restart the app and check if your comment is still there.

3. Poor Internet Connection

Another reason why can’t see comments on others’ Instagram posts is that you aren’t connected to the wi-fi. Instagram requires a good internet connection for Instagram to function properly. You’ll need to make sure that your internet connection is strong before you can try and comment again.

If your router isn’t accessing the internet properly, this could stop your device from having a good network coverage which means that you may be unable to see things like comments.

4. Servers Are Down

If the Instagram servers are down, then this could be a reason why you’re not able to see comments. The servers Instagram used to host the Instagram app is down and this allows you to comment and see other people’s comments on posts. When the servers are down in your specific location, it means that people near you can’t see comments as well.

In this situation, you’ll have to wait for the servers to come back up and this can take a few hours. If you know people that are having issues with Instagram at the same time as you, this is how you know that there’s an issue with the Instagram server.

Check if Instagram is down

There’s a website called downdetector that allows you to see when Instagram is having an issue with its server. All you have to do is search, ‘is Instagram down?’. It tells you when there’s a surge in the number of complaints people are making in regards to Instagram not working properly. If you see that the live outrage is concentrated around your location, it looks like you’ll have to wait for the server to come back up again.

5. There Are No Comments

There simply could be no comments under someone’s Instagram posts and you may be looking for them blindly without even realizing. Sometimes it takes time for comments to garner under a post so if you want to see fresh comments you’ll simply have to wait. Other times, there could simply be no comments.

6. They Filtered Out Offensive Comments

They could have filtered out offensive comments which is why you’re unable to see your comments under their post. Instagram gives people the option to remove things like swear words from their comments so if your comment contains something that they’ve removed, then you’re not going to see your comment.

7. Instagram Has A Bug

The main reason why Instagram comments won’t show up on posts is that there’s a bug going on within the app. When there’s a glitch within Instagram, it can cause unexpected errors with a common one commenting not showing up. A glitch is a failure within the software and when this happens, you may see posts that have comments but when you actually go to view them, nothing shows up.

To fix this glitch, then you need to get rid of the error within the app and this can be done in your settings.

1. Open the Settings app. The app icon resembles a gear that is kept against a gray background.

2. On the Settings menu, scroll down to “Apps” and tap on that option.

3. When you’re on the Apps menu, select the “Instagram” app from the list of the apps on your device.

4. Once you click on the app, you’ll have to select the option on the screen that says “Storage.”

5. At the top of the storage screen, you’ll see the Clear Data and Clear Cache options.

6. Select each of those options, one by one.

8. You’ve Been Blocked By Instagram From Commenting

One more reason why you can’t see Instagram comments on posts is that you may be blocked from certain actions on your account within 24 hours. This could be for any number of reasons. For example, if you comment on multiple posts within a short period of time, then your account might have been flagged. This would make you blocked from commenting on posts for a short duration of time. These temporary blocks were enforced to address the complaints about overusing the unfollow option or to prevent others from using features in ways that weren’t intended to be used.

What To Do If You Can’t See Instagram Comments

1. Wait For Instagram To Go Back Up

The first and most simple thing you should do when you notice that Instagram comments aren’t showing is to wait for them to start showing. Waiting for them to show up usually fixes the problem. This could involve you waiting for a few more seconds after clicking the comments button, or it could involve you going back to the post a few hours later.

2. Wait For Them To Come Out With A Fix

If you notice that you can’t see comments on Instagram anymore, you should wait for Instagram to come out with a fix. If you’re noticing that comments are showing, just know that this is a sitewide thing that everyone will be experiencing so the old solution is to wait for Instagram to get rid of the bug.

3. Use Instagram.com

If you want a chance to see comments under Instagram posts, just use Instagram.com. Since the app version and desktop version of Instagram are different, you can check to see if the website version of Instagram has the same problem. To do this, go on Instagram.com, login, and scroll through your feed. When you see a post you’re interested in, click on the comments to see if you can see them.

4. Update Instagram

Since the main reason for this problem would be a bug, the best thing you can do to try and combat this problem would be to update Instagram.

The main reason why an update would be released is to be able to get rid of a bug. If you look at the features of an update, you’ll usually see the term bug fixes. If you haven’t been able to see your comments on posts, this update would fix the bug that’s causing it.

5. Close then Re-open the App to Get Rid Of Bugs

Since there’s an issue within Instagram, you should restart the app to see if you can get rid of the bug. When the app is restarting, things like a bug in the system of the app can be removed simply because it was restarted.

It’s also an easy first step to take and it’ll let you know if there’s a deep issue within the app. After you’ve closed the app from the multitasking switch, you can open it and check if the problem has gone away.

6. Delete Instagram

If the Instagram comments aren’t showing, you’ll need to delete and reinstall Instagram again. This only works if the app has a bug that’s causing you not to see Instagram comments. To delete an app, hold down on it, press the x, then select delete and confirm your decision.

7. Log Out Then Back In

Getting rid of bugs that can cause your Instagram comments not to show can be done by logging out them back into Instagram. Once you’ve logged out, log back in and check if you’re able to see comments. If it has come back, then you know that there was a glitch that caused the comments not to show up.

8. Poor Internet Connection

If you have a poor internet connection, either you’re on mobile data or a slightly slow WiFi network, it can cause problems with comments showing up. To fix any internet issues that cause issues with comments, you can restart your wifi.

If you found that restarting it didn’t work, this means that there’s a problem with your router. In this case, you would either need to restart your router or reset it if restarting it doesn’t work.

9. Clear Instagram Cache

The next thing you need to do is to clear the cache files in Instagram’s directory. Cache files are temporary files that are stored in Instagram’s directory which are saved there to make things load quicker when you do the same action or make that certain action again.

When these files are deleted, you’ll literally notice nothing but a smoother app and the best thing about this is that clearing the cache can get rid of problems that could stop your comments from showing. When you clear the cache of Instagram, it’s basically the same as you deleting the apps then installing it again and logging in.

It basically gets rid of the files that have been saved since the app was installed. To clear Instagram’s cache:

1. Open the Settings app on the iPhone

2. Go to General

3. Go to iPhone Storage

4. Tap on Instagram

5. Tap on Delete App

After you’ve done this, you need to go back to Instagram and install the app again. After it’s installed, log back onto the app and see if you can see comments.

10. Rewrite and Repost Your Comment

One reason why your Instagram comments are showing is that they were never posted in the first place. If you’ve commented a certain word that the user has blocked, then it won’t show up and you won’t be able to see it. If you retype it and get rid of the word that you think is blocked, this might force your comment to show up.

Users can have an automatic filter for spam or offensive comments so if you’ve commented it by accident, then your comments won’t show up. Simply retyping the comments and leaving someone genuine could lead to the comment being posted. Even comments like nice posts have been known to be filtered out by users because of how spammy they are.

11. Space Out Your Comments

If you’ve been spamming Instagram posts with comments in a short period of time, this could raise your eyebrows and prevent your Instagram comments from uploading. This term is also known as shadowbanned and it can cause your comments on people’s posts to never show up.

If you’ve been spamming comments too fast in a short period of time, you may also have been hit with an error message. If you’ve exceeded Instagram’s limit for commenting within a certain time period, you’ll be hit with an error that says you’re blocked from commenting.

This feature was left there to fight spam comments as well as bot comments but some users who leave genuine comments and don’t spam have been slapped with this error by mistake. So if you’ve received this error by mistake, then taking a break from commenting is going to be your best bet. Usually, with this error, you’ll need to wait up to 24 hours before it goes away.

12. Use a VPN to Post an Instagram Comment

Perhaps you find that you can’t comment. This could mean that you’ve been temporarily IP banned. Sure, you could just wait it out, which could take up to a day.

However, for a quick workaround, you can try using a VPN. With a quality VPN, you can mask your IP address, making it seem like you’re using a different device. Hence, your other accounts may be unaffected by the ban as well.

Nonetheless, not all VPNs may be successful in lifting the IP ban. Especially if you’re using a free VPN, which assigns a generic IP address to numerous devices and clients.

13. Reset Network Settings

When you reset your network settings, this will fix any network problems that is causing Instagram comments not to show. Resetting the network settings clears any setting that relates to a network which could fix the app that’s having issues. When you do this, your settings will go back to how there were when you first had your device.

To reset your network settings:

Android:

  1. Go to the Settings app on your Android.
  2. Scroll to and select General management or System
  3. Tap either Reset or Reset options
  4. Tap on Reset network settings.

A confirmation will pop up, tap on ‘Reset Network Settings’ again to confirm your decision. This will reboot your device and once it’s back on, go back into Instagram and check if you can see comments.

iOS:

  1. Go to the Settings app
  2. Tap on General
  3. Click on Reset
  4. Click on Reset Network Settings

14. Contact Instagram Support

App developers frequently release new versions of their apps that include a variety of bug patches and new features. You should return to the Google Play Store or the App Store and see if an update is available. If you still can’t see your Instagram comments, you should contact Instagram support. If an update for the program is available, make sure you install it as soon as possible. Often, this is sufficient to resolve the situation.

David Johnson is a freelance writer with 9 years of experience writing for Techzillo and other established tech outlets like iMore. His focus and key interests are Apple and accessibility as well as consumer technology in general. Read our Editorial Guidlines and Fact Checking process.

1 COMMENT

  1. This is useless. The app version and desktop version are not different. Instagram.com is now mobile-first like IMDb, so it looks terrible and doesn’t work well on desktop browsers.

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