How to See Previously Liked Photo and Video Posts on Instagram

Most major social networks make it pretty easy for users to find which posts they've liked. Instagram doesn't.

On Instagram, it feels like when you hit that heart button on any photo or video post it gets lost forever—unless you copy the post URL and send it to yourself. Your previously liked posts actually don't get lost, however, and there's a hidden place within the app where you can find them.

To find your recently liked posts on Instagram, follow these steps:

Being able to access posts you've previously liked is good for a lot of things. Go back to view what you've already liked so you can:

• Find new accounts to follow from posts you've liked on the Explore tab.
• Read a post's long caption that you didn't have time to read when you liked it.
• Read more comments that are added to follow along with a discussion on a particular post as additional people see it in their feeds.
• Leave a comment of your own on a post that you liked but didn't have time to type something out at the moment.
• Revisit useful information that you want to check out in detail later—like a product, a service, a contest, a workout routine, a recipe, a makeup tutorial or something else.

What you like on Instagram isn't just a friendly gesture to let the poster know that you approve of their post. It's an incredibly helpful way to bookmark things that are interesting and valuable enough to look at again.

According to Instagram, you'll only be able to see the 300 most recent posts (photos and videos) that you've liked. That's still a lot, but if you're an Instagram power user who likes hundreds of posts a day, or if you feel the need to look for something you liked several weeks ago, you may be out of luck.

Liked posts are only displayed if you liked them using the Instagram mobile app or on the web. However, you can only see liked posts in the app. It's unclear if any posts you liked through a third-party Instagram app like Iconosquare show up, but if it doesn't work for Instagram's own web platform, it's likely that it won't work for third-party apps either.

Lastly, if you commented on a photo or video but didn't also like it, there's no way to find it again if you lose it. You'll only be able to see posts you've liked by tapping the heart button (or double-tapping the post) in the "Posts You've Liked" section of your profile settings—not posts you've commented on only. So if you want to be able to revisit a post later, make sure you hit that heart button, even if your main intention is to leave a comment.