Instagram stories are temporary photo or video posts that disappear from an account after 24 hours. If a user doesn’t add them to their highlights, they could then be lost for good. However, there are certain tools that help you watch them remotely. For this reason, many people wonder how to view Instagram stories anonymously.
Viewing stories in secret allows you to stay private while also keeping an eye on profiles similar to yours. This can be a great source of inspiration, but you must always be ethical with how you watch these stories. There are still some profiles that even an online story viewer cannot see, particularly ones with high privacy settings.
Can You View IG Stories Without Logging In?
Instagram typically relies on accounts logging in to view story posts. This is because they give a full list of story viewers to the original poster to show their overall reach. There are ways around this, letting you see any publicly accessible Instagram stories anonymously. Here are the main ways you can view private stories:
1. Use Online Tools
There are various online services that can help you view Instagram stories or even save them to your device. Story viewers usually work in-browser, but some apps also offer this feature. You may prefer online story viewers for safety reasons, however, as they don’t ask you to download anything. This is the only way to view stories without an account.
2. Make a New Account
An easy way to stay private when viewing stories is to create a second account with no personal information. This means that even if a user wants to see who viewed their story, they won’t know you saw it. To make another account, follow the same steps you used for your main profile. You may even use the same email address, as you can connect this with up to five accounts.
3. Activate Airplane Mode
Your device’s airplane mode allows you to view stories without internet access. However, your mobile device needs to load the story before you activate airplane mode. Wait until a red ring is visible around the account’s icon while on their profile. Once you view and click away from the user’s story, you should force-close the app before turning the Wi-Fi back on.
How To View Instagram Stories Anonymously on Desktop
You can create and access a second Instagram account on the desktop site. The only detail you must provide will be an email address, though you can substitute this with a phone number. The site does ask for your full name as well, but you won’t need to give your real one. Story viewers will also work over desktop, especially since most of these tools are only available via browser.
As with the mobile app, you cannot view IG stories without logging in. This is still the case even for accounts with a public profile. It is also not possible to turn off the computer’s internet access and watch a story using the desktop version. If you try this, it will simply fail to load for you. This means a story downloader might be the only way forward without setting up a second account.
How To Save Instagram Stories
As the name suggests, an Instagram story downloader lets you save Instagram stories to watch them later. Saving them also lets you build a mood board of user-generated content that inspires you. However, this is only possible if you have enough storage on your device. Some accounts post dozens of photos and videos to their story daily, which can take up a lot of space.
You should only use a story downloader if you have ample space on your phone or computer. If space is a concern, many of these tools let you watch the story without downloading. Viewing it first can also give you a chance to see if a story is too private to save. When trying to work out how to view an Instagram story anonymously, these services are perhaps the only reliable way.
Should You Secretly View or Download Instagram Stories?
Some people try to watch Instagram stories for unethical reasons. This might include spying on people they dislike or stealing content ideas from rival brands without an online paper trail. You should only watch someone’s story posts anonymously if you have a good reason.
For example, you might want to check out gift ideas for your partner or a close friend. Knowing how to anonymously view Instagram stories lets you see what they have their eye on without them knowing.
Instagram users have the ability to limit their audience. For example, they can make their profile private or only share stories with their Close Friends. This is when users curate an exclusive list of people who can view stories and posts that others cannot see.
Generally, public accounts with a public story know that anyone with an Instagram profile could view their posts. With this in mind, you might not even need to stay anonymous when viewing stories.
If you want to know how to view someone’s Instagram story anonymously, you should be asking for the right reasons. Many people choose stories over posts specifically because they expire in 24 hours. For this reason, they might not be comfortable with somebody saving them.
The Benefits of an Instagram Story Viewer
Tools that remotely view and download active stories can help you in a number of ways. Though the specific features depend on the site you use, there are some common benefits. Here are the main advantages of Instagram story downloaders and viewers:
• No 24-hour limit: The greatest benefit of Instagram story viewers is being able to watch a story after it expires. They help you preserve photos before they disappear.
• Offline viewing: Similarly, a third-party app also lets you view photos and videos without an internet connection. Once you download them, they’re on your device.
• Anonymity: Story viewers only need the profile’s username to start loading (or downloading) a story. This means you can be sure that the account won’t know you viewed it.
• High-quality media: Story viewers take the photo or video directly from Instagram. This means the end result has better quality than a screenshot or screen recording.
• Bulk downloads: These programs and websites can download a profile’s entire current story at once. This is convenient if the user often posts content that inspires your own.
• Highlights: Your Instagram story viewer may be able to save highlights from an account. These are stories that the user decides to make permanently visible on their profile.
Can You Watch and Save Private Account Stories?
You are only able to watch a private profile’s story if you follow their account. There are no ways around this, and story downloaders will also be unable to access them. In fact, these third-party tools cannot view private stories even if you follow the poster. This is in part because most story viewers don’t ask users to sign in. They only ask for the story poster’s name.
Tools that ask you to sign in might be able to use your account to watch the story. However, this may come at a cost to your anonymity. If you follow the story’s poster, you can ask them to send the photo or video over DMs. You will then be able to save it to your device in its original quality. This does mean it isn’t possible to view private stories in secret, however.
Somebody with a private account most likely has their reasons for locking it. If you send them a follow request to access their story, and they decline, make sure to respect this. Screenshots or screen recordings can still help you save stories from private accounts. However, there might be a loss in quality, and screen recordings may not include device audio.
Figuring out how to view Instagram stories anonymously can help you privately view and save a profile’s stories. The tools and services you use on Instagram will define your experience of the platform.
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