Like most social media platforms that require user interaction to thrive, Facebook can become toxic and detrimental to the mental health of its users. Unfortunately, despite the many innovations that have taken place to optimize the social media experience, a huge part of it still remains shrouded in negativity.
The like-count culture is especially hard to deal with, especially for users who have self-esteem and confidence issues. Seeing the lack of high numbers and reaction symbols on their Facebook posts can end up drastically affecting their mental health for the worse. Fortunately, Facebook has figured out a way to at least lessen the stress that its users undergo.
Can you hide likes on Facebook?
“Can I hide my likes on Facebook?” Yes, Facebook has added a feature that allows users to hide or unhide the number of likes and reactions to their posts on the platform. Experts have commented that this new feature can have positive effects on the mental health of the platform’s users. You can also choose to hide your likes on Facebook and prevent people from seeing which pages you like.
Also read:
How to hide my post likes and reaction count on Facebook
Not only will you be able to prevent people from seeing the number of likes and reactions on your posts, but you can also avoid seeing the like counts on other people’s Facebook posts. This way Facebook users won’t be distracted by the statistics on the post and how much attention it’s getting, but instead will focus their attention on the actual content.
Here are what you can do to hide the likes and reaction count on your Facebook posts.
From Mobile
If you’re using Facebook mobile, follow these steps:
1. Select the menu option on your Facebook app. If you’re using Android, the menu icon, which is three horizontal lines, will show up in the upper right corner of your screen. Meanwhile, you can find it on the bottom of your screen for iPad and iPhone users.
2. Scroll down and tap “Settings & Privacy”.
3. Then, click on “Settings”.
4. Look for “News Feed Settings” then click on “Reaction Preferences”. This then takes you to the settings page for Reaction Preferences. Here, you can disable the likes and reaction count on not just your posts, but on the posts of other users too.
5. To hide the likes and reaction count for your post, toggle the slider that you can find next to On your posts. Do the same for the slider next to On posts from others to disable the total number of reactions on other people’s Facebook posts.
From the Web
If you’re accessing the platform through your PC, laptop, or your mobile device browser, then follow these steps:
Update! Facebook seems bringing changes to its settings structure frequently, Which makes difficult to keep the article upto date. So we have took the direct link to access the Reaction preferences settings in Facebook.
1. You’ll notice an arrow facing downwards on the upper right corner of your screen. Select it.
2. Select “Settings and Privacy” on the page that shows up.
3. Then, proceed to “Reaction Preferences” or just click this link to access the settings directly.
4. Use the sliders next to On your posts and On posts from others to disable or enable the likes and reaction count on posts from both you and other people.
Your settings will then be saved automatically.
Keep in mind that even with the ability to hide like count on Facebook, the feature still has its limitations. For instance, hiding the reaction count on the user’s posts still doesn’t hide the number from the user themselves. You’d still be able to view the list of people who have left likes and reactions on your posts.
Another thing is that this new feature affects every post that you have created, even before the introduction of the feature. You can’t just choose which posts’ reaction counts you want to keep hidden.
Final Words
With the multitude of problems found on the app, Facebook is trying its best to combat each one. Allowing users to hide number of likes on Facebook posts is one way of addressing the insecurity and self-esteem issues of several users that only grows with the toxicity of the app.
Not to mention, with people being unable to view likes and reaction counts the social media-addled part of a person’s brain that prioritizes and believes in posts with high engagement can be temporarily turned off, leaving room for more open-mindedness and critical thinking.
