Instagram adds Watch History to let you revisit previously watched Reels

Instagram

Instagram has rolled out a new feature called Watch History, which lets users revisit Reels they have previously watched. The update, announced on Friday, addresses a common frustration: losing track of a video you wanted to see again due to distractions, phone calls, or accidentally closing the app.

“Have you ever tried to get back to a Reel that you’d seen on Instagram and you just can’t find it?” Instagram head Adam Mosseri said. “Well, there is a new feature that should help. If you go to ‘Profile’ and under ‘Settings,’ then ‘Your Activity,’ you’ll find Watch History, where you can see every Reel you’ve watched.”

The feature allows you to sort your watched Reels by date, past week or month, or even a specific date range. You can also remove videos from your history if you prefer. Watch History offers more flexibility than TikTok’s version, letting users view videos in chronological or reverse chronological order or filter by author.

Instagram introduced Watch History in response to frequent user requests. Previously, users who wanted to recover lost videos had to rely on cumbersome workarounds, such as downloading their data and manually searching through it. The new feature makes rediscovering content far more straightforward.

This update is part of Meta’s ongoing efforts to expand Instagram Reels with features inspired by TikTok. In recent months, Instagram has added the ability for creators to link multiple Reels in a series and introduced Picture-in-Picture support, both features already available on TikTok. Watch History now further aligns Instagram’s short-form video experience with its competitor.