Does Taking a Screenshot on IG Send a Notification?

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When Instagram will notify a user of a screenshot

Co-authored by Rain Kengly Reviewed by Anyah Le Gilmore-Jones

Last Updated: June 9, 2025 Fact Checked

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Does Instagram notify for screenshots?

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What You Can Screenshot Secretly

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Disabling Vanish Mode

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FAQs

Do you want to screenshot an Instagram DM without the other person knowing? Instagram will not tell the other person if you screenshot a message unless you're in Vanish Mode, a feature that's similar to Snapchat. When you're not in Vanish Mode, you can screenshot DMs as much as you want. Here's everything you need to know about screenshotting DMs, Stories, Reels, photos, and posts on Instagram.

Does Instagram tell when you screenshot a DM?

Instagram will only notify users if you screenshot a DM in Vanish Mode. If the Direct Message was sent regularly, you can screenshot the chat without them knowing.

Section 1 of 4:

Does Instagram notify for screenshots?

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Instagram will only notify the other person if you're in Vanish Mode. If the DM was sent regularly (not in Vanish Mode), you can take a screenshot without the other person knowing. However, if you're in Vanish Mode, which makes messages disappear once viewed, both parties will be notified of the screenshot or screen recording.^{[1]
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- If the message was sent in Vanish Mode, the only way to take a screenshot of the DM without the person knowing is to use another device's camera. This is similar to how you would take screenshots on Snapchat.
- You can take a screenshot of an Instagram Story, Reel, or post without sending a notification. However, the user can see if you viewed their Story.
- If you're stuck in Vanish Mode, you can easily disable it.

Section 2 of 4:

When does Instagram notify of screenshots?

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You can screenshot most content without the other person knowing. In most cases, you can freely take screenshots on Instagram, including most DMs, without worrying about notifications. The only exception is when you're in Vanish Mode in a DM, where screenshotting anything in the chat will immediately send a notification to the other person.
- Here's a complete list of everything you can screenshot on Instagram without the other person knowing:
  - Regular photo posts
  - Instagram stories
  - Regular DMs (outside of Vanish Mode)
  - Profile pictures
  - Reels (video posts)
  - Live streams
  - Comments
  - Story highlights
  - Shared posts in DMs (as long as you're not in Vanish Mode)

Section 3 of 4:

How to Turn Off Vanish Mode

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Open a chat. If you want to be able to screenshot a DM and not have Instagram tell the other person, you can turn off Vanish Mode.
- If you're in Vanish Mode, you'll see a notification on your device.^{[2]
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- The other person in the conversation will know that you've turned off vanish mode.
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Swipe up on the chat and release. You should see Release to turn off vanish mode.
- Vanish Mode will be disabled, and the chat will return to normal. Any Direct Messages sent in the normal chat can be screenshotted without notifying the other user.

Section 4 of 4:

Frequently Asked Questions

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Does Instagram notify when you screenshot a story? No—Instagram will not notify a user if you screenshot a story. You can screenshot most content on Instagram, aside from content sent with Vanish Mode enabled.
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Does Instagram notify when you screenshot a DM? If you have Vanish Mode enabled, Instagram will notify the other user of the screenshot. However, if Vanish Mode is disabled, no notification will be sent.
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Does Instagram notify when you screenshot a post? No—Instagram will not notify a user if you screenshot someone's story.
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What is Vanish Mode? Vanish Mode allows you and a recipient to send messages that disappear after they've been viewed. It functions similarly to Snapchat messages. If you screenshot any message, video, or photo while in Vanish Mode, the other person will be notified.
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What is an alternative to screenshotting posts? If you don't want to screenshot a post, you can choose to bookmark it instead. You'll see this above each post description. Bookmarking a post will allow you to add it to a collection that you can reference later.
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How do I protect my posts? If you're worried about your post visibility, you can switch from a public account to a private account. This will hide your posts from everyone who doesn't follow you. If you want to keep your account public, you can block users to hide your posts from them.