How to Make Highlights on Instagram Without Posting to Story

Instagram Highlights are an excellent way to showcase your best stories on your profile permanently. Many users, however, find themselves in a bit of a dilemma: they want to add content to their Highlights without actually posting it to their Story for all followers to see. This is especially useful if you’re curating a visually consistent profile or sharing content selectively. In this article, we’ll explore clever workarounds to make that happen without compromising privacy or cluttering your Story feed.

TL;DR (Too Long; Didn’t Read)

While Instagram doesn’t allow you to directly add photos or videos to Highlights without first posting them to your Story, there’s a practical workaround. You can make your story visible only to yourself and then add it to Highlights before deleting it. This lets you curate Highlights without publicly sharing the content. Scroll down to discover step-by-step methods for doing this efficiently.

What Are Instagram Highlights and Why Use Them?

Instagram Highlights are curated collections of your past stories that appear below your bio. Unlike regular Instagram Stories—which disappear after 24 hours—Highlights can live on your profile forever. They’re a fantastic way to showcase:

• Events and milestones
• Behind-the-scenes content
• Product or service showcases
• Customer reviews or testimonials
• Personal branding or themed visuals

The catch? Instagram requires content to first appear in your Story before it can be added to a Highlight. But what if you want to skip the ‘Story’ part altogether? There’s a workaround—and it’s surprisingly easy.

The Problem: Instagram’s Highlight Limitation

Instagram doesn’t currently allow users to upload content directly to Highlights. You must first post the content as a Story, and only afterward can you transfer it to a Highlight. This is often inconvenient because:

• Not all content is meant for public view—even temporarily
• It disrupts your content schedule if you just want to update Highlights
• You might want to create Highlights before promoting them

Fortunately, there’s a way to make Highlights privately and effectively.

Step-by-Step: How to Add to Highlights Without Posting Publicly

Step 1: Adjust Your Story Privacy Settings

Before uploading your intended Story content, head over to your privacy settings:

1. Go to your profile and tap the three horizontal lines in the top-right corner
2. Navigate to Settings & Privacy > Who Can See Your Story
3. Select Hide Story From and choose everyone in your followers list

By doing this, you’re ensuring that only you can view the Story you’re about to upload.

Step 2: Post Your Story Content Privately

Now, upload the photo or video you want to include in your Highlight. Although it’s being added as a story, no one but you will be able to see it.

Don’t worry—this step is purely temporary!

Step 3: Add to Highlight

Once your Story is live—even if hidden—it becomes eligible for adding to a Highlight:

1. Tap your profile picture to view your hidden Story
2. Tap the Highlight icon at the bottom right
3. Choose an existing Highlight or create a new one

Congratulations! You’ve just added content to your Highlight without broadcasting it to your followers.

Step 4: Delete the Story (Optional)

Once the content is safely stored in your Highlight, you can go ahead and delete the Story if you wish—even if it was already hidden. The Highlight will still retain the media.

This step can be useful if you want a clean Story archive or don’t want any private media living in your Story section—even temporarily.

Alternative Methods for a Smoother Workflow

If hiding your Story from everyone feels excessive every time, here are some additional options:

Create a “Close Friends” List with Just You

Instead of modifying general settings, consider setting up a “Close Friends” list that only includes you. Here’s how:

1. Go to your profile and open the Close Friends section from the menu
2. Add only your own account to the list
3. Upload the Story and post it to Close Friends only

This method gives you more control and is easier to toggle on and off than hiding your Story from hundreds of people one by one.

Archive Past Stories and Reuse Them

If you’ve previously posted stories and forgot to add them to Highlights, you can still retrieve them from your Archive:

1. Go to your profile and tap the menu
2. Select Archive and switch to Stories view
3. Tap on any past Story and add it to a Highlight

This doesn’t help with new content, but it’s a life-saver for making captivating Highlights from historical content.

Tips for Creating Engaging Instagram Highlights

Now that you know how to privately create Highlights, here are a few tips to make them pop:

• Use Consistent Icons: Design custom Highlight covers using tools like Canva for a clean, branded look.
• Organize by Theme: Group related stories—like travel, food, Q&As, or reviews—into designated Highlights.
• Keep It Short and Sweet: Don’t overwhelm viewers. 5-10 Story slides per Highlight is usually ideal.
• Update Regularly: Keep things fresh by revisiting and refining Highlights every few weeks or months.

Limitations to Be Aware Of

Although this workaround is effective, there are a few caveats:

• Temporary Visibility: Stories must appear on your profile—however briefly—even if seen by no one but you.
• Story Duration: Stories are only available to add to Highlights during their 24-hour lifespan. Act within that time frame.
• No Direct Uploads: Instagram still does not support uploading directly from your gallery to Highlights.

Until Instagram changes this process, these minor inconveniences are necessary for customized, private Highlight creation.

Final Thoughts

Instagram Highlights are a powerful way to define your brand, showcase your work, or simply preserve your favorite moments. While the platform currently mandates uploading to Story before adding to Highlights, you now know how to do so in a way that’s private and controlled. Whether you’re a casual user or a content strategist, these simple steps let you craft a visually stunning profile—on your own terms.

Now that you’ve cracked the code, feel free to experiment! Try uploading hidden Stories even when you’re just testing Highlight designs or layouts—nobody has to know. With a little planning, your Highlights can become dynamic visual albums that elevate your Instagram profile to the next level.