No more pressure: Facebook, Instagram users now have option to hide like counts from posts

Many mental health experts have concluded that the like button found on social media sites like Facebook and Instagram creates anxiety for those who subscribe to such services. Today, after a period of testing the effects of hiding like counts on Instagram, Facebook has announced that it will give users of both sites the ability to opt-in to this feature. During the testing stage, experts and users concluded that not seeing like counts helped take pressure off of some subscribers but it also annoyed others.

Subscribers who like to see like counts say that it gives them a sense of what is popular and trending while others take low like counts as a personal affront. Facebook says that this is why it is giving users the ability to decide for themselves whether to hide like counts or show them. Starting today, Facebook and Instagram users will be able to hide like counts on all posts in their feeds although it will take weeks for the update to come to all Facebook and Instagram users.

Like counts can also be hidden from the subscriber's own posts which will block others from seeing this information. Facebook says that with likes removed from your posts, "you can focus on the photos and videos being shared, instead of how many likes posts get." To hide likes in your Instagram feed, go to the new Posts option in Settings and tap on Hide Like Count.

Facebook users will head to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Reaction Counts > Reaction Preferences. There will be two choices to toggle on; one hides the like counts on others' posts while the second option will hide the like count on the subscriber's own posts.

Not only can you hide likes before disseminating a post, you can also decide to turn on and off the Hide Like Count setting at your desire. Facebook says, "People want more flexibility, so we thought it would be important to give people the option."

Facebook isn't stopping with like counts and says, "We’re also funding more external research about people’s experiences on Instagram, and how we can improve our policies and products to support our community. We’re currently requesting research proposals from global academics and non-profits."