How to see who unfollowed you on Instagram, free and without an app
Instagram doesn't tell you when someone unfollows you, and it has no list of past or recent unfollowers anywhere in the app. You can still find out for free, without installing an app and without giving anyone your password. This guide starts with the steps, then covers all four methods, including what each one can't show.
Short answer: Instagram doesn't show who unfollowed you. To find out for free without an app, download your followers list from Instagram's Accounts Center and open it in an Instagram unfollowers tracker that runs in your browser. Repeat a few weeks later: the second check lists everyone who left in between. To check a single person, search your own Followers list. Apps that ask for your Instagram login track this automatically, but they act as you on Instagram, and that risk sits with your account.
Disclosure: we make UnfollowTool, the tool used in ways 2 and 3. The other two ways are described as fairly as we can.
Quick steps: the free method without an app
This works on a phone or a computer, for public and private accounts. You need the Instagram app or instagram.com and a web browser.
- Open Accounts Center → Your information and permissions and tap Export your information, then Create export.
- Pick your Instagram profile, then Export to device. Under Customize information, select only Followers and following. Set Date range to All time and Format to JSON.
- When Instagram says the file is ready, download the ZIP.
- Open the Instagram tool, leave Remember this result on this device checked and choose the ZIP. The Don't follow you back tab is your first answer.
- A few weeks later, repeat steps 1 to 4 in the same browser. The results now include an Unfollowed you tab: accounts that followed you last time and don't anymore.
Step 4 shows who doesn't follow you back today. Only step 5 shows who unfollowed you, because Instagram keeps no history to compare against. Details and caveats for each step are in way 2 and way 3.
Why Instagram doesn't show unfollowers
Three facts shape every method on this page:
- No notification. Instagram doesn't notify you when someone unfollows you, and its Help Center confirms that people aren't notified when you unfollow them either.
- No unfollower list. Your followers list only shows who follows you now. Once someone leaves, nothing in the app records that they were there.
- No official app access. Instagram's current developer API gives business and creator accounts their follower count, not the list of names. Apps that show lists get them another way (see way 4).
So every method works by comparing: your followers with your following, or today's followers with an earlier snapshot. Those give two different lists. "Doesn't follow you back" also includes brands, public figures and people who never followed you at all. "Unfollowed you" only includes accounts that were once among your followers.
Is there a "recent unfollowers" list?
Not in the Instagram app. There is no screen, setting or hidden menu that lists the people who recently unfollowed you, on personal or professional accounts.
The data export has a file that looks like one: recently_unfollowed_profiles.json. It lists accounts you unfollowed, with dates, not people who unfollowed you. UnfollowTool shows it separately as You unfollowed, so the two don't get mixed up. The other files in the ZIP are described in Instagram data export files explained.
The only real list of recent unfollowers is one you build yourself by comparing two snapshots (way 3). The shorter the gap between the two exports, the more precisely you know when someone left.
The 4 ways at a glance
| Question | 1. By hand | 2. One export | 3. Two exports | 4. Login apps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shows | Whether one account follows you | Everyone who doesn't follow you back | Who unfollowed you between the two dates | Unfollows from the day you connect |
| App to install | No | No, runs in a browser | No, runs in a browser | Usually yes |
| Your password in a third-party app | No | No | No | Yes, or a logged-in session |
| Waiting time | None | Usually minutes to hours for the export | Two exports, weeks apart | None |
| Cost | Free | Free with UnfollowTool | Free with UnfollowTool | Often a subscription |
Way 1: Check by hand
If you suspect one or two specific people, you don't need a tool:
- Open your profile and tap Followers.
- Type the person's username into the search field at the top.
- If they don't appear, they don't follow you anymore.
You can also check from the other side: open their profile, tap Following and search for your own username. This only works if their account is public or you follow them.
An account that is missing from your followers hasn't necessarily unfollowed you. It may have been deactivated or deleted, or its owner may have blocked you. If you can't open the profile at all, one of those is more likely than an unfollow.
Good for: a handful of names. Not good for: finding out who, out of hundreds of followers, left.
Way 2: Your data export, one download
Instagram lets you download your own information, including complete followers and following lists, as a ZIP file. It's an official feature in Accounts Center, and it doesn't involve any third-party login.
- Open Accounts Center → Your information and permissions and tap Export your information, then Create export. Instagram is gradually moving accounts to Meta Account, so your settings may show that name instead of Accounts Center.
- Choose your Instagram profile and Export to device.
- Under Customize information, select only Followers and following. Set Date range to All time and Format to JSON, then start the export.
Figure 1: The summary before Start export: Followers and following, All time, JSON. - When Instagram notifies you that the file is ready, download the ZIP. You don't need to unzip it.
- Open the Instagram tool and choose the ZIP. The Don't follow you back tab lists every account you follow that isn't on your followers list.
Each screen of the export is explained in how to download your Instagram followers and following as JSON, and the step-by-step tutorial covers iPhone, Android and desktop. If that list is all you're after, the Instagram "not following back" checker opens straight on it.
The tool reads the ZIP in your browser tab. The file's contents aren't uploaded to our server or sent to Instagram. You can test that yourself in a current browser: load the page, turn on airplane mode, then choose the file. The homepage also has sample data if you want to see the results before you request your own export.
What to weigh:
- The export isn't instant. A followers-only export is often ready within minutes to a few hours, but Instagram's Help Center says it can take up to 30 days.
- One export is a snapshot. It shows who doesn't follow you back, not who unfollowed you. For that, see way 3.
- The tool can't unfollow anyone. You open each profile and decide yourself.
Way 3: Compare two exports over time
This is the only way to get a real list of people who unfollowed you without giving an app your login. If an account was in your followers list in the first export and isn't in the second one, it left in between.
- Analyze your first export in the Instagram tool with Remember this result on this device checked (it is by default). Only the account names are saved, in your browser's own storage.
- Request a new export a few weeks later, the same way as before.
- Open the new ZIP in the same browser. The results then include an Unfollowed you tab with accounts that were among your followers last time and aren't anymore, and a New followers tab.
Figure 3: The Unfollowed you tab after a second analysis (sample data).
Things to know about that list:
- It can't reach back before your first analysis. Instagram's export has no unfollower history, so the first export is always your starting point. If you kept an older ZIP, analyze it first and the newer one second.
- An account that was deactivated, deleted or suspended also drops out of your followers. The tool can't tell that apart from an unfollow, so open the profile before drawing conclusions.
- Accounts are matched by username. Someone who renamed their account appears once under Unfollowed you (old name) and once under New followers (new name).
- The saved history stays in that browser on that device. A private window, cleared site data or another device starts from zero. Delete saved history removes it. If you switch devices, download the followers list as CSV each time and compare the files in a spreadsheet.
Way 4: Apps that log in to your account
Search an app store for "unfollowers" and you'll find many "followers tracker" apps. Most ask you to log in to Instagram inside the app. They then read your lists on a schedule and show who left since you connected, without you requesting exports.
Upside: it's automatic, with no waiting and no files.
What to weigh before you log in:
- Instagram's rules. Instagram's Terms of Use prohibit accessing or collecting information in an automated way without Instagram's permission, and Instagram has a help article about accounts restricted for data scraping. If anything is restricted, it's your account, not the app's.
- Access to your account. Whoever runs the app can act as you for as long as the session is valid. If the app stores your password or session and is breached, your account is exposed too.
- Same limit as everyone else. These apps also can't show unfollows from before you connected. They build their history from the first scan, just like way 3.
- Cost and data. Many are free to install with paid subscriptions. Check the App Store's App Privacy section or Google Play's Data safety section to see what an app collects and whether it tracks you.
If you've used such an app and want to cut it off: change your Instagram password, log out of unknown sessions under Accounts Center → Password and security → Where you're logged in, and cancel the subscription in your app store. More on this in Are unfollower apps safe?, and the main tools are sorted by how they get your data in Instagram unfollower apps compared.
Without an app, and for free: what that means
Ways 1 to 3 need no third-party app. The export is a built-in Instagram feature, and UnfollowTool is a web page: nothing to install, no account to create, no payment. It's paid for by ads on the site. The full lists, including Unfollowed you and the CSV download, are free.
Where money usually comes in: many login apps are free to install but charge a subscription for history or extra lists, and websites that only ask for your username tend to charge for repeat checks. Those username sites also only work for public accounts, so they can't help if your profile is private.
What to do with the list
Each account in the results has an Open button that opens its Instagram profile in a new tab. With Remember on, profiles you've opened are marked Opened, and the mark survives a reload, so you can go through a long list over several sessions. Whether you unfollow is your call, and you do it inside Instagram.
If the list is long, plan for more than one sitting. Instagram doesn't publish how many accounts you may unfollow per hour or per day. How to mass unfollow on Instagram covers how to work through hundreds of accounts by hand, and what is known about Instagram's limits.
What Instagram Insights shows
Instagram's Help Center says public accounts get free insights, not only creator and business accounts. Once you have at least 100 followers, the Total followers insight includes growth: how many followers you gained or lost in the time frame you pick, going back up to 90 days. It shows counts only, never who. The exact menu names change from time to time.
That count is still useful: if it shows 12 lost followers this week, you know how many names to expect when you compare two exports.
Common questions
Does Instagram notify you when someone unfollows you?
No. Instagram doesn't send a notification when someone unfollows you, and the other person isn't notified when you unfollow them either.
How do I see who unfollowed me on Instagram without an app?
Download your followers and following from Accounts Center, open the ZIP in a browser-based tool such as UnfollowTool, and repeat a few weeks later in the same browser. The second analysis lists who unfollowed you in between. The quick steps above walk through it.
Is there a free way to check who unfollowed me on Instagram?
Yes. Requesting your data export costs nothing, and UnfollowTool analyzes it for free, including the Unfollowed you list and the CSV download. You don't need an account or a subscription.
Can I see who unfollowed me before I started checking?
No, not reliably. Instagram keeps no list of who unfollowed you, and the data export doesn't contain one. Every method, including apps, can only show changes after the first snapshot. An older export you still have can serve as that first snapshot.
Does this work if my account is private?
Yes. The export is your own data, so it contains your full followers and following lists whether your account is public or private. Websites that only ask for your username can't see a private account's lists.
Can I see who blocked me on Instagram?
No. Instagram doesn't notify people when they're blocked, and there is no list of who blocked you. The blocked accounts in your data export are accounts you blocked. If a profile suddenly can't be found for you, the person may have blocked you, or the account may have been deactivated or deleted.
Does the other person know if I check?
No. Searching your followers list, requesting your own export and analyzing it on your device are all private. Nobody on your lists is notified.
Why did my follower count drop, but nobody I know unfollowed me?
Counts also fall when Instagram removes fake or spam accounts, or when followers deactivate their accounts. Comparing two exports shows exactly which accounts are gone, so you can see whether they were real people. Why am I losing Instagram followers? goes through the common causes.
Does this work for TikTok, X or Facebook?
Yes, the same two-download method works there too. See how to see who unfollowed you on TikTok, or open the X tool or the Facebook tool with your archive from that platform.