So your lockdown hobby has turned into a small Instagram business, but now you realize that making resin earrings might not be your life calling. Or, maybe you’ve decided you want to be an Instagram influencer before you remember that your loved ones can see your reels. There are many reasons to have a professional Instagram account, whether you are a business, a creator, or using Instagram’s “Just for Fun” option. But there are also plenty of reasons why you might want to go back to a personal Instagram account – the main one, of course, being privacy.
With a business account, you gain access to the ability to get information about the demographics and engagement of your subscribers, track your content performance, additional options for contact information, and more. But one of the biggest pitfalls of a business account is that you can’t make your account private. (And if you’re trying to worry less about social media, getting rid of engagement analytics from your business account is a huge plus.)
Although you can make your account professional with just a few clicks under “Edit Profile”, returning your account to a personal account is not that easy. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to convert your Instagram account back to a personal account.
How to get back to a personal account on Instagram
Open your Instagram app and find your profile page on the far right of the tab at the bottom of your screen. (Its icon will be your profile picture.) Once you’re there, click on the icon with three horizontal lines at the top right of your screen. In this menu, click on the “Settings” button with the gear icon next to it.
Once you’re in settings, head to the bottom of the menu where you’ll find the “Account” button. Scroll down and you will see two options in blue: “Change account type” and “Add new business account”. Click on “Change account type”, then “Switch to a personal account”. Instagram will ask you to confirm your decision, as you will lose your knowledge by switching to a personal account. Click on the red text that says “Switch to personal account” and your Instagram account will revert to personal settings.
How to make your Instagram account private again
If you are going back to a personal account for privacy reasons, you can make your account private after making the change. Go back to your settings and click on the “Privacy” button with a lock icon. At the top of the Privacy menu, there will be a switch that says “Private Account”. If the switch is flipped to the left and is gray, your account is currently public. Click the switch icon to make your account private. The switch will toggle to the right and turn blue. Instagram will ask you to verify your decision to switch to a private account, as your content will only be available to your followers and you will need to manually approve new followers in the future. Click on the blue button that says “Go to private mode” and your account will be officially secret to everyone, except those you accept.
