Among Instagram, many features are the ability to like stories created and posted by other users on the platform.
You can also make stories of your own and share them if you like.
Users are also typically able to like any stories they’ve found particularly interesting and watched on Instagram.
However, frequent users of Instagram’s platform have started asking questions such as whether or not it is possible to (re)view the stories that they’ve already watched and liked in the past.
This interest could be for whatever reason; perhaps there are specific stories on Instagram’s platform that they enjoyed watching so much that they’d like to view them again.
Now, if you’re one of these users, it’s important to note that Instagram has no setting that will make such an action possible.
However, we’ve provided some helpful tips and workarounds that you can take advantage of.
So, keep reading this article to find out how you can see stories you’ve already liked on Instagram’s platform.
How To See Stories You Liked On Instagram
One of the ways you can use Instagram to display photographs or videos creatively is through Instagram Stories.
People browse Instagram stories as if they were a slideshow; you could essentially spend the entire day staring at your phone and seeing these stories.
You can use this function to showcase a variety of creative abilities.
You can add captions in various fonts, special effects (like sparkles or hearts), drawings in multiple colors, polls, filters, quizzes, doodles, music, stickers, or emojis, among many other things.
Now, it’s important to note that stories posted on Instagram only last for 24 hours after they’re created and posted online.
While this typically results in a continuous flow of captivating, transient content, it might be unsatisfying for users who would like to rewatch these stories as often as possible.
However, it’s a good thing that there are several options available if you would like to watch a story that you’ve liked on Instagram in the past.
We’ve described the ones that work best below.
Rewatch All The Stories You Have Viewed
You’ll typically be able to identify the stories you’ve already watched on Instagram by looking at the ring around the poster’s profile.
1. First, open Instagram and ensure you’re on the Home page.
2. You should see several profiles at the top of this page, indicated by the profile pictures surrounded by a rim.
The stories you haven’t already watched will have a colored rim, typically in the pink-to-yellow gradient. As for the stories you’ve already watched, the color will be gray.
Now, how you’ll know that you’ve liked a particular story is that you’ll see a red heart at the bottom.
You can thus rewatch all the stories on your Home page with gray-colored rims, then check to see which ones have a red heat.
This should help you find the exact Story you’re looking for on Instagram.
If You Think You Liked Someone’s Story, Message Them To Confirm
If you can remember the particular Instagram account whose Story you viewed and would like to view again, then one option you have is to send a message to the person.
You can ask the person to send you the content of the Story, especially if you’re both comfortable enough with each other to make such requests.
However, you should note that if you viewed the Story you’re interested in within the last 24 hours, it would most likely still be on the person’s profile so that you can rewatch it from there.
If, on the other hand, a 24-hour period has already elapsed since the person posted it, you won’t be able to watch it again.
You Can’t See Liked Stories Once They’ve Been Deleted
As we stated earlier, it’s important to note that you won’t be able to see or rewatch any stories on Instagram that have already been deleted or past the 24-hour mark.
This is regardless of whether or not you liked these stories.
However, there is an option on Instagram to add stories to your highlights on your profile.
If, by any chance, the Story you’re looking for was added to the highlights on its owner’s profile, you’ll typically be able to view it even after 24 hours have passed.
This will, however, only last until the owner deletes it, after which you won’t be able to see it anymore.
There Is No Setting Where You Can See Liked Stories
It would be best if you also remembered that Instagram has no setting or specialized feature that lets you see past stories that you’ve liked.
The setting is available for liked posts, but Instagram has yet to introduce any such feature specifically for viewing liked stories on the platform.
Just like there’s no dedicated setting to view stories you’ve liked in the past on Instagram, there’s also no setting where you can check stories you’ve viewed before.
Instagram does not offer a list of recently seen stories as it does with recently viewed profiles.
So, if you were hoping to find such a setting on Instagram, you might be out of luck, except if you check via any of the other methods we’ve described in this guide.
Will Instagram Eventually Have a Setting For This?
Instagram is constantly implementing new features that provide even more satisfaction with the user experience on the platform.
While it’s not entirely certain whether or not Instagram will introduce a feature that allows users to see or rewatch stories they’ve previously liked on the platform, it’s not an entirely far-fetched idea.
Instagram seems dedicated to making the social networking platform better for its users.
As such, it’s normal to expect that if enough users hint at the need for such a feature, Instagram will eventually make it available.
If this does happen, however, you should note that users in some regions will typically have the feature available before users in other regions, as is usually the case when Instagram introduces new features.
How To View Instagram Stories
If you don’t already know how to view stories on Instagram, it’s pretty easy.
You can use any of the methods we’ve described below.
From the homepage on Instagram:
- 1. Open the Instagram mobile app, and tap the home icon in the screen’s bottom-left corner to begin viewing Instagram Stories.
- 2. A sequence of circular icons representing the current Stories shared by the persons you follow may be found along the top of Instagram’s home screen once you’ve found it.
- 3. On the very left of the Stories you follow, you’ll typically be able to see your own Story.
- 4. A gradient circle will surround each circular icon you see at the top of your home screen to indicate that the user has just posted a Story.
- 5. When you tap on it, the user’s Story will automatically play and expand before moving on to the next user’s Story.
- 6. Multiple separate images and videos can be arranged in a single Instagram Story according to the sequence in which it was shared.
- 7. Tap the left-hand screen to view older Stories.
- 8. Tap the right to view the most recent Stories.
- The Stories are typically arranged from the oldest to the most recent.
- You can conveniently skip certain Stories you’d prefer not to watch by tapping to the right.
Viewing Instagram Stories Anonymously
If you want to watch Stories anonymously, you can also use an Instagram Story viewer.
If you’re looking for freelancers and don’t want them to notice you first, you might want to consider this option of viewing Instagram stories.
Some Story viewers let you save copies of the Stories automatically, while others charge a fee to save copies of newly added Stories.
Since Instagram stories only remain for 24 hours unless saved to highlights on the owner’s profile, this is especially helpful for any specific story you have liked in the past and would like to save for later reference.
One of those programs is Inflact, which lets you access Stories online without downloading any app.
Any Instagram username can be searched using this program, and copies of the Stories uploaded under that account will appear.
You would only need to create an account to use this tool to access Instagram stories as you please.
How To See Stories You Recently Viewed On Instagram
A few alternatives are available to you if you want to view Instagram stories that you’ve recently viewed.
You can access these stories on your home page if they are Instagram stories from profiles that you follow.
You may navigate through their profile icons and choose the account whose Story you want to see again from the top of your feed (just below the Instagram logo).
You can then tap on the image of the person you saw the Story on if you can recall who it was.
It will play if the Story is still active. If not, the Story will most likely not play.
Look At Stories With Grey Bars Around Them. They Are The Stories You Have Watched
If you’re trying to find out which stories you have recently viewed on Instagram, it’s easy.
Follow these instructions:
1. Access your news feed on Instagram’s homepage.
2. Find all of the people whose stories you are following.
3. You should notice that a pinkish/orange ring surrounds the stories you haven’t already opened.
4. You can reach the end by swiping the stories to the left.
Here, you’ll see more stories, but they won’t be surrounded by a ring or appear grayish on the outer surface.
These are the stories you’re looking for, and the gray-colored rim surrounding them indicates that you’ve already watched them.
You should note that these stories will only remain active for 24 hours, and unless the poster decides to add them to the highlights on their profiles, you won’t be able to see them after 24 hours pass.
What Are Instagram Highlights?
Instagram Story Highlights are compilations of saved Instagram Stories that remain on a user’s profile, unlike Instagram Stories.
This tool lets you share transient content accessible only for up to 24 hours.
Brands and content producers on Instagram frequently use highlights to give their material a second life and add more curation to their profiles.
It’s a terrific location to publish user-generated content, client testimonials, and frequently asked questions (FAQs).
In other words, with the Instagram Highlights feature, you get to post anything that doesn’t exactly fit in the feed but is helpful to your audience.
You can also take advantage of the Highlights feature, as we stated above, to view other people’s stories that you’ve liked in the past.
This is especially if the Story should typically have been deleted because the 24-hour period has passed.
Conclusion
Regarding Instagram’s functionalities, there are more that we wish were already available.
This doesn’t mean that the social networking platform is not already great, but there’s always room for better.
One of such improvements that many users of Instagram probably wish the company would introduce is the ability to view stories they’ve already liked on the platform.
For one thing, the duration of stories on Instagram is short.
Also, with the amazingly creative tendencies of creators on Instagram, it’s normal to encounter specific stories that are particularly interesting, so much so that you can’t stop thinking about them.
If you’d like to rewatch such exciting stories on Instagram – whether you liked them or not – we’ve provided some tips that can help you do that easily.
These tips will typically work, even though Instagram has no custom setting for this specific purpose.
So, feel free to take advantage of all the information we’ve provided in this article to rewatch your favorite stories on Instagram.
Keep enjoying the best of Instagram stories; we’re here for every bit!
