Had Enough of Instagram? Your Complete Guide on How to Delete Your Instagram Account Plus Other Options to Consider Before Deleting (2020)

It may be difficult to bid goodbye to the colourful and addictive world of Instagram. But, there are certain factors which may force you to make the decision: the common ones being waste of time, too much indulgence in the digital world cutting you off from the real world, you losing your privacy, threat to your account, password, location, etc. Also, the pressure of getting more likes, a lot of data getting wasted, missing out on the precious moments of life, relationships getting affected and the FOMO syndrome getting on your nerves can be some of the other reasons which can compel you to hit the delete button on Instagram.

If you just want to take a break from Instagram, then simply deactivate your account which will hide your account, your profile, photos, followers, comments, and likes from the other users. Whenever you want to restore all the information, you can simply log back into your Instagram account. However, once you delete your account, you lose all your account information, photos, followers, likes, etc. Also, you or anyone else will not be able to use your current username in the future.

An Instagram account can’t be deleted from within the app, so you need to visit the Instagram page from your computer or the web browser of your mobile. Log in to your Instagram account on Instagram. If you can’t remember your username or password, then try to login with your Facebook Id, else use the Forgot Password option.

Before deleting your account, if you want to review your Instagram data, then you can do that from your computer or mobile phone. For reviewing your account from your computer or laptop you need to click on your profile picture which appears on the right side (topmost corner) of your Instagram page, then click on settings or you can also go to your profile and click on the settings icon. Then click on Privacy and Security, scroll down to Account Data and then click on View Account Data. You can also view a specific type of data by clicking on View All. Similarly for android or iPhone users, you need to login to your profile and click on the three horizontal bars, then tap on Settings > Security > Access Data and View All for a specific type of data.

For downloading your data, go to your Profile and click on Settings or the gear icon. Then click on Privacy and Security (Security in mobile phones) followed by Data Download and then click on Request Download. Instagram will ask for the e-mail id where you’d like to receive the data. After entering your e-mail id, click next and then done. Within 48 hours you’ll receive an e-mail titled Your Instagram Data. Open the mail, click Download Data and follow the instructions to finish the download.

So you have reviewed your Instagram Data, downloaded it, and now decided to permanently delete your Instagram account. To delete your Instagram account, go to Instagram and log in to your account. Go to the Delete Your Account section and click on the drop down menu to select the reason for leaving.

It’s good to tell the correct reason for leaving Instagram so that your feedback is heard and Instagram can take necessary action or maybe provide you with an alternative. The various options include privacy concerns, can’t find people to follow, too many ads, created a second account, too busy/too distracting, want to remove something, trouble getting started or something else.

If Instagram provides a solution to your problem due to which you are leaving Instagram, then do consider it and evaluate if that can deter you from deleting your Instagram account, else re-enter your password and click on Permanently Delete My Account button.

If you are using more than one accounts on Instagram with a single login, then also you can remove a particular account. Simply log in to your Instagram account on Instagram on a web browser on your PC or mobile and go to your profile. Then tap the three horizontal bars followed by Settings or the gear icon. Click on Login Info and click next to the account you want to remove. Click on Remove and your particular account will no longer appear, though your other Instagram accounts will remain active.

Similarly, to delete a different account, go to the Delete Your Account Page, click on the gear profile next to Edit Profile and choose Log Out. Now log back in the account which you want to delete and then follow the directions for the deletion of your account.

If you change your mind and want to continue with your Instagram account, then you can contact Instagram within 30 days from the date of raising the account deletion request. After 30 days, your account and all the related information will be deleted and can’t be retrieved by you. It may take about 90 days to completely delete all the data from the date you raised the deletion request. Also, Instagram can keep the copies of your information even after 90 days to recover in the event of any unforeseen circumstances, legal issues, etc.

If you are apprehensive about the privacy of your data and it’s one of the main reasons that you want to delete your Instagram account then you should know about the ways to keep your data safe. You can use a cloud storage service to backup your important data and choose a service that can automatically encrypt your files. Changing your passwords from time to time also helps in securing your data.