Instagram Soft Block: What It Is

Last Updated on January 19, 2026 by Ethan

There’s blocking. And then there’s soft blocking. One announces itself loud and clear. The other? Silent. Sneaky. You might not even realize it happened.

The soft block has become Instagram’s preferred method for removing followers without the awkwardness of a full block. And honestly? It’s pretty effective at what it does.

What Is a Soft Block?

Here’s how it works. Someone blocks you. Then immediately unblocks you. Takes about three seconds.

When they blocked you, Instagram automatically removed the follow connection. You stopped following them. They stopped following you. When they unblocked, the connection didn’t restore. You’re both back to being strangers who can see each other’s public content but aren’t connected.

The result? You’re no longer following each other, but neither of you is actually blocked. No dramatic “User not found” message. No inability to view their profile. Just… disconnected.

From your perspective, it looks like you simply unfollowed them at some point. Or they unfollowed you. No indication that anything deliberate happened.

Why People Use It

Blocking someone feels aggressive. Even when it’s justified. Even when you genuinely want someone out of your digital life. There’s weight to the word “blocked.” Drama potential. Questions from mutual friends.

Soft blocking avoids all that.

Is someone been making you uncomfortable in your DMs? Soft block. Don’t want an ex seeing your stories? Soft block. Coworker you’d rather not have following you? Soft block.

The person probably won’t notice. They’d have to specifically check if they’re still following you, which most people don’t do. By the time they realize (if ever), enough time has passed that they can’t be sure what happened. Maybe they accidentally unfollowed. Maybe Instagram glitched. Plausible deniability all around.

I’ve done it. Not proud of that exactly, but some situations call for quietly removing someone without making a thing of it. A friend going through a breakup once soft-blocked her ex’s entire friend group because she couldn’t handle seeing their vacation posts. No confrontation. No explanations. Just peace.

Soft Block vs Regular Block vs Restrict

Instagram gives you options. Worth understanding the differences.

Regular Block

Nuclear option. They can’t find your profile at all. Searching for your username shows nothing. Trying to visit your page from old links shows an error. They know they’ve been blocked. It’s obvious.

Use when you genuinely never want someone to contact you again. Harassment situations. Stalkers. People you want completely gone.

Soft Block

Removes the following connection without cutting all access. They can still see your public posts if they navigate to your profile manually. They can still DM you (unless you also restrict them). But they won’t see your content in their feed anymore.

Use when you want distance without drama. Acquaintances you’ve outgrown. People whose following makes you uncomfortable but who haven’t done anything block-worthy.

Restrict

They can still follow you and see your content, but their comments only appear to them (not publicly), and their DMs go to a hidden folder. They have no idea they’ve been restricted.

Use when you need to manage someone who might cause problems if they knew you’d taken action. Bullies. Trolls. That uncle who comments on weird things on every post.

How to Tell If You’ve Been Soft Blocked

Tricky part. There’s no notification. No clear sign. But some clues exist.

You’re Suddenly Not Following Them

You remember following someone. You’re sure you did. But when you visit their profile, the button says “Follow” like you never did.

Could be a glitch. Could be that you accidentally unfollowed. Could be a soft block. Hard to know for certain from just this.

They’re Not Following You Either

Check if they still follow you. If both directions broke at the same time, a soft block becomes more likely than coincidence. Two accidental unfollows happening simultaneously? Suspicious.

Check Your Tracking Data

If you use a follower tracking tool, you can see when specific accounts unfollowed. A soft block would show as them unfollowing you on a specific date. Cross-reference with your own following list to see if you stopped following them on the same date.

UnfollowGram can help identify this pattern. When someone disappears from your followers, and you notice you’re also not following them anymore, that’s the soft block signature.

The Direct Approach

I mean, you could just ask. “Hey, did you unfollow me?” Kind of awkward. Might get a truthful answer. Might get a “oh weird, must have been a glitch” deflection. Depends on your relationship with the person and whether you really want to know.

Honestly though? If someone soft blocked you, they wanted distance. Pushing for answers might not give you what you’re looking for.

How to Soft Block Someone

Pretty straightforward if you want to do it yourself.

1. Go to their profile
2. Tap the three dots menu
3. Select “Block”
4. Confirm the block
5. Immediately go back and tap the three dots again
6. Select “Unblock”

Done. The following connection is broken, but they’re not actually blocked. Takes five seconds.

Alternatively, Instagram added a “Remove follower” option that achieves half of this. Go to your followers list, find the person, tap the three dots, and select “Remove.” They stop following you, but you still follow them (if you did). To fully soft block, you’d also need to also unfollow them yourself.

The block-then-unblock sequence removes the connection cleanly.

Should You Care If Someone Soft Blocks You?

Hot take: probably not.

If someone wanted to disconnect without confrontation, respecting that distance makes sense. They clearly didn’t want to have a conversation about it. Pushing the issue usually goes nowhere good.

Yes, it stings a little to realize someone deliberately removed you. But social media connections ebb and flow. People change. Interests diverge. Not every disconnection is personal rejection. Sometimes people just want smaller, more curated social circles.

The people who soft-block rather than full-block usually don’t hate you. They just wanted some space. Big difference.

When Soft Blocking Makes Sense

Not advocating for being sneaky constantly. But some scenarios make soft blocking the reasonable choice:

• Removing someone you have mutual friends with to avoid group drama
• Disconnecting from coworkers when changing jobs
• Cleaning up connections from past phases of life (old school friends you’ve completely lost touch with)
• Removing accounts that make you feel bad, but haven’t done anything blockable
• Ex situations where staying connected is unhealthy, but full blocking feels extreme

Context matters. Use judgment. But the tool exists for a reason, and sometimes it’s the right call.

See Who Removed You as a Follower. Try UnfollowGram Free

Track changes to your follower list securely.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between blocking and soft blocking on Instagram?

Regular blocking prevents someone from seeing your profile at all. Soft blocking (block then immediately unblock) just removes the follow connection while leaving profile access intact. They can still see your public content, but won’t see it in their feed automatically.

Can you tell if someone soft-blocked you?

No direct notification. Clues include suddenly not following each other when you’re certain you used to. Using a follower tracking tool helps identify when specific accounts stopped following you, which can reveal soft block patterns.

Does Instagram notify someone when you soft-block them?

No. They receive no notification about the block or unblock. The connection just silently breaks. This is why soft blocking is popular for avoiding awkward situations.

Is soft blocking the same as removing a follower?

Similar but not identical. Removing a follower stops them from following you, but doesn’t affect whether you follow them. Soft blocking breaks both directions at once since blocking and unblocking remove all follow connections.

Why would someone soft-block instead of just unfollowing?

Unfollowing only removes one direction. If you unfollow someone, they still follow you and see your content. Soft blocking removes both connections, so neither person sees the other’s content in their feed anymore.