Facebook and Instagram willl now let all users hide likes on posts

Facebook and Instagram are giving all users the option to hide public "likes" on their posts, potentially upending a core dynamic of the social media platforms where like counts are seen as a sign of a person's influence.

The social media giant has since 2019 been testing the ability for users to hide like counts, a feature synonymous with Facebook, as a way to make Facebook and Instagram less stressful to use. As of Wednesday, every user can now choose whether people can see the number of likes on his or her own post and also whether to see how many people liked other users' posts, Facebook (FB) said in a blog post Wednesday.