How many of you already knew that Instagram was found to be the eighth most-visited website in the world? Yes, you read that right. The Instagram statistics for 2022 show the same. Not only that, but it is also the ninth-most searched term on Google and the fourth-most-used social media platform globally. This speedily evolving social platform is all the rage right now, and we all know why – the large Gen Z crowd gathered here, using it most fervently.
And while not all the young netizens could be accused of chasing numbers, we’d be lying if we said these hold no importance. Indeed many brands and businesses view these numbers as key metrics to the performance of service providers – be it writers, creators, or marketers.
For these reasons – as well as for others – a large number of Instagrammers keep a close tab on the number of likes, comments, and shares on their posts and reels on the platform.
If you’re one of these users and have recently noticed a discrepancy in the number of likes on some of your Instagram posts, we just might be able to answer your queries. Stick with us till the end to learn more about it.
Why Does Instagram Showing Wrong Number of Likes?
Before we explore the potential reasons behind the wrong number of likes being displayed on one of your Instagram posts, let’s first make sure whether the number is really wrong.
How do you determine if there are wrong number of likes displayed on any of your posts/reels? Well, the most straightforward method of doing that is counting the number of profiles showing up on your Likes list one by one and matching them against the number mentioned below your post.
If the two are not the same, it verifies that the number of likes on your Instagram post is wrong. And what would you do next in such a case? Keep reading to find out!
Reason #1: The issue could be with your Instagram account
Any time a glitch on social media comes up, the first thought that crosses our minds is, “Could this only be happening to me?”
And while some of you might consider it overthinking, regarding issues with the internet, it is often likely to happen. In any case, your first job is to make sure that’s really the case. But how will you do that?
We have two suggestions for you, one of which is bound to help you gain clarity. Firstly, if you use two accounts, switch to the other one and see if the number of likes on that particular post is still showing wrong.
The second step here involves using a friend’s help; one that follows you on Instagram and wouldn’t mind sparing a couple of minutes for you. All you need to do is call them up and ask them to open your profile on Instagram.
Now, direct them to go to that post and check the number of likes on it. Does it tally with yours? If not, it’s clear that there’s an issue with your account/app.
In this case, you can try a variety of fixes and check which one works well for you; such as checking if your mobile app is updated, uninstalling and reinstalling the app, and clearing its cache from your smartphone’s Settings.
On the other hand, if your friend also sees the wrong number of likes on the post, just as you are, perhaps the problem lies elsewhere. Let’s move on to exploring other possibilities, then.
Reason #2: A bug on the platform could be causing the error
Instagram, like any other social media platform, is no stranger to bugs. In fact, this visual-centric platform is somewhat more vulnerable to bug problems due to its complex model, large user base, and constant updates.
Since bugs are known to cause glitches in the functionality of any tool, feature, or page of the platforms, seeing the wrong number of likes on your post could be a bug’s doing as well.
The most common solution to the bug problem is logging out of your account and then logging back in; it gets rid of all bugs in many cases.
If that doesn’t work for you, you could also try logging into www.instagram.com on your web browser once, instead of your smartphone to see if that works. The ultimate solution is to report the bug to Instagram Support Team and let the experts handle the job.
Reason #3: Perhaps Instagram’s servers are down
How many of you are familiar with the concept of Instagram’s servers being down? It is an event in which the internet servers of the platform experience a disruption or outage, which results in certain features being unavailable or behaving inaccurately.
Server issues on large platforms like these are often a consequence of maintenance activities, technical glitches in the codes, or – in worst case – a cyberattack.
Whatever be the reason behind it, there’s very little for you to do here. Often, Instagram informs its users about their servers being down themselves. When caught in one of these situations, the best you can do is wait it out, hoping for the best.
Did you see a change in the number of likes on your Instagram posts recently?
If you don’t find a discrepancy between the number of likes on your posts and the users liking them, but find a recent change in those numbers, what could that mean?
This is another affair quite common across the platform nowadays; and why does it happen? Well, it could be because some of those likes were found to be inauthentic activities by the platform.
Often, certain accounts pair up with other, third party tools to create automated likes, comments, and follows to contribute to the popularity of an account. And because these activities stand in violation of Instagram’s Community Guidelines, Instagram removes all their activities as soon as they discover them.
So, if such a thing happened to you, you should be grateful to know that Instagram got rid of a fake/bot account following you.
The bottom line
As we reach the end of our blog, it’s time for us to recapitulate all that we’ve learned so far.
We began by talking about the number of likes on Instagram posts and the discrepancy that might show up from time to time. Then, we moved to explore all possibilities that could be causing it.
We also talked about what you do to fix them by yourself.
In the end, we also considered why some likes were suddenly removed from your Instagram posts. Have any other queries on Instagram? Tell us in the comments section below!
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