How to automatically hide or delete one person's Instagram comments

Hide rules are good at catching kinds of comments, such as spam or swearing. But sometimes the problem is one person: someone who leaves a nasty remark under every post, or a spam account that keeps coming back with new wording. Restricting deals with the person, whatever they write.

How do I restrict someone?

1. 1

   In the left sidebar, open Comment moderation and go to the Restricted people tab.

   

2. 2

   Type their username and select Restrict.

   Leave out the @. Nothing changes yet: a window opens so you can choose what happens.

3. 3

   Choose Hide comments or Delete comments.

   • Hide comments: their comments are hidden from everyone else on Instagram. You can unhide one later in the Instagram app.

   • Delete comments: their comments are permanently deleted, from Instagram and from CommenSense.

   Not sure? Choose hide. You can switch to delete later, but a deleted comment can't be brought back.

4. 4

   Optional: tick Also apply to comments they have already posted.

   See the next section for exactly which comments this reaches.

   

5. 5

   Select Restrict.

   A message confirms it, for example "Their new comments will be hidden as they arrive." They're added to the list, with what happens to their comments and the date you restricted them.

What happens to comments they've already posted?

Only what you choose. Without the box ticked, nothing changes to their existing comments; only new ones are handled.

With Also apply to comments they have already posted ticked, CommenSense hides or deletes their earlier comments on every post of the account. It can only reach comments it already has: the ones posted since you connected Instagram, plus any you imported with Sync comments (Pro and Business). Comments already hidden are skipped.

This can take a while if they've commented a lot, so you can leave the page. When it's finished, a notification tells you how many earlier comments were hidden or deleted, and how many couldn't be.

What happens to their new comments?

As soon as they comment on any post of the account, CommenSense hides or deletes it. This covers:

• Every post, including ones you publish later.
• Replies inside comment threads, not only top-level comments. (Hide rules don't check replies, but restrictions do.)

Their comments also skip everything else CommenSense would do with a comment: they don't trigger your automations, so they don't get your DMs, and they aren't read by the AI, so they don't use up your comment scans.

How does CommenSense recognise them?

If they've commented on your posts before, CommenSense recognises them by their Instagram account, so the restriction keeps working even if they later change their username. If they haven't commented yet, it's saved by username. It then matches their comments by that username, so if they change it before commenting, the restriction won't catch them. Restrict the new username too.

Can I restrict people straight from a post?

Yes. Open Posts, pick the post, go to Bulk actions, tick one or more of their comments and select Restrict. The same choices appear. This is the quickest way when you've just spotted them in the comments.

How do I change or remove a restriction?

In the list on the Restricted people tab:

• Edit (the pencil): switch between hiding and deleting. Select Save changes.
• Remove (the bin): takes them off the list straight away, with no confirmation. Their new comments are no longer hidden or deleted. Comments that were already deleted don't come back, and hidden ones stay hidden until you unhide them in Instagram.

What if I move to a lower plan?

People you restricted before stay restricted, and you can still remove them. Adding new people or changing an existing restriction needs Pro or Business again.

How is this different from Instagram's own Restrict and Block?

The Instagram columns come from Instagram's help pages on Restrict and blocking comments. You can use them together; for when to use each, see hide, delete or restrict?