Instagram is a superb resource for millions around the world who want to share photos and videos of what they're up to, but it's also a social media network that (like others) can sometimes be a little overwhelming.

If you follow someone or they're popping up in your feed a lot and you don't actually want to constantly see their content, for whatever reason you might have, there's a handy feature called muting.

This lets you hide their content without actually unfollowing them, to avoid any social fallout from the decision.

If you're wondering how to go about this decluttering of your feed, here are the simple steps you should follow.

How to mute or unmute someone on Instagram

Here's the most straightforward way to mute someone's posts and stories from your feed.

1. First of all, open up your Instagram app, whether on Android or iOS, and navigate to the profile of the person in question.
2. At the top of their profile, you'll see a Following button - tap on this.
3. On the menu you're shown, tap Mute.
4. Next, choose whether you'd like to mute their stories, posts, or both, using the switches.

This exact same process can be repeated if you're looking to unmute someone - at the final step, just turn the switches back on to return them to your feed.

How to mute someone's stories on Instagram

If you're only looking to mute someone's stories, there's actually another, quicker way to do so.

When you're on your homepage on Instagram, check the list of story circles at the top of the page.

Long-press on any one of these circles to be given the option to mute their stories.

How to mute someone's posts on Instagram

Similarly, you can also mute someone's posts on Instagram straight from any post in your feed.

At the top-right of the image or video, hit the three-dot button to get into some settings.

From here, you'll be able to mute that user's posts, along with the option to actually unfollow them entirely.

Now that you know how muting and unmuting work on Instagram, be sure to check out our tips and tricks for the app to really upgrade your experience.