US Trends

how do you turn off your location on instagram

You control Instagram location in two main places: on your phone (app permissions) and inside Instagram (Maps / Location Sharing / tags). Here’s a clear, up‑to‑date walkthrough.

How do you turn off your location on Instagram?

1. Turn off location in your phone settings

This stops Instagram from accessing your GPS at all.

On iPhone (iOS)

  1. Open Settings on your iPhone.
  1. Scroll down and tap Instagram.
  1. Tap Location.
  1. Set it to Never.
  1. Turn off Precise Location if you see it (extra privacy).

Once this is done, Instagram cannot use your device’s location for posts, stories, or Maps.

On Android

  1. Open your phone’s Settings.
  1. Go to Apps (or Apps & notifications).
  1. Find and tap Instagram.
  1. Tap Permissions → Location.
  1. Choose Don’t allow.

This blocks Instagram from accessing your location at the system level.

2. Turn off Instagram Maps / live location sharing

Instagram now has a Friends Map / Map feature that can share your live location with people you follow, but you can switch it off.

From your profile settings

  1. Open Instagram and go to your profile.
  1. Tap the menu (three lines) in the top right.
  1. Select Settings and privacy. (On some accounts this is under Story, Live & Location.)
  1. Tap Location sharing or Location.
  1. Choose No one as your audience.

After this, your live location won’t be shared on Instagram’s map with anyone.

From the Map screen

  1. Open Instagram.
  1. Tap the DM (Messages) icon in the top right.
  1. At the top, tap Map.
  1. Tap the settings/cog icon.
  1. Under Who can see your location , choose No one.

You might still see others on the map if they share with you, but your icon will show as “not sharing” (red dot) when this is off.

3. Stop locations on posts and stories

Even with live sharing off, you can accidentally reveal where you are by adding location tags yourself.

  • When posting to the feed :
    • On the final screen before posting, simply don’t add a location. If there’s already one, remove or clear it so no place name appears.
  • When posting stories :
    • Avoid using the Location sticker.
* If you added one by mistake, tap and delete the sticker before posting.

If you don’t tag locations, your posts won’t appear on location pages or Maps at that spot.

4. What actually changes when you turn location off?

When you block or disable location for Instagram:

  • Your live location on Instagram Maps won’t be shared with anyone if you set it to No one.
  • You won’t get automatic “nearby” suggestions for tags, and some local recommendations may be less accurate.
  • You can still browse the Map and see others who share their location with you, but your own location stays hidden.
  • If you completely block location at the device level, Instagram can’t read your phone’s GPS at all.

A simple example: if you’re at a coffee shop and you’ve turned off device location and chosen No one in Location sharing, Instagram can’t show where you are live, and your post won’t appear on the map unless you manually pick that place as a tag.

5. Quick checklist (privacy-first setup)

  • Phone settings → Instagram → Location → Never (and turn off Precise Location).
  • Instagram app → Profile → Menu → Settings & privacy → Story/Live & Location → Location Sharing: No one.
  • Don’t add location tags to posts or stories if you don’t want them to show on Maps.

Do those three and your location is effectively off on Instagram in 2026.

TL;DR: Turn off Instagram’s location in your phone’s settings, set Location Sharing to No one inside Instagram, and stop adding location tags to posts and stories to fully hide where you are.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.