Have you been shadowbanned on Instagram, wondering how long it lasts? You’ve come to the right place!
Typically, an Instagram shadowban lasts 14 days. But isn’t the shadowban just an urban myth, and hasn’t Instagram said this type of ban doesn’t exist?
As you’ll see below, the shadow ban is real and makes victims daily. You’ll never expect what the most common reason for being shadowbanned is.
Keep reading for a thorough analysis of Instagram shadowbanning!
Summary:
Understanding Instagram Shadowbans: Duration and Causes
An Instagram shadowban typically lasts 14 days. It is a form of restriction where a user's visibility on the platform is limited. During a shadowban, your content will not appear in your followers’ feeds or in search results.
Common Causes of a Shadowban
The most common reason for being shadowbanned is the use of banned hashtags. These are hashtags that Instagram flags as a violation of their community guidelines. Using such hashtags can trigger a shadowban, as Instagram aims to maintain a safe and appropriate environment for all users.
Duration of a Shadowban
While a shadowban generally lasts for 14 days, it can sometimes extend beyond this period. Factors that might prolong a shadowban include repeated violations of Instagram’s guidelines or continued use of problematic hashtags.
What You Can Do
Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do to lift a shadowban other than waiting it out. However, here are a few tips to help you avoid future shadowbans:
1. Avoid Banned Hashtags: Regularly check lists of banned hashtags and ensure you’re not using any of them in your posts.
2. Follow Community Guidelines: Adhere to Instagram’s community guidelines and terms of service to avoid violations.
3. Monitor Your Activity: Be mindful of your posting frequency and the types of interactions you engage in on the platform.
Conclusion
Experiencing an Instagram shadowban can be frustrating, but understanding its causes and duration can help you navigate and avoid future bans.
If you suspect you’ve been shadowbanned, the best course of action is to refrain from violating Instagram’s guidelines and wait patiently for the restriction to lift.
If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to leave a comment below.
What Is a Shadowban on Instagram?
Officially, the shadowban doesn’t exist if you listen to Instagram. They never use the term or allude to it in any way.
But what is the shadowban? After analyzing countless users’ experiences, we’ve understood that shadowbanning is the limiting of a user’s visibility on the platform.
Your content will not appear in your followers’ feeds, and others won’t be able to find your content either. Even if you tag your content, it won’t appear in searches.
This has been verified time and time again by many users, so it’s not a matter of debate anymore. According to the user base, it takes 14 days for your content to start appearing in searches again.
The insidious aspect of a shadowban on Instagram is that you won’t know about it. You don’t receive a notification and won’t notice anything wrong.
Until you’ll start seeing that your posts have no views, likes, or comments. No interaction whatsoever from your followers.
And that’s when you realize that something is wrong. This is how everyone knows they’ve been shadowbanned on Instagram.
Why Are You Shadowbanned?
Several things might get you shadowbanned on Instagram, like:
- Using banned hashtags (by far the most common reason)
- Violating the community guidelines
- Using a bot to automate your account
- Being reported by other users
- Using identical hashtags too often
Believe it or not, the most common reason for shadowbanning is using “banned” hashtags. These are hashtags that Instagram flags as a violation of their guidelines.
They actively limit or restrict the visibility of posts that use these hashtags. Typically, posts using these hashtags are invisible to everyone on Instagram.
Here are some of the banned hashtags on Instagram:
- #brain
- #alone
- #desk
- #curvygirls
- #italiano
- #elevator
- #master
- #models
- #single
- #pushups
- #nasty
- #snowstorm
- #skype
- #singlelife
And many others. As you can see, most of these hashtags appear innocent and don’t violate any rules.
Instagram bans these hashtags when it notices a disproportionate amount of violating posts using the hashtags in question.
From then on, the algorithm shadowbans all future posts using these hashtags, even if the posts themselves don’t violate the user guidelines.
It’s an unfair system, and most users suffering from shadowbans tend to agree.
Can Shadowbans Last Longer than 14 Days?
Yes, apparently. While most shadowbans last only 14 days, some users have reported being shadowbanned for several weeks or even months.
You might argue that they might have broken the user guidelines somehow, and their accounts have been restricted, not shadowbanned.
While that may be so, we shouldn’t discredit the possibility that shadowbans aren’t time-limited. We don’t know enough about them to conclude anything for sure.
Some users have reported their shadowbans disappearing after 24 hours, for instance. So, the ban doesn’t always last 14 days.
Why couldn’t it last more than 14 days too?
Conclusion
To summarize: A shadowban typically lasts 14 days, but this isn’t absolute. It may last less than that or even longer, depending on the situation.
It’s also unclear what leads to a shadowban aside from user estimations based on their own experiences. Banned hashtags seem to be the norm, but there’s no way to predict if a hashtag is banned or not.
It isn’t much you can do if you’re shadowbanned other than waiting it out. You don’t know what post has caused the shadowban, so you can’t fix the issue.
If you have further questions about Instagram shadowbans, comment down below!
Can I escape an Instagram shadowban?
It’s unclear. Technically, you might be able to escape the shadowban if you delete the violating content that caused it.
But how will you know which of your posts led to a shadowban? You won’t, most likely because you don’t know when you’re shadowbanned.
You may notice the shadowban after a week; during this time, you’ve made dozens of new posts.
Which one is to blame?
You could try to contact Instagram and ask about your situation, but they’ll unlikely answer.
Many users have tried contacting customer support about shadowbans but haven’t received replies.
Instagram denies the existence of a shadowban, so it’s clear why they “can’t” help you get rid of it when you contact them.
Helping you would mean admitting the shadowban exists, leading to a PR catastrophe for them.
How can a shadowban affect my Instagram account?
A shadowban can severely impact your Instagram account and audience.
For starters, your content will not be visible to your followers so the user interaction will be zero.
You won’t know why your organic reach and account visibility will drop sharply. But you’ll eventually realize it’s a shadowban.
Your audience may also think you’re unprofessional or lose interest in your content since you haven’t posted anything in a while.
While the truth is you “have” posted, it’s just that they can’t see your content because of the shadowban.
Shadowbans can devastate Instagram users who make a livelihood from their online presence.
Can I avoid being shadowbanned on Instagram?
Technically, you can avoid a shadowban on Instagram. For the most part.
First off, you should avoid violating the community guidelines. Don’t post abusive, inappropriate, or adult content, don’t spam, and try not to offend people.
The last part is quite difficult since being offended is subjective, and you can’t control people’s predispositions to be offended.
As for banned hashtags, you already have a list in this article, and you may find others online.
Try to avoid them and avoid spam as much as possible.
Instagram also seems to dissuade people from relying too much on hashtags. It might be because hashtags are an artificial way of garnering an audience.
Try to make your content organically interesting and build up your audience naturally, rather than abusing hashtags.
If you do this, your chances of being shadowbanned will drop drastically. However, being in the public spotlight naturally puts you in a vulnerable position where anything you say or do may be interpreted in a “certain” way.
