The Short Answer
Generally, no. When you unfollow someone on most major social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc., they will not get a notification informing them of your action. The unfollow action happens silently on your end without alerting the other user. However, while they won’t get an explicit notification, there are some ways they may still be able to tell you unfollowed them.
On Instagram
When you unfollow someone on Instagram, they will not get notified about it directly through any kind of alert from Instagram. The unfollow action is silent and unknown to the user you unfollow.
However, seasoned Instagram users tend to keep tabs on their follower count. If you unfollow someone that watches their stats closely, they may notice that their follower number has dropped by one and deduce that you hit the unfollow button. But again, it’s not like they will get a pop up saying “X user unfollowed you.”
In addition, Instagram does have a feature called “Followers You Know” under the followers list, where they suggest accounts for you to follow of people you already know. If you unfollow someone that uses this tool, they may notice your profile missing from that list and realize you must have unfollowed.
There are also third party apps that can help Instagram users track their follower counts and follower activity. So someone who utilizes an app like this may be tipped off if you unfollow them, even if Instagram itself doesn’t send them a notice.
Will They Get a Notification if You Unfollow Then Refollow?
Nope, they won’t get any alert in this case either. If you unfollow then refollow someone shortly after, that other user will not receive any notifications about your actions.
The refollow action will simply make it appear on their end like you never unfollowed them to begin with. The fluctuations in their follower count usually happen too quickly for them to notice in this situation.
On Facebook
Facebook behaves similarly to Instagram when it comes to unfollowing. If you unfriend or unfollow someone, they will not get a notification alerting them that you did so. The action happens quietly behind the scenes without informing the other user.
For people you are “friends” with on Facebook, they may still notice your name disappearing from their friends list if they check it regularly. But for pages or public figures you simply “like” or follow, there’s no way for them to know you unfollowed unless they scour their entire follower list periodically.
Facebook does not have a “Followers You Know” feature like Instagram. And while third party apps exist to track Facebook unfollows too, they are less commonly used on this platform. Overall it is unlikely someone will discover you unfollowed them on Facebook unless you are actual friends and they monitor their friends list every day.
If You Unfriend Then Refriend?
Nope again, no notification sent for the refriend action. When you unfriend then re-add someone on Facebook, it will look on their end like you two have been continually connected the whole time. The brief period where you unfriended will be unknown to them without a notification.
On Twitter
Much like other platforms, Twitter does not notify someone when you unfollow them. There will be no tweet or alert flagging your action.
However, those who watch their follower count may notice a drop by one and deduce they lost you as a follower. Power users tend to monitor follower counts more closely than casual users.
Twitter has Lists features that may also give your unfollow away. If someone adds you to a List on Twitter, even if you unfollow them, you will remain on their List. By looking at which followers are on their Lists versus their main follower count, your absence may stand out, signaling the unfollow.
Similarly, third party Twitter apps can track unfollowers, making it possible to expose your discreet unfollow. But Twitter itself will not directly notify them.
If You Unfollow and Refollow?
Just like other platforms, re-following shortly after unfollowing leaves no notification and no evidence you ever unfollowed in the first place. Things appear continuous and uninterrupted on their end.
On YouTube
YouTube behaves the same as the other platforms – no notifications sent if someone unsubscribes from a channel. One moment a user is subscribed, the next they are unsubscribed, and the YouTuber is none the wiser without checking their analytics.
However, content creators tend to monitor their subscriber counts extremely closely, watching for surges or drops. If your singular unsubscribe causes a creator’s sub number to tick down, they are very likely to notice. But this requires actively watching their live sub count rather than getting a direct notice from YouTube.
A refollow shortly after unsubscribing also leaves no evidence, just a steady sub count that never changed on their end.
On LinkedIn
Once again, LinkedIn will not notify or alert someone if you unfollow them. The action is silent as far as the other user is concerned. The only way they may notice is if they check their follower count regularly and happen to see it decrease by 1.
Third party tracking apps can also pick up on unfollows and signal your activity to a power user. But LinkedIn itself does not send any kind of notification or alert to inform a user of your unfollow.
And a quick refollow will stop any follower count fluctuations that could have exposed your momentary unfollow, leaving them oblivious.
On Pinterest
Pinterest behaves the same way as the other platforms when it comes to unfollowing. There will be no alert message or notification sent to someone when you unfollow their account or boards. The action occurs silently and invisibly without their knowledge.
The only way they might pick up on your unfollow is by monitoring their detailed analytics to spot a dip in followers or checking to see if your name still appears on their followers list. Casual users are unlikely to be this obsessive about tracking.
A quick re-follow after unfollowing also leaves no trace and no notification, preserving the illusion you never stopped following them as far as they can tell.
On Reddit
Reddit does not send notifications for unfollows. When you unfollow someone, their Reddit account will not get an alert about it. You can remove yourself from their follower list without their knowledge.
Likewise, if you then refollow them shortly after, there will be no notification and no evidence on their end that you briefly unfollowed then came back.
The main way someone may notice your unfollow is if they are carefully watching their follower count and notice a decrease. But without a notification, they have no way to confirm who specifically unfollowed them.
On Twitch
Twitch will not notify a streamer when a user unfollows their channel. There is no alert message sent to let them know you removed yourself from their follower list.
Streamers who monitor their follower counts and stats closely may spot a decrease by one follower and deduce someone unfollowed. But they won’t know who without a notification from Twitch pointing it out.
A quick re-follow makes it appear like you never stopped following them in the first place. No notifications are sent for refollowing either.
On TikTok
Once again, there are no notifications sent by TikTok when someone unfollows you or when someone refollows you after unfollowing. Both actions are totally silent and invisible to users.
The main way a TikTok creator might notice your unfollow is by monitoring their follower count and seeing a decrease, assuming they check frequently enough to catch the change before you re-follow. But the fluctuation will give them no specifics about who did the unfollowing and re-following.
Conclusion
Across all major social media platforms, from Instagram to Twitter to Twitch to Reddit and beyond, the act of unfollowing another user does not trigger any notification to alert that user of your action. The unfollow happens discreetly behind the scenes.
In some cases, especially with accounts that watch analytics closely, your absence may be noticed if they review follower counts and notice a decrease. But they will not get a named notification singling you out as the unfollower.
Similarly, refollowing someone shortly after unfollowing will not generate a notification. Things will simply appear normal on their end with no idea you briefly unfollowed.
So in short, no, users do not get notified if you unfollow them on essentially any mainstream social media or user-generated content platform. You can remove a follower or unsubscribe without them being directly alerted in most cases. The action happens silently as far as they are concerned unless they are diligently watching their stats.
Exceptions Where They May Get Notified
There are a few niche exceptions where an account owner may get alerted of your decision to unfollow them:
– Some third party tracking apps explicitly watch for unfollowers and will notify users. But this requires them installing an external app, not built-in platform notifications.
– On Twitter Lists, your absence may be noticed if they closely monitor who is listed as a follower.
– Some sites may have custom notification settings or bots an account owner can configure to watch for unfollowers. But again this is separate from native platform tools.
– On platforms like GitHub where followers have access to private repos, account owners tend to monitor followers extremely closely and may notice.
– On platforms built around influencer subscriptions like Patreon or OnlyFans, creators have deep analytics into subscribers and will probably notice a drop immediately.
But outside of specific exceptions, you can generally unfollow people on major platforms confidently knowing they will NOT receive an automatic notification informing them of your choice to unfollow. It will happen silently behind the scenes in most cases.
Why Platforms Don’t Notify
The main reason most platforms do not notify users when someone unfollows them comes down to:
– **Noise reduction** – Notifications should be reserved for important, relevant events. Unfollows are considered common low priority events that don’t warrant disturbing the user with a notification.
– **Avoiding backlash** – Many sites worry that notifying users of unfollows may spur retaliation, harassment or attempts to refollow the other party.
– **User comfort** – Users generally do not want to be confronted with notifications every time they lose a follower. It can feel embarrassing or signal they are posting undesirable content if called out.
– **Promoting free choice** – Platforms want to give users the freedom to curate their feed and connections without social pressures. Notifying on unfollows discourages pruning connections.
So in summary, the choice not to notify on unfollows is a deliberate design decision based on promoting user comfort, control and privacy. Notification is reserved only for the most important events that platforms determine warrant interrupting users.
When You Might Want Notification
While most users prefer NOT to be notified when unfollowed, there are some cases where you may want notification:
– **Business accounts** – Brands with follower counts tied to revenue may want to monitor unfollows closely as a business metric.
– **Influencers** – Influencers may want to know when their audience is disengaging so they can modify content accordingly.
– **Relationship monitoring** – Some users in close relationships may want notifications if certain people unfollow as a social signal.
– **Security/harassment** – Getting notified when someone potentially abusive unfollows can be reassuring from a safety perspective.
But these tend to be exceptions. The majority of everyday users are not overly concerned about being notified on unfollows. And platforms want to reserve notifications for truly important events relevant to most of their users.
So generally, the standard will remain no notifications on unfollows except in specific niche circumstances where account owners have configured special settings.
How To Tell Who Unfollowed You
If you are in the subset of users who needs to closely monitor unfollows, there are some tricks to detect who unfollowed:
– **Follower count tracking** – Use a tracker app or manually monitor follower counts to spot drops.
– **Follower list checks** – Periodically check your full followers list to see if specific names have disappeared.
– **Reverse lookup** – Search other users’ follower lists to see if you are still listed or not.
– **Social media analytics** – Use analytics dashboards to identify drops in followers.
– **Unfollower apps** – Use third-party apps designed specifically to track unfollows.
The key is being vigilant in consistently monitoring your follower data to compare changes and identify who vanished. Casual checking rarely reveals unfollowers, so systemized tracking is necessary.
While you won’t get notifications on most platforms, these proactive tactics can help determine when and who unfollowed you, even without alerts. It just requires some extra effort.
In Closing
To wrap up, the norm across mainstream social media platforms is that users do NOT get notified when someone unfollows them. The unfollow occurs silently behind the scenes without any alert to the user who lost a follower.
The only way they may notice is by spotting a follower count drop or checking their followers list inconsistencies. But no named notification singling them out is sent unless they have configured special settings.
Unfollow notifications are avoided to promote user privacy, reduce noise, and prevent social pressures around follows/unfollows. The choice to unfollow someone is considered personal information not warranting an automatic alert in most cases.
So feel free to prune your social media follow lists without worrying about triggering awkward notifications to those you unfollow. As far as they know, your unfollow never happened, unless they are diligently monitoring analytics to detect these changes proactively by checking themselves.
