• News
  • Life
  • TV & Film
  • Beauty
  • Style
  • Home
  • News
    • Celebrity
    • Entertainment
    • Politics
    • Royal Family
  • Life
    • Animals
    • Food & Drink
    • Women's Health
    • Mental Health
    • Sex & Relationships
    • Travel
    • Real Life
  • TV & Film
    • True Crime
    • Documentaries
    • Netflix
    • BBC
    • ITV
    • Tyla Recommends
  • Beauty
    • Hair
    • Make-up
    • Skincare
  • Style
    • Home
    • Fashion
    • Shopping
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
Submit Your Content
What the order of who views your Instagram stories actually means

Home> Life> Life hacks

Updated 14:42 27 Jun 2024 GMT+1Published 14:39 27 Jun 2024 GMT+1

What the order of who views your Instagram stories actually means

This could be the meaning behind the order of your Instagram story viewers

Mia Williams

Mia Williams

The meaning behind the order of Instagram story viewers has been revealed, and it might reflect how you use the app.

What order Instagram story viewers are in is an algorithm that has puzzled us since the feature was launched back in 2017.

Some have argued it’s totally random, whilst others have come up with elaborate theories based on data and analytics.

However, there are a couple of possible theories which make more sense, considering story viewers tend to land in a similar spot everytime.

Advert

The Instagram algorithm has puzzled people for years. (Illustration by Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
The Instagram algorithm has puzzled people for years. (Illustration by Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Instagram has never confirmed an official order, but based on logic and experiments, this could be as close as we’re going to get.

The platform has switched its algorithms up a lot in recent years.

The feed used to be in chronological order, but Instagram shook things up to place a heavy emphasis on what the user wanted to see first instead.

How does Instagram determine the order of story views?

Based on experiments, there are two possible algorithms that make a lot more sense than the others:

  1. The list of Story viewers is shown in reverse chronological order until there have been more than 50 viewers.
  2. After 50 views, Instagram then pushes those accounts who you have interacted with the most at the top. But here’s the catch: profile views are allegedly given the heaviest weight in this equation, according to the research.

But that still leaves us very much in the dark.

Advert

What we are slightly more clued up on, however, is the order in which you are presented with stories to watch.

According to Social Media Week, Paige Thelen Cohen, who works in tech communications at Instagram, said: “Similar to the feed, Stories are ordered based on which moments you’ll care about most.

"The order is determined based on a number of signals." (Getty stock image)
"The order is determined based on a number of signals." (Getty stock image)

“The order is determined based on a number of signals, including: 1) the likelihood you’ll be interested in the content, 2) timeliness of the posts, and 3) your relationships to the person posting.

Advert

“The technology is powered by machine learning, which is adaptive to your behaviour and improves over time.”

Does the order really matter?

A much wider question that ties in nicely with all of this, is asking ourselves why we really care.

It seems to be our inner stalkers who love to know who might be a little bit obsessed with us.

Advert

The only thing we can say for certain is that people are dying to hear from Instagram themselves how they order it.

Come on Insta, divulge the info will you!

Tyla has contacted Instagram for comment.

Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Image/Tyla

Topics: Instagram, Technology, Hacks

Mia Williams
Mia Williams

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

a day ago
4 days ago
  • TikTok/@cbspittsburghTikTok/@cbspittsburgh
    a day ago

    Couple make horrifying discovery in the basement of their new ‘dream’ home

    Lynn Rae Wentworth and her husband thought they'd found the home of their dreams, only for it to turn into a nightmare

    Life
  • TikTok/@kristin_schnackyTikTok/@kristin_schnacky
    a day ago

    Daughter of firefighter killed on 9/11 left in tears on wedding day after surprise from his colleagues

    Kristin Marino has gone viral after she honoured her late dad in the most special way on her wedding day

    Life
  • Getty Stock ImageGetty Stock Image
    a day ago

    Reason why your skin sometimes turns red while drinking alcohol

    ZBiotics says this unwanted side effect often comes hand-in-hand with a heart rate increase, headaches, or nausea

    Life
  • Getty Stock ImageGetty Stock Image
    4 days ago

    New study reveals why 'healthy' people have heart attacks and strokes

    Paul Ridker - preventive cardiologist at Mass General Brigham's Heart and Vascular Institute - opened up on the unnerving correlation

    Life
  • Doctor has warning for anyone who keeps watching their own Instagram Stories
  • What Donald Trump signing order to end US birthright citizenship actually means
  • People seriously confused after realising what ’40% chance of rain’ actually means
  • The colour of your wee could actually reveal how stressed you are