How to Delete Suggestions on Instagram

Since Instagram wants you to stay connected with all your contacts, you will receive suggestions for other Instagram accounts in almost every part of the app. While Instagram Suggestions can be helpful, they also tend to include users you don't plan to engage with. Whether you want to protect your privacy or just want to clear your suggestions list, you need to know how to delete suggested accounts on your Instagram.

In this article, we will see how to remove suggestions on Instagram on iPhone and Android devices. This includes suggested followers, suggested discussions in direct messages, and search suggestions.

How to Delete Suggestions in Instagram Posts

Almost every time you scroll through your Instagram feed, the “Suggestions for you” banner will appear between two posts. It's a horizontal list of accounts that Instagram suggests you follow. Although there is no way to remove the banner, you can remove each suggestion manually by tapping the "X" in the upper right corner of each profile area. But, when you remove three recommendations from the banner, three more will appear.

You have the option to tap on the “Show All” tab in the upper right corner of the banner. This will direct you to a list of all Instagram accounts recommended for you. Although you can see your suggestions here, you won't be able to delete them.

Suggestions may also appear in your private messages. However, this usually only happens to Instagram users who don't have many chats in the direct messages tab. Therefore, one of the easiest ways to remove suggestions from your direct messages is to simply chat with more Instagram users. However, this may not be an option for everyone, especially private accounts that don't have many followers.

There is a workaround to remove suggestions. This involves clearing your mobile device's Instagram cache.

iPhone

To clear the cache on Instagram, all you need to do is delete the search history on the app. However, this may not remove suggestions from your messages. If you want to clear Instagram cache from your iPhone, the only way to do that is to delete and reinstall the app. Here's how it's done:

1. Press and hold the Instagram tile on your home screen.
   
2. Select "Delete Application" from the context menu.
   
3. Confirm that you want to delete Instagram.
   
4. Go to the App Store.
   
5. Search Instagram.
   
6. Reinstall the app.
   
7. Log in to your account again.
   

There should no longer be suggestions in your direct messages on Instagram.

Android

Unlike iPhones, Androids allow you to clear your Instagram cache without having to delete the app. Follow the steps below on how to do this:

1. Open "Settings" on your Android device.
   
2. Go to the "Storage" tab in the menu.
   
3. Switch to “Other applications”.
   
4. Locate "Instagram" on the app list and tap it.
   
5. Select "Clear cache" on the app details page.
   
6. Confirm that you want to clear the cache.

It is more or less that. When you return to the app, you will notice that there are no more suggestions in your direct messages.

How to remove search suggestions on Instagram

When you search for a particular account on Instagram, it won't be added to the "Recents" list unless you go to their profile. If you want to delete your search suggestions, you can do this in two ways. One method requires you to go to your "Search" tab and delete the suggestions manually. The second method is to clear your entire search history from your "Settings".

iPhone

To remove your search suggestions from Instagram on your iPhone, here's what you need to do:

1. Open Instagram on your iPhone.
   
2. Tap the magnifying glass icon in the bottom menu.
   
3. Go to the "Search" tab at the top of the screen.
   
4. Tap the "X" next to each search suggestion.
   
5. Select the "See all" option in the upper right corner if you want to delete all your search suggestions at once.
   
6. Continue to "Erase everything" in the upper right corner of your screen.
   
7. Select the "Erase All" button in the pop-up window.
   

The next time you access the "Search" bar, you will not have any search suggestions. There is another way to clear your search history on Instagram. Follow the steps below on how to do it on an iPhone:

1. Launch Instagram.
   
2. Tap your profile picture in the lower right corner of the menu.
   
3. Select the three horizontal lines in the upper right corner.
   
4. Choose "Settings" from the list of options.
   
5. Switch to the “Security” tab.
   
6. Go to "Clear search history" at the bottom of the screen.
   
7. Tap the “Erase All” option in the upper right corner.
   
8. Confirm that you want to clear your search history.
   

Once you clear your entire search history on Instagram, you can't undo it. When you start searching for different Instagram accounts and accessing their profiles, they are added to the “Recents” list again.

Android

If you want to remove search suggestions in Instagram on your Android, here's what you need to do:

1. Open the Instagram app on your Android.
   
2. Go to the magnifying glass icon in the bottom menu.
   
3. Tap the "Search" tab at the top of the screen.
   
4. Manually remove each search suggestion by tapping the "X" next to their usernames.
   
5. Go to the "Show All" option if you want to delete all your suggestions at once.
   
6. Switch to the "Erase All" button in the upper right corner of your screen.
   
7. Confirm that you want to clear all your suggestions.
   

That's all we can say about it. If you want to go further, you can clear all your search history on Instagram. Here's how it's done on an Android:

1. Open the app.
   
2. Tap the person icon in the lower right corner of the screen.
   
3. Continue to the three horizontal lines in the upper right corner of your profile.
   
4. Select the "Settings" tab from the menu.
   
5. Choose the “Security” option.
   
6. Switch to "Search History" at the bottom of the list of options.
   
7. Go to "Erase everything" in the upper right corner of the screen.
   
8. Confirm that you want to clear your search history.
   

It won't take long for Instagram to clear your search history, no matter how many profiles you've searched so far.

Delete unnecessary suggestions on Instagram

There are many reasons why you might want to delete suggestions from your private messages or search history. Whether it's for privacy reasons, to remove users you're unlikely to follow, or if you want to make your feed more organized, deleting suggestions isn't difficult. But no matter how many times you delete recommendations, Instagram will continue to suggest new ones.

Have you ever deleted suggestions on your Instagram account? What method did you choose to remove them? Let us know in the comments section below.