You might have clicked the likes on your picture or someone else’s photo for that matter and wondered how the Instagram likes list is ordered.
It may appear to be the people you follow at first then you come to realize that you don’t know the order from thereon.
You’d think that the list would be ordered in chronological order or ordered by who you followed recently but Instagram doesn’t make this clear enough, unfortunately.
Some people always seem to be at the top of the list whenever you check the order of your likes on Instagram and you don’t know why this is.
The Instagram Likes order is mostly based on who you interact with the most. Even though Instagram has not confirmed how likes are ordered you can tell as the people you’re closest with are on top however some factors can sway this.
If you’re trying to stalk your crush you might wonder why some names appear at the top of that list. This article will give you an insight into how Instagram likes to order things in general.
By the end of this article, you should be able to tell who has been stalking and who is on that list because you interact with them the most.
Instagram Likes Order
Now the Instagram likes list order is based on several factors. Instagram has not yet put out a statement on how they order things.
I know as much as you do but I have done some tests and gathered data based on what I have seen on all of my Instagram accounts.
The information gathered is also what other people have said so the data is very conclusion.
I have already mentioned that your likes a majorly based on who you are following. You will notice this whenever you click on someone else’s photos who has a lot of mutual followers with you.
This can be frustrating, however, when you start to scroll down and see random people you may wonder why they’re there.
If you are looking at someone else’s likes then there is no conclusive way to tell why they’re there. But here are several reasons why you may be seeing some people closer to the top.
The people you see closer to the top when you’re looking at someone’s likes are people who you interact with the most. This is a true statement even if you’re on someone else’s likes.
If you think you have no association with this person then it will be based on if they are following people you follow or if the people they follow have mutual friends with you.
You can see how it can start to get confused but it’s simple when you started to look into it more and more.
1. Who You Follow
Now the most important ranking factor when it comes to your Instagram likes is the people you are following.
I have already mentioned that whenever you click on the likes of a photo, the algorithm puts the people you follow first.
If you have never noticed this then go on one of your pictures and go on the likes. You will see the people you follow first.
Once you have scrolled down enough you will start to see the people you don’t follow. This didn’t use to be the case.
Remember there was a time when you didn’t you would see your likes based on the order they were liked in.
The algorithm has now massively changed. If you go on someone else’s likes and you are not following anyone who has liked their post then the people at the top would be the people with the most mutual friends.
You can test this out yourself but it will be hard finding someone with who you have no mutual friends but you can have my word that this is how it works as I have seen it myself.
2. Mutual friends
Now I have been talking about mutual friends but this is where I go more in-depth. Mutual friends only come into effect when you’re looking at someone else’s likes and not yours.
If you’re stalking someone and you think the people at the top of the list are the people who they interact with the most then you would be wrong.
If you are not following anyone who has liked their post then the people arranged at the top are people who are following people you might be following.
The Reason Instagram ranks your likes in this priority first is because they think you might want to see people who might know a few people you know first.
This makes sense as you would be more interested in people who have some connection to you. However, for stalking purposes, this isn’t ideal as you usually want to see users who are interacting with your crush more.
If the users on the like list don’t have mutual friends then the algorithm will base the order on if they are following anyone that has mutual friends to you.
3. Interactions
Another big factor that comes into play when looking at the order of someone’s likes is the number of interactions you have had with said person.
Once you scroll past the list of people who liked a photo you will start to see people you don’t follow and here you will be able to see people you have interacted with the most and who have interacted with you.
By interactions, I’m talking about things like how many posts you have liked and how many of your posts they have liked. If you have also commented on some of these persons’ pictures then this will also count as an interaction.
The more interactions you have with this person the higher they will show up on someone’s likes list but they will never beat the people you follow as this always takes priority.
If you don’t want this person appearing at the top of any list then you can unlike their post and stop interacting with them.
This is if you don’t want other people seeing them when they look at your likes but it is unlikely to be in the same order
These are some of the reasons why you see certain accounts at the top of someone’s likes list.
4. People That Follow You
The people that you follow will always show up at the top of someone’s likes list. If you’re looking at your own likes list you will still see the people you follow at the top of your list.
This is because you’re most likely to be interested in the people you follow when you look at the likes list. You will be more inclined to be curious as to how both accounts know each other.
This was designed for more engagement on Instagram’s part. They changed the Instagram algorithm to get more engagement and therefore get more users however people still disagree with the order of the likes and following list.
The people you follow will always have the heaviest weight on who appears on the likes list as Instagram sees this as the biggest indicator of the people you have most in common with.
People who view your likes list will also see the people they follow at the top of the list as opposed to the people you follow.
If you don’t want to see these people there you can either choose to unfollow them or scroll down until you don’t see the people you’re following.
5. Do Stalkers Appear in The Likes List
Many users speculate on whether stalkers or people who snoop on your account appear at the top of the following and likes list. This has been on a lot of people’s minds but here’s the truth.
Stalkers or people that view your account a lot do not appear at the top of the likes list. However, this is not to say that people who interact with you are not stalkers.
People who interact with you the most also appear near the top of the likes list so this sort of means that they snoop on you. By this, I mean that they like your posts a lot and maybe view your account a lot but this will not override the fact that you follow them.
If you don’t follow them and they appear at the top below the people you follow then this might indicate that they stalk you but this is a loose term since you’re probably interacting with them a lot hence I use the word stalking or snooping.
I wouldn’t necessarily say that stalkers appear at the top of the likes list but it would just be that they interact with you a lot.
This doesn’t negate the fact that they could or couldn’t be stalkers. This hasn’t been confirmed by Instagram so I can’t give a straight answer.
6. People You Recently Followed
As I have mentioned before people you follow have the biggest ranking factor on the order of the likes list. People you have recently followed are also factored into the algorithm of the Instagram likes list.
This is because the people you have recently followed are the people who you may be more interested in since they are the people who you most likely are currently interacted with.
If you have just recently followed someone you will be more likely to see them at the top of the list of someone’s likes. This is only factored in if there are barely any people you follow who liked the post.
The person who is at the top of a list is usually the person you have been following for the longest amount of time.
If people you haven’t been following for a long time haven’t liked that post this means that the person you recently followed will most likely show up at the top.
People you recently followed are most likely going to be the people that you last remembered so you would be more interested to go on their profile when you see them like a post. This was Instagram’s thought process when deciding how to order
7. Number of Posts
The number of posts someone has also has an influence on where someone is placed on the likes list. You may be confused as to why but I think this was a smart play on Instagram’s part.
The reason someone with many posts will appear near the top of your likes list is that they are more active on Instagram. The more active someone is on Instagram the more likely you are to engage with them.
Having a lot of posts also indicates that you will be more interested and view one of these posts which is why Instagram sorts the list in a way that will show these people near the top.
Posting a lot of posts also indicates that your account has more authority. It also indicates that you have been on Instagram for a longer period of time so your account will be more valuable to people who view it.
This ranking factor is one of the less deciding factors on how Instagram sorts the like list. The more predominant liking factor is if you’re following the person.
The number of posts will only be a ranking factor if you’re not following the person and you don’t have much else in common on that list.
You’re more likely to be scrolling on that person’s page for longer which again increases engagement which is usually what Instagram wants.
8. Verified Accounts
Verified accounts are always shown as a priority when it comes to the order that things are based on which includes your likes, comments, and followers.
No matter which of these you’re looking at, you will always see verified accounts on the top of any of these lists. For example, if you go in a celebrities comment section, you will see verified accounts at the top.
The same goes for when you are looking at the likes on your post and the likes on someone else’s post or picture. You will always see an account with a blue checkmark at the top of these lists.
The reason you see these types of accounts at the top of any list is that these accounts are more popular meaning you’re more likely to know who they are or be interested in why they have a blue tick.
This leads to more engagement. This however doesn’t override the fact that you will see the people you follow first before you see any of this. Verified accounts are also way more likely to get clicks rather than a normal ones.
9. Number of Followers They Have
Similar to verified accounts, accounts with a lot of followers are also more likely to be at the top of the likes just based on the fact that they have more followers.
You will notice that a lot of the factors are also based on who you will see on someones following or followers list so they are closely tied together, This is how the algorithm works in general overall.
People with a lot of followers usually have content which explains why they have a lot of content. They usually have a lot of posts such as reels that are engaging which is why a lot of people follow them.
The reason why other people followed this may also be the reason why you might end up following them which is why Instagram will prioritize showing this person at the top of the list as opposed to someone who barely has any followers.
This person is also more likely to have mutual followers since they have a lot which means they could have more in common with you than the average person.
Someone That Tagged You in Photos
People that always tag you in photos or that have tagged you in a lot of photos are usually at the top of the likes on someone’s posts because it shows that you actually know them personally.
The reason Instagram wants to show you, people, you actually know personally is because you are able to relate to that person when you see their account and you are more likely to engage with each other on the post that you just liked.
You are also more likely to talk about the post you guys both liked so if you are able to see that they liked it this means that you can converse on it.
Also, Instagram is better off showing you someone you have something in common with than someone you have nothing in common with.
People who tag you in photos or videos most likely know you in real life so Instagram wants you guys to connect more over their platform which is why they prioritize showing you as opposed to someone else.
Why is The Same Person Always at The Top
The person who is always at the top is usually the person that you are currently following and who you engage most with.
You will always notice that the people to who you send messages the most and whose photos you like and comment on will always be at the top.
This goes back to what I was saying. Instagram will always show you the person first who you will most likely engage with.
This can change often if the person you interact most with changes but it is very unlikely to be the person who stalks you the most based on the things I’ve seen using Instagram and trust me I have had Instagram for up to 10 years so you can trust my analysis.
Are Likes Based on Who You Interact With The Most
This is another ranking factor that has a large influence on who you see at the top. This is one of the ranking factors that make more sense as you would be more likely to want to see someone you are always interacting with.
However, might also make the least sense as to why would you want to always see someone with who you are always interacting with anyone.
You would want to see people who might be going on your profile more but Instagram would probably never do this as it might be breaking some privacy laws.
However, they may do it one day and never release the information to the general public.
Now back onto interactions. If you have never messaged or liked someone’s post then the chances of you seeing them at the top of the likes list is very rare.
Only people who you interact with based on likes and sent messages will appear more to the top. You will notice this yourself, it’s always mostly your best friends that are at the top of likes.
Conclusion
Hopefully, after reading this article you now have a better idea of how Instagram sorts the likes list. The different aspects of the algorithm go into who decides to be shown in what order.
The people who have the biggest weight at the top will be the people you follow. These will always be the people you see first at the top of the list because you have the most in common with them.
The second-ranking factor will be the people who you have mutual friends with. By mutual friends, I mean the people you follow that also follow them. You will see these people’s names in their Instagram bio.
After all of this, the people you will see are the people who have a lot of posts or people you recently followed used to follow. People you used to follow are on par with people you recently followed.
If you want to know more about how the algorithm works on Instagram then keep track of who you see when you click on your likes or someone else’s likes. You will first notice that you see the people you follow first.
