How to Follow Hashtags on Instagram

Following hashtags on Instagram transforms your feed from just a stream of people you know into a custom discovery engine for your specific interests. It's a simple, powerful way to find new creators, stay updated on topics you care about, and gather inspiration directly within the app. This guide will walk you through exactly how to follow hashtags, what to expect when you do, and how to use this feature as a smart tool for personal discovery or brand growth.

Why Following Hashtags Is a Game-Changer

You already know hashtags are essential for getting your content seen, but consciously following them is an underutilized strategy for curating what you see. Think of it as telling the Instagram algorithm, "Show me more of this." It's an active way to personalize your experience and make the platform work harder for you.

The Core Benefits

• Find New Content &, Creators: The most obvious benefit is discovery. Following a hashtag like #urbanjungle or #homebakery will surface top posts and reels from accounts you might never have found otherwise, connecting you with an entire community built around that interest.
• Stay Current with Trends: For marketers and business owners, following industry-specific hashtags is like having a real-time trend report. Following #socialmediamarketingtips or #videocontentstrategy helps you monitor conversations, see what's resonating with audiences, and spot new ideas as they emerge.
• Conduct Market &, Competitor Research: You can follow your own branded hashtag to find user-generated content (UGC), but you can also follow a competitor's. Watching what their audience posts gives you unfiltered insight into their community's sentiment, common questions, and how people interact with their products.
• Spark Content Inspiration: Creative block is real. When you're not sure what to post, scrolling through a relevant hashtag feed can be a huge source of inspiration. See what formats are performing well, what questions people are asking, and what visual styles are catching on in your niche.

How to Follow a Hashtag on Instagram: The Step-by-Step Guide

The process itself is incredibly straightforward and takes less than a minute. Once you know where to look, you'll be curating your feed in no time.

Here’s exactly how to do it:

1. Open the Search &, Explore Page: Launch the Instagram app and tap the magnifying glass icon at the bottom of your screen to head to the Explore page.
2. Use the Search Bar: At the top of the screen, tap the search bar. This is where you’ll search for users, audio, tags, and places.
3. Navigate to the 'Tags' Tab: Below the search bar, you'll see several tabs: "Top," "Accounts," "Audio," "Tags," and "Places." Tap on “Tags.” This filters your search results to show only hashtags.
4. Enter Your Hashtag: Type the hashtag you want to follow into the search bar (without the # symbol). As you type, Instagram will display a list of matching and related hashtags, along with the number of posts for each one.
5. Select Your Hashtag: Tap on the hashtag you want to follow from the search results. This will take you to that hashtag’s dedicated page, which features a grid of "Top" and "Recent" posts using that tag.
6. Tap the "Follow" Button: At the top of the hashtag page, right below the hashtag itself, you'll see a prominent blue “Follow” button. Tap it. That’s it! The button will change to say “Following,” confirming you've successfully followed the hashtag.

What Happens After You Follow a Hashtag?

Once you start following hashtags, you’ll notice a change in your main feed and your Stories bar. Unlike following a person, where you see virtually everything they post, Instagram is a bit more selective about hashtag content.

Your Curated Feed Experience

• Content in Your Main Feed: Instagram will begin showing you a selection of top-performing posts from the hashtags you follow. These posts will be mixed in with content from the user accounts you already follow. You'll know it's a hashtag post because it will say "From #[yourhashtag]" underneath the account's username.
• Stories in Your Stories Bar: Similarly, you'll see curated stories from the hashtags you follow in your Stories bar at the top of your feed. These collections will have a multi-colored ring and display the hashtag icon.
• It’s Quality Over Quantity: A huge plus is that Instagram doesn't show you every single post with the hashtag. Instead, its algorithm selects popular and recent posts it thinks you will find most engaging. This prevents your feed from being flooded with low-quality or spammy content, a common issue on the "Recent" tab of a hashtag page.

Managing Your Hashtag Feed

If you see a post from a hashtag that isn't totally relevant to you, you can give the algorithm feedback. Simply tap the three-dot menu (...) on the post and select "Not Interested." This helps Instagram learn what kind of content you prefer and will refine what it shows you from that tag over time.

How to See and Unfollow Hashtags

Tastes change, and a hashtag that was once useful might become too noisy or irrelevant. Here’s how to manage the list of hashtags you’re following and clean it up when you need to.

1. Go to your Instagram profile by tapping your profile picture in the bottom-right corner.
2. Tap the “Following” count at the top of your profile.
3. On the “Following” screen, you'll see two categories: "People You Follow" and a less obvious category right next to it, often without a title or just indicated by an icon. One of the top-level filters will be "Hashtags." Tapping this will show you a full list of every hashtag you currently follow.
4. To unfollow one, simply tap the “Following” button next to the hashtag. It will switch back to “Follow,” and it will be removed from your list. Easy as that.

Best Practices for a Strategic Hashtag Following Strategy

Simply following hashtags is easy. Using them strategically to grow your brand, business, or personal account takes a little more thought. Here’s how to level up your approach.

1. Choose Your Hashtags Wisely

Don't just follow the biggest, broadest tags. The more specific you get, the more value you’ll receive. Mix and match different types of hashtags for a well-rounded strategy.

• Niche &, Community Tags: These are the goldmines. Instead of following #coffee (over 170 million posts), try following #pourovercoffee (~2 million posts) or #thirdwavecoffee (~3 million posts). The content will be more focused, and the community more engaged.
• Industry Tags: Stay on top of professional conversations. If you're a graphic designer, following tags like #logodesignprocess or #brandidentitydesign can provide both inspiration and networking opportunities.
• Branded Tags (Yours and Theirs):
  • Your Brand: Absolutely follow your own branded hashtag. It's the best way to catch user-generated content (UGC) in the wild. Make it a daily or weekly habit to check in, engage with people who post, and ask for permission to re-share their content.
  • Competitor Brands: Follow the branded hashtags of 2-3 key competitors. It provides direct insight into what their audience is saying about them, what features they love, and what issues they face. That’s priceless market intelligence.
• Location-Based Tags: For local businesses, following location-based hashtags like #brooklynbrunch or #chicagofoodie is a smart way to find local customers and influencers to engage with.

2. Use Followed Hashtags for Active Engagement

Following hashtags shouldn't be a passive activity. Set aside time each week to use your curated feed for proactive community building.

Finding conversations to join

When a post from a followed hashtag appears in your feed, don't just scroll past it. Jump into the comments! Leave a thoughtful, non-spammy comment that adds to the conversation. Ask a question, offer a compliment, or share a related experience. This is one of the most organic ways to get your account noticed by people who are already interested in your niche.

Identifying Potential Collaborators

Following niche hashtags in your industry will quickly reveal the key players - the creators, influencers, and brands that pop up again and again. Track these accounts. See who gets consistent engagement. These could be future partners for collaborations, shoutouts, or other partnerships.

3. Turn Inspiration Into Action

Your followed hashtag feed is a living mood board. When you see a post or Reel format that performs really well, save it to a collection. When you notice a question being asked repeatedly in the comments, use it as a prompt for your next post or story. Treat this new, curated content stream not just as something to consume, but as a rich source of data to inform your own content plan.

Final Thoughts

Following hashtags on Instagram is a simple feature that provides enormous value. It allows you to transform your feed into a powerful tool for discovering new ideas, connecting with communities, monitoring industry trends, and finding user-generated content for your brand. It’s an easy win for anyone looking to have a more intentional and rewarding experience on the platform.

Staying on top of inspiration from dozens of hashtags and turning it into a consistent content plan can be a lot to juggle. We actually built Postbase to simplify exactly that. I personally use our visual calendar to drop in ideas and links to posts I've discovered through my followed hashtags. This lets me plan out a month of engaging content without feeling overwhelmed, ensuring my content strategy is always fresh and connected to what my community is talking about.