Looking for a way to revisit the Instagram reels you enjoyed a while ago? If so, you've come to the right place. Although Instagram Reels is a relatively new feature on Instagram, people have quickly fallen in love with it. It allows you to create a video montage of your best moments and share them with your followers. But watching other people's reels is the perfect way to introduce yourself to new ideas and appreciate their creativity.
Although Instagram has not yet developed a built-in tool that allows you to quickly view your viewing history, you can still extract your entire viewing history in a few simple steps.
How to View Your Instagram Reels Watch History
Let's see how you can go about it.
Solution 1 – Request your account data file from Instagram
Social media has provided us with free archives of not only our best moments, but also special moments in the lives of others.
Once something has been uploaded to social media, it can stay forever. It may seem like an invasion, but in reality, it means you always have the chance to relive those special moments. And that's certainly true when it comes to Instagram Reels.
Instagram maintains a detailed account activity report for each user on the platform. You could call it your activity log – a report that details everything you've done on Instagram. Everything is documented, from the moment you log in to the moment you log out.
The report contains the details of all the reels you have watched on your account. Getting your hands on the report means you have links to all those videos.
To view your account report, you must submit an official request to Instagram. Here's how:
- Log into your Instagram account on a PC. If you don't have the Instagram desktop app, a browser like Chrome or Internet Explorer will work just fine.
- Click on your profile avatar in the upper right corner of your screen. This should open your profile management page.
- Select "Settings" from the drop-down menu. You should see an expanded settings menu on the left side of your screen.
- Click on “Privacy and security”.
- Scroll down to "Data download".
- At this point, a new window should open asking you to provide an email address through which you would like to receive your report. This does not have to be the address you used when registering on the platform. However, be sure to provide a valid address that you can access without issue.
- Once you have entered a valid email address, click "Next".
- You will be prompted to enter your Instagram account password.
- Click "Request Download" to complete the process. After that, the Instagram support team will dive into your records to generate your account report. The process may take a few minutes or more, depending on how active you are on Instagram.
- Once you have received an official email from Instagram, click "Download Info".
- You will be prompted to enter your account credentials to confirm your identity. Enter the details and then press the "Connect" button.
- You will now be taken to a new page giving you a brief summary of the type of information you are about to download and some tips on how to use it. Click "Download Information" when you're ready to continue.
- Once the file is successfully downloaded, double click on it. This should unzip the file and display a list of folders containing your data.
- Double-click on the folder named "Content".
- Scroll down to the Content submenu and click on the file named "reels.html". This should open a list of links to every Reel you've ever watched.
- To watch a given reel, simply run the link on a browser.
And that's all. This method can be time-consuming, but it's a surefire way to view your watch history.
Solution 2 – Tracing your recorded reels
One of the best things about Instagram Reels is that it comes with a save button. You can save the reels that steal your heart and watch them whenever you want.
Here's how to access your saved content:
- Sign into your account.
- Tap your profile avatar in the upper right corner of your screen.
- Tap the hamburger icon to open your content management section.
- Press "Recorded". At this point, a new page should open where you should see all of your saved posts on one side and your saved reels on the other.
- To watch any of your saved reels, just tap on it.
Even if you're not sure you've saved the specific reel you're looking for, accessing your saved posts only takes a few moments, so it's well worth the effort.
Solution 3 – Tracing your loved reels
You may have given reels worth rewatching a “like” after watching.
Every time you like a Reel, Instagram's algorithms take note and store this information in your account settings section. Therefore, you can easily see all the reels you liked with just a few clicks. Here's how:
- Sign into your account.
- Tap your profile avatar in the upper right corner of your screen.
- Tap the hamburger icon to open your content management section.
- Tap the "Settings" icon at the bottom of your screen.
- When the settings section opens, select "Account" from the available options.
- Once the accounts page opens, scroll down and tap "Post Liked". This should open a new page that shows all the posts and reels you've liked since you first signed up.
- To watch a Reel, just tap on it.
Relive your best moments
Instagram comes with a ton of great features, but there's no official way to view your Watch Reels history. Instead of relying on luck and hoping that those old gems will reappear, you can dig through your archives and search for them.
First, you can file an official account data request with the Instagram support team. This method works best if there's a whole bunch of reels you'd like to watch but don't have time to search for them one by one.
Alternatively, you can go to your settings section and view the reels you have saved or liked. Chances are you'll find the video you're looking for, especially if you're used to leaving a reaction or commenting on videos you fall in love with.
Have you tried accessing your Instagram Reels video history using any of the methods described in this article? How was it?
Let us know in the comments section below.
