Instagram is now hiding 'like' counts in Australia, Canada and five other countries

Instagram
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

It began in Canada in May and now it’s spreading. 

Immediately after changes to the photo-sharing platform were announced in April, Instagram began hiding the total number of likes on posts in Canada as a test. The design change meant account owners could see how many likes they have, but nobody else could.

How this change has been received is as yet unknown, but Instagram is expanding its testing ground to six other countries – Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Ireland and Brazil.

Starting July 18, total like counts will disappear from posts on the main feed, profiles and permalink pages. Users will be informed of the change via a message appearing at the top of their feed.

Users will be informed of the changes via a message

Users will be informed of the changes via a message (Image credit: Instagram)

Say goodbye

Instagram has acknowledged that online bullying is a major problem on the platform, and has rolled out two new tools to combat the issue. It also came under pressure when the killer of a teenage girl posted images of her body on Instagram – they were online for hours before being taken down.

According to Mia Garlick, the Director of Public Policy for Facebook and Instagram in Australia and New Zealand, this change is to make the platform less competitive. 

“We hope this test will remove the pressure of how many likes a post will receive, so you can focus on sharing the things you love,” she said in a statement.

While the average user won’t mind too much, this change could affect influencers in a massive way. However, Instagram says the testing won’t impact businesses or influencers as no changes will be made to measurement tools like Insights and Ads Manager, where likes and engagement metrics will continue to be recorded.

Sharmishta Sarkar
Managing Editor (APAC)

While she's happiest with a camera in her hand, Sharmishta's main priority is being TechRadar's APAC Managing Editor, looking after the day-to-day functioning of the Australian, New Zealand and Singapore editions of the site, steering everything from news and reviews to ecommerce content like deals and coupon codes. While she loves reviewing cameras and lenses when she can, she's also an avid reader and has become quite the expert on ereaders and E Ink writing tablets, having appeared on Singaporean radio to talk about these underrated devices. Other than her duties at TechRadar, she's also the Managing Editor of the Australian edition of Digital Camera World, and writes for Tom's Guide and T3.

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