Having your status not show up to your contacts can be frustrating. There are a few potential reasons why your status may not be visible:
Your Status Privacy Settings
The most common reason your status doesn’t show is your privacy settings. Many messaging apps and social media platforms allow you to control who can see your status updates.
For example, on WhatsApp you can set your status to be visible to:
- Everyone
- My Contacts
- My Contacts Except…
- Only Share With…
If you have your status set to Only Share With certain people, then anyone not in that list will not be able to see your status.
Similarly, on Instagram you can choose to share your story to:
- Everyone
- Friends
- Close Friends
- Only Share With
So if you have your story privacy set to Close Friends, your status will only be visible to people you’ve added to your close friends list.
How to Check Your Status Privacy Settings
To see who can view your status, check your app’s status or story privacy settings:
- WhatsApp – Go to Settings > Account > Privacy > Status > change Who can see my status
- Instagram – When sharing your story, choose your audience at the bottom
- Facebook – Go to Settings & Privacy > Privacy Shortcuts > Edit Your Story Settings
- Snapchat – Go to Settings > Who Can… > View My Story
Make sure this is set to the group you want to be able to see your status. If it’s currently set to Only Share With specific people, change it to My Contacts or Everyone.
Your Contacts Have Restricted You
In addition to you restricting who can view your status, your contacts can also restrict who they get status updates from.
For example, on WhatsApp someone can block your status updates specifically by going to your chat, tapping on your name at the top, and disabling View Status Updates.
If someone has blocked or restricted your status updates, they will not be able to see any new updates you post.
How to See If You’re Restricted
To check if someone has restricted you, open their chat and look for any indicators like muted chat notifications or symbols next to their name at the top. Common signs you’re restricted:
- WhatsApp – A crossed out eye icon next to your name in their chat
- Instagram – If your stories don’t show at the top of their feed
- Facebook – They don’t engage with or react to any of your posts
You’ll have to speak to that person directly to get them to unrestrict you if you want them to see your status updates again.
Network Connection Issues
If your status privacy settings are correct, the other possibility is your contact is having trouble loading your status due to network issues like:
- Poor internet connection
- Slow wifi
- Cellular data is turned off
If they are not on a stable internet connection, your status may fail to load or update for them. Have them switch to a stronger wifi or cellular data to resolve any loading issues.
Their App is Out of Date
An outdated version of the app can also prevent your status from showing properly. Apps are constantly releasing new versions and updates.
If your contact is using a very old version of the app, it may not support newer status features. They will need to update to the latest version of the app in their device’s app store.
You Are Blocked
Finally, if you are completely blocked by one of your contacts, they will not be able to see your profile or any of your status updates.
You can check if you are blocked by trying to view their profile or send them a message. If you are blocked, you will get an error saying something like “You can’t message this person” or “This user restricts who can view their content.”
The only way to resolve this is to have the person unblock you so your status is visible again.
Troubleshooting Steps
Here are the main troubleshooting steps to resolve an issue with your status not showing to specific contacts:
- Check your status privacy settings and make sure the person can view your status based on those settings
- See if the person has muted or restricted you specifically from seeing your status
- Confirm both you and the person have stable internet connections
- Make sure both you and the contact have the latest versions of the app
- Check if you are blocked by the contact and request to be unblocked
Preventing Status Issues in the Future
To help avoid your status not showing for others in the future:
- Set your status to be visible to all contacts or a large friend group
- Enable auto-updates on your messaging apps to stay on latest versions
- Connect your devices to stable wifi whenever possible for best performance
- If your status is sensitive, consider sharing with close friends instead of everyone
- Communicate with contacts who have restricted you to find out why and resolve any concerns
Conclusion
Troubleshooting status visibility issues ultimately comes down to checking your privacy settings, the other person’s restrictions, your internet connections, app versions, and making sure you are not outright blocked. With the right settings and stable connections, you should be able to share your status seamlessly with your intended audience.