Topics · Signal
Social graph
Contents
On Instagram, the social graph is the network of connections between accounts, including follows and mutual connections, that helps the platform suggest accounts people might want to follow.12 These relationships are only part of the suggested-account system, which also considers information about the viewer and their public activity on Instagram.1 Mosseri said in August 2025 that people should unfollow accounts that no longer match their interests so their connections reflect what interests them now.2
Relationships represented as a network
Meta research and patents. These may not describe how Instagram works today.
Meta's patents describe the structure of a social graph using “nodes” for participants and “edges” for the relationships between them.3 In Meta's patent terminology, that structure can contain different kinds of participants and relationships, rather than just one uniform kind of connection.3 Another Meta patent describes storing records of relationships between users alongside profiles containing personal interests and other information, distinguishing connections from information about the people involved.4
How connections shape account suggestions
Instagram's suggested-account system starts with possible recommendations that include followers of accounts the viewer already follows, according to Meta's Transparency Center.1 Other starting points include popular accounts in the viewer's geographical region and accounts related to topics or products the viewer recently engaged with.1 When deciding the order of suggestions, the system considers the viewer's number of follows, mutual connections with the suggested account and how long that account has followed the viewer.1 These relationship-based considerations are distinct from filtering rules, which remove blocked and deactivated accounts and apply checks for content that may violate Community Guidelines.1
Checking individual follow relationships
Mosseri said Instagram's follower-status information is not presented as one easy list in one place, linking that approach to wanting people to feel comfortable unfollowing.12 He described a limited check that works when you are not following the account in question: its profile shows “Follow back” if it follows you.2 If the button instead says “Follow,” Mosseri said that account does not follow you.2