How to See Interactions on Instagram

Want to see exactly who's engaging with your Instagram content and how they're doing it? Moving beyond just counting likes and followers helps you understand what truly resonates with your audience so you can create better content. This guide covers how to see every type of interaction on Instagram, from basic comments and shares to deeper insights on your Stories and Reels.

Why Tracking Instagram Interactions Matters

Monitoring your interactions isn't just about stroking your ego, it's a fundamental part of a successful social media strategy. When you pay attention to who likes, comments, shares, and saves your content, you gain valuable information about what your audience enjoys. This feedback loop is essential for refining your content, building a genuine community, and ultimately, growing your brand. High interaction rates also signal to the Instagram algorithm that your content is valuable, which can lead to increased reach and visibility.

Think of it this way: a "like" is a simple nod of approval, but a "comment" is a conversation starter. A "share" is a personal recommendation, and a "save" means your content is so useful that someone wants to return to it later. Each interaction tells a different story about your impact.

The Basics: Finding Your Core Engagement Metrics

Let's start with the interactions you can see publicly on any post. While simple, these form the foundation of your engagement analysis.

Reviewing Likes and Comments on Individual Posts

This is the most straightforward way to see direct feedback on your photos, videos, and carousels.

• To see likes: Navigate to one of your posts. Below the image or video, you'll see "Liked by [user] and others." Tap on this text to see the full list of users who have liked the post.
• To read comments: Simply scroll down below the caption. You can reply directly to comments here, delete them, or pin your favorites to the top of the thread. Pinning a positive testimonial or a comment that sparks great conversation can keep the engagement going.

Tracking New Followers

Your follower count is a broad metric, but seeing who recently followed you can offer clues about which content is attracting new people.

1. Tap the heart icon (Activity Feed) in the upper right-hand corner of your home screen.
2. This feed will show you a running list of your most recent followers, along with recent likes and comments on your posts.

Keep in mind that this feed is chronological and doesn't store notifications forever, so it’s best for getting a quick snapshot of recent activity.

Going Deeper: How to See Saves, Shares, and Profile Visits

To see the most valuable types of interactions, you'll need an Instagram Business or Creator account. If you're still on a Personal account, making the switch is free, fast, and gives you access to a wealth of powerful analytics. These "behind-the-scenes" metrics signal higher intent from your audience.

How to Find Saves and Shares with Instagram Insights

Saves are a powerful indicator that your content is highly valuable - whether it's educational, inspirational, or entertaining. Shares act like a personal endorsement, introducing your content to new audiences.

Here’s how to find these metrics:

1. Go to one of your specific posts.
2. Below the image or video, tap the View insights button.
3. A screen will pop up with detailed analytics for that post. You will see several icons:
   • The paper airplane icon represents Shares. This is the number of times your post was sent to someone via direct message.
   • The bookmark icon represents Saves. This shows how many different users have bookmarked your post to their private collections.

Pay close attention to the posts with high shares and saves. Can you create more content in a similar style or on a similar topic? These are often your best-performing pieces of content, even if their like count isn't the highest.

Understanding Your Overall Account Insights

Your Professional Dashboard provides a high-level view of how people are interacting with your profile as a whole, not just individual posts.

1. Go to your profile page and tap on the Professional Dashboard bar at the top.
2. Under Account insights, tap See all.
3. Select a timeframe (like the last 30 days) to view your performance data.

Here you'll find key metrics like:

• Accounts Reached: The total number of unique accounts that have seen your content.
• Accounts Engaged: The total number of accounts that have interacted with your content.
• Profile Activity: This includes valuable data like Profile Visits, Website Taps, and Contact Button Taps. These metrics show if your content is successfully driving people to learn more about you or your business.

How to See Interactions on Instagram Stories and Reels

The rules for interactions change with ephemeral and short-form video content. Here’s how to track engagement on Stories and Reels separately.

Tracking Story Interactions

Instagram Stories offer countless ways for your audience to engage, from simple views to direct replies and poll participation. Here's how to see it all:

1. Open your current Story by tapping your profile picture on the top-left of your home screen.
2. With your Story on screen, swipe up.
3. This will reveal the Story’s analytics. On the left side (with the eye icon), you can see a list of everyone who has viewed your Story.
4. On the right side (with the chart icon), you can see deeper interactions, including:
   • Replies: Any text replies to your Story will appear here and in your DMs.
   • Sticker Taps: If you use interactive stickers like Polls, Quizzes, Sliders, or Question Boxes, the results and responses will appear in this section.
   • Shares: See how many times your Story was shared with other users.

Remember that Stories expire after 24 hours, but you can always access their insights later by viewing them in your content Archives.

Finding Interactions on Instagram Reels

Reels are one of the most powerful tools for reach on Instagram, and their insights tell a detailed story of performance. Like regular posts, you need a Business or Creator account to see detailed metrics.

To check Reel interactions:

1. Navigate to a Reel on your profile's Reels tab.
2. Tap the three dots (...) at the bottom of the right-side menu.
3. Select View insights.

Here you'll find all the standard metrics like Likes, Comments, Shares, and Saves. You will also see specific video metrics, including:

• Plays: The total number of times your Reel has started to play.
• Reach: The number of unique accounts that saw your Reel.
• Watch Time and Average Watch Time: These show you how long people are watching, giving you a strong idea of how engaging your video is. High watch time is a positive signal to the algorithm.

A Pro Tip: See Shared Activity With a Specific User

Ever wanted to see your interaction history with a single follower, client, or creator? Instagram has a hidden feature that makes this easy.

1. Go to the profile of the person you want to check your history with.
2. Tap the three dots (...) in the top right corner of their profile.
3. Select See shared activity from the menu.

A new screen will pop up showing a history feed of the likes, comments, and tags you've exchanged with that specific account. It's a fantastic tool for creators who want to build stronger relationships with their most engaged followers or for businesses keeping track of interactions with brand partners.

Final Thoughts

Tracking your interactions on Instagram is the best way to understand your audience and improve your content strategy. By looking beyond simple vanity metrics, you can discover what truly motivates your followers to engage - whether it’s saving an educational tip, sharing an inspiring Reel, or replying to an interactive Story.

We know how challenging it can be to keep up with every comment, Story reply, and DM across the app, especially as your account grows. That’s precisely why we built the engagement features in Postbase. Our unified inbox centralizes all your messages and comments in one clean dashboard, so you can respond to your community quickly without missing conversations or constantly switching between screens.