What is Shadowbanning on Instagram, Plus a Full List of Banned Hashtags[Updated October 2020]
So "shadowbanned" is when your content is getting blocked from being viewed by anybody but the people who follow you on Instagram. This could be due to several reasons. Obviously being shadowbanned is not a good thing to have to happen to you because then it means that your posts and your content are no longer getting the full exposure that it should be getting. So first things first, how to tell if you have been shadowbanned, because Instagram is not going to alert you that you have been shadowbanned on the channel due to a specific action that you're doing.
How to check if you’ve been shadowbanned on Instagram
So what you want to do first is create a post and use a few hashtags on there. And I would suggest using hashtags that don't have a significant following on them. And then post it and then ask three to five people that don't follow you on Instagram to have a look and see if they can find your post when searching for that hashtag. If they can't find you, then it is a very, very, very high chance that you have been shadowbanned off of Instagram.
What will get you Shadowbanned on Instagram
So what will get you shadowbanned? There's a few activities or choices that people make that will immediately get them shadowbanned off the channel. First one is if you're using bots. Now you can very easily off of Fiverr and other networks find people that will go and give you 10,000 likes or 10,000 new followers on your page. If Instagram catches you using that, and their algorithm can pick up if all of a sudden your post has gotten 10,000 likes within a minute, they will shadowban you for that sort of activity.
The second one is using banned hashtags. So banned hashtags are ones that Instagram have found to have very derogatory content on them and very inappropriate content that goes against their bylaws, essentially, that people have used. If you happen to use one of those hashtags, even by accident, they don't care if you used it accidentally, they will shadowban you. Check out below the list of banned hashtags as of January 2020 below.
Your account has been reported is another way that you can get shadowbanned. So that means that you have been trolling someone, you've been putting in inappropriate comments, or you've been spamming people with your content and people have reported your channel for that kind of behaviour. Instagram will take those reports pretty seriously, and they will shadowban you if they deem necessary if you do that sort of inappropriate behaviour. Because that goes against their rules and bylaws.
And last, but certainly not least, you're engaging and posting way too quickly. So that means to say, for example, in an hour, you have posted 50 posts and you have also been liking and commenting on 100,000 posts or whatnot. I mean, that's an exaggerated number, but that's an example. Even if you are manually doing it, the algorithm and Instagram will pick that up as if that you were being a bot and that you were spamming, and that kind of behaviour is not allowed and that will also get you shadowbanned.
How to Reverse or prevent a Shadowban on Instagram
So how do you stop the shadowban? There are a few things that are easy to do.
If you're using bots, stop using bots.
I may sound like a broken record, but marketing is not an overnight thing. You cannot get the reach and engagement that you want by not playing by the algorithm's rules, and that means also by using bots. Every single social media channel nowadays is monitoring any activity that looks like bot behaviour, and they are stopping it. So just stop using bots, period, for any sort of thing that you do. If you want to get 10,000 followers on Instagram, that is unfortunately not going to happen without you putting in some sort of hard work. Bots give you fake followers, which will not give you the engagement you need to please the Instagram algorithm.
The second thing, remove banned hashtags. Now that means not only stop using them but remove them from your previous content. Which means you have to go through every post that you've put up, and you have to go and remove that banned hashtag. And then, Instagram eventually can unshadowban you.
The other thing that is easy to do is to take a break. Take two days, three days, and not post anything. Don't get onto the app at all. Remove the app from your phone if you have to if you're that addicted to it. And just don't post anything. And sometimes that's the easiest thing that you can do that'll immediately get you off of the shadowbanned list.
And last but not least, to prevent you from being shadowbanned or being shadowbanned again, play by the rules. So like I said, don't use the bots, but also play by the rules. Have appropriate comments. Be engaging in a friendly way. Don't post spammy content, and make sure that you are using the right hashtags to attract that right audience to your channel.
The thing is you don't own your Instagram account. That is borrowed media. So ultimately, it is Instagram that chooses whether or not your content is going to be shown by anyone. So you, unfortunately, you have to play by the rules. If you play by the rules and you play by them well, you're only going to be able to reap the benefits.
How to get around banned hashtags
There is no way around banned hashtags per se, but if a hashtag you really want to use is on the banned list, try to look for a variation of it. For example, #stranger is banned, but #strangers is not. #Snapchat is banned but #snaphat👻 isn’t. Try to use a plural version of the word or group of works, or an emoji at the end of the tag. You just might find that there’s a niche hashtag that will work perfectly for your post.
My Instagram handle is @honeybeesocial_au if you feel like following me to get tips and tricks on small business marketing. Have questions? Contact Honey Bee Social at clem@honeybeesocial.com.au.
List of banned hashtags on Instagram as of March 2020
A
abdl
addmysc
adulting
alone
always
armparty
asiangirl
ass
assday
assworship
B
beautyblogger
besties
bikinibody
boho
brain
C
costumes
curvygirls
D
date
dating
desk
direct
dm
E
edm
eggplant
elevator
G
girlsonly
gloves
graffitiigers
H
happythanksgiving
hardworkpaysoff
hawks
hotweather
humpday
hustler
I
ice
instasport
iphonegraphy
italiano
K
kansas
killingit
kissing
L
loseweight
lulu
M
master
mileycyrus
milf
mirrorphoto
models
mustfollow
N
nasty
newyearsday
nudity
O
overnight
P
parties
petite
pornfood
prettygirl
pushups
R
rate
ravens
S
saltwater
samelove
selfharm
shit
shower
single
singlelife
skateboarding
skype
snap
snapchat
snowstorm
sopretty
stranger
streetphoto
sunbathing
swole
T
tag4like
tagsforlikes
tanlines
teen
teens
thought
todayimwearing
U
undies
V
valentinesday
W
workflow
X
Xanax
Y
youngmodel
Z