Did you recently notice a green circle on Instagram stories? If yes, you might be curious to know what the green circle/ring means.
Especially, it might seem strange why only an individual user’s profile has a green circle around it, not others.
It is a bit confusing as the ring on Instagram stories can be of different colors. Like some stories show colored gradients, whereas some have rainbow gradients.
But in your case, the story you viewed has a green circle.
In this guide, we’ll explain what does green circle mean on Instagram and how to get it.
What Does Green Circle mean on Instagram?
The green circle on Instagram means you have been added to a person’s close friends list.
In short, only the person’s close friends (including you) can view their story.
If you’re added to someone’s close friends list, only you and other users from that list will be able to view their story (if the circle is in green).
In other words, when you see a green circle around someone’s Instagram profile, it indicates that story was shared for close friends only, and you’re one of them.
In contrast, other followers who aren’t on that person’s Instagram CF list can’t view the stories.
Earlier in June 2017, Instagram brought a feature called “favorites” to share posts. It allowed the users to post for a limited group of friends.
It is due to the wide use of private accounts with only selective followers.
Later, Instagram renamed the feature “Close Friends” and launched it officially. Currently, this is only limited to the stories.
On the “Close Friends” list, you can add your best friends or followers whom you trust.
If you don’t want to share stories on Instagram with all your followers, simply choose to share them with close friends only.
Eventually, it’s easier than muting individual users or opening a separate Instagram private account.
How to get the Green Circle on Instagram?
If you want to get the green circle on Instagram, add followers to your close friends list and share your story with them.
After you’ve shared your story with close friends only, there’ll be a green circle around your profile.
If you want to stop some users from checking your stories without blocking or muting them, you can use the close friends list.
Now, follow the steps below to add followers to your close friends list on Instagram:
- Log in to your Instagram profile and tap on your profile icon from the bottom right corner.
- Tap on the hamburger menu icon and tap Close Friends.
- You can add your favorite people to this list so that they can get the green circle whenever you share a story with them.
- Once you’ve added the friends, tap Done.
- Now, tap on Your story and choose a photo to add to the story.
- Tap on the Close Friends option at the bottom of your screen.
After that, you’ll see a green circle around the profile and only selected close friends will be able to view it.
You can also edit the close friends list at any time, like removing a user.
Moreover, users won’t get notified when you add them to the close friends list. Similarly, your followers won’t know if you removed them from that list. If you’ve unwanted people on the followers list and don’t want to interact with them, then quickly unfollow everyone on Instagram at once.
What do the other colors on the Instagram story mean?
Since its launch in 2010, Instagram has brought various updates to give a seamless experience to users.
These updates involve introducing various colored circles or rings around a user’s profile.
It can create confusion because Instagram stories appear in various colors and it’s sometimes difficult to distinguish them.
Generally, there’re five different Instagram story colors, orange/purple, green, orange/green, gray and rainbow.
Let’s check out the meaning of the colors:
Orange & purple gradient– The user has posted a new story.
Green- You’re on that user’s close friends list.
Orange & green gradient- The user has added a sticker to the story that represents National Hispanic Heritage Month.
Gray- You already have viewed all the stories posted by the user.
Rainbow- The user has added a sticker representing Pride month.
Conclusion
Different colored circles like the green color on Instagram stories can be confusing for new users.
This article has explained in detail the meaning of the green circle on Instagram. It simply indicates that the user has added you to their close friends list. But if they haven’t, view Instagram stories anonymously.
If you have further queries, let us know in the comment section below.