--- title: "How to Hide Comments on Instagram, and When to | Karobar" url: https://karobar.io/guides/hide-comments-on-instagram language: en description: "How to hide comments on Instagram with Hidden Words and your own word list, when to hide, delete or answer, and a ten-minute daily comment routine." --- Guide # How to hide comments on Instagram, and when you should Hidden Words, a starter word list for shops, and when hiding helps or hurts. Updated 15 October 2026 · 4 min read Spam links, fake giveaways, rude remarks from a competitor: every growing Instagram account gets comments it would rather not show. Instagram gives you several ways to hide comments, from one at a time to automatic filters. This guide explains how to hide comments on Instagram, how Hidden Words works, when hiding is the right call and when it is not, and how to keep up when comments pile up across several accounts with [Karobar](https://karobar.io/features/comments-engagement). ## Hide, delete or answer? Hiding takes a comment out of public view without a scene. Deleting removes it for good. Answering keeps it visible and shows everyone how you treat customers. A simple rule of thumb: | Comment | Usual action | | --- | --- | | Price or stock question | Answer, or move it to a DM | | Fair complaint | Leave it visible and reply calmly | | Rude but not threatening | Hide | | Spam link, scam, fake giveaway | Hide or delete | | Threat or someone's private details | Delete, after taking a screenshot | More on drawing the line is in [How to moderate comments on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube](https://karobar.io/guides/moderate-social-media-comments). ## Hidden Words: automatic filters Instagram's [Hidden Words](https://help.instagram.com/700284123459336) setting hides comments for you before you see them: - **Hide unwanted comments.** A built-in filter hides comments with common offensive words, phrases or emojis. It is on by default. - **Your own words.** Under Settings, Hidden Words, add your own words, phrases or emojis, separated by commas. Instagram hides comments on your posts and message requests that contain them. - **Quietly.** Hidden comments still count in your comment total, and the person who wrote one is not told. - **Phone only.** Instagram notes the setting is not available in web browsers. When Instagram [introduced its anti-abuse tools](https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/introducing-new-tools-to-protect-our-community-from-abuse), it said common misspellings of words on your list are hidden too, and that public accounts can allow comments only from people they follow or who follow them. ## A starter word list for shops Most unwanted comments on shop accounts follow the same patterns. Add words like these to your custom list and adjust them over time: - **Spam and scams:** "DM for collab", "promote it on", "check my bio", "crypto", "investment". - **Fake giveaways:** "you won", "claim your prize", "winner selected". - **Competitor bait:** the names of rival shops that people use to pull your customers away. - **Abuse in your language:** the insults common in Urdu, Roman Urdu or Arabic, which the built-in filter may not know. Do not filter real questions Avoid words like "price", "fake" or "late". People use them in honest questions and complaints, and hiding those costs you sales and trust. ## Hiding comments from one inbox Filters catch the obvious cases. The rest still need a person, and that is easier when every comment sits in one place. In the Karobar **Comments** inbox you can reply to, hide, delete or like Instagram comments next to those from Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube, and assign comments to teammates. - **Karobar AI sorts them.** With comments switched on in AI Replies, it flags spam and unhappy comments and drafts replies to real questions, so the buyers are not buried under the noise. - **Answer, then move to DM.** A price question can get a private reply with your link, by hand or with a [comment to DM automation](https://karobar.io/guides/instagram-comment-to-dm). - **Nothing is automatic unless you say so.** Karobar AI never hides or deletes a comment by itself; a person decides. Setting up the AI side is covered in [Turn on AI reply drafts](https://karobar.io/help/turn-on-ai-reply-drafts). ## What to write instead of hiding Many comments that feel like trouble are better answered than hidden. A calm public reply shows every other visitor how you treat customers. Some examples you can adapt: | Comment | A reply that works | | --- | --- | | "Is this fake?" | "Fair question! Every piece is checked before it ships, and you can pay on delivery. Happy to send more photos by DM." | | "Ordered 10 days ago, still nothing" | "Sorry about this. Please DM us your order number and we will check with the courier today." | | "Too expensive" | "Thanks for the honest feedback. This one is hand-finished; we also have a simpler version at a lower price, shall we DM you?" | | "Cheaper at another shop" | "Glad you are comparing! We include free returns and checked quality. DM us if you would like details." | Keep it to one reply. If the person keeps arguing, offer a private chat and leave it there; that is when hiding further rude replies is fair. ## When a spam wave hits Sometimes a post suddenly gets dozens of identical comments: fake giveaways, copied links, bots. Add the repeated phrase to Hidden Words straight away so new ones are hidden, then clear the existing ones from the Comments inbox. If the wave keeps going on one post, limiting who can comment for a day or two is better than letting scams sit under your products. ## A daily routine that takes ten minutes 1. Open the Comments inbox and answer the questions first: price, stock, delivery. 2. Reply calmly to complaints and offer to continue in a DM. 3. Hide spam and abuse that slipped past your filters, and add any new spam words to Hidden Words. 4. Check the posts from the last two days; comments keep arriving on older posts. 5. Once a week, look at what you hid. If honest questions are being caught, take that word off the list. ## Mistakes to avoid - **Hiding every complaint.** People notice, and it looks worse than a polite reply. - **A word list that is too wide.** Filters that catch real buyers cost you sales quietly. - **Leaving filters on and forgetting them.** Spammers change their wording; update the list now and then. - **Arguing in public.** Reply once, offer a private chat, and stop. ## Sources Facts about other companies and platforms come from their own pages, checked on the dates shown. Plans and prices change; check the source before you decide. 1. [Instagram Help: Hide comments or message requests you don't want to see](https://help.instagram.com/700284123459336) (checked 2026-10-15) 2. [Instagram: Introducing new tools to protect our community from abuse (21 Apr 2021)](https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/introducing-new-tools-to-protect-our-community-from-abuse) (checked 2026-10-15) FAQ ## Questions? Answers. Any other questions? [Ask support](https://karobar.io/support). ### Does the person know when I hide their comment? No. Instagram does not tell people when their comment is hidden by Hidden Words. ### Can I hide comments on Instagram from my computer? Instagram's Hidden Words settings are not available in web browsers. In Karobar you can hide individual Instagram comments from the Comments inbox on the web or in the app. ### Do hidden comments still count? Yes. Instagram includes hidden comments in your total comment count. ### Should I turn off comments on a post? Only on a post that attracts abuse and no buyers. Comments are where many sales start, so filters and hiding are usually the better choice. Keep going ## What to look at next [Comments from five networks, in one inbox Comment management for Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube in one place. Reply, hide or delete, … Learn more](https://karobar.io/features/comments-engagement)[Handle comments, save time A post goes viral and the comments pour in. AI moderation and reply drafts keep it from overwhelming you.… Learn more](https://karobar.io/features/ai-comment-moderation) ## More guides - [How to moderate comments on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube Decide what to hide, answer or move to a DM, and get through busy comment sections without missing a buyer. Read the guide](https://karobar.io/guides/moderate-social-media-comments) - [How to schedule Instagram posts, Reels and Stories Instagram's own scheduler, when you need more, and a week of posts planned in one sitting. Read the guide](https://karobar.io/guides/schedule-instagram-posts) - [How to schedule TikTok posts, from videos to photo posts TikTok's built-in scheduler, its limits, and the settings to check on every post. Read the guide](https://karobar.io/guides/schedule-tiktok-posts) - [How to schedule YouTube Shorts and videos What counts as a Short, how YouTube scheduling works, and one video for three networks. Read the guide](https://karobar.io/guides/schedule-youtube-shorts) ## Try it on your own shop 7 days free, no card needed. Connect Instagram, TikTok or WhatsApp and see your own messages in one inbox. [Start free trial](https://karobar.io/login?trial=1&login=1)