Can’t Go Live on Instagram? Requirements, Steps and Fixes

Does this match what you see?

• There’s no Live option when you swipe right from Feed.
• Instagram won’t let you start a live video.
• Your computer live keeps showing a frozen image after you stopped streaming.
• Comments and likes are missing from your saved live.

iPhone & iPadAndroidComputer (browser)

Steps are from Instagram’s Help Center for computer, Android, iPhone and iPad. Scheduling, the Live archive and adding a link are app-only.

Why this happens: the possible causes

Why you might not be able to go live, from Meta’s Help Center (how common each is, is our estimate).

• Not a public account with 1,000 followers or moreCheck this first

  Meta says only Instagram users who have a public account with 1,000 followers or more can start a live video.

• Teen Account settingCheck this first

  Meta says the ability to start a live video is off by default for Teen Accounts.

• Past Community Standards removalsPossible

  Meta says you may not be able to go live if you’ve previously posted something that was removed for going against its Community Standards.

• A newly created accountPossible

  Meta says newly created accounts may not be able to go live.

How to fix it, step by step

Work through these in order. They start with the quickest, safest checks and only move to steps that sign you out or remove data later.

Computer live stuck on the last frame?

Meta says that if you end the stream in your streaming software before you end the live video in Live Producer, Instagram keeps showing the last frame it received. To end smoothly, click End live video in Live Producer first, then stop the stream in your software.

Manage comments, requests and media during a live

• Turn off comments: tap Options at the bottom > Turn off commenting. Meta says any keyword filters you’ve turned on also apply to comments on your live.
• Stop requests to go live with you: Options > Turn off requests to go live.
• iPhone: tap Add from camera roll in the bottom right to show photos and videos in your live. To stop, swipe right on your camera roll and tap Stop. Meta says only you see your camera roll, and this isn’t available in a live room with guests.

Add guests to your live (or join someone else’s)

• Meta says you can invite up to three guests to join your live using Live Rooms, and you can ask to join someone else’s live.
• Guests must follow you on Instagram before you can invite them. Our tip: if someone can’t be invited, check that first.
• To invite: tap Create at the top or swipe right in Feed, swipe to Live, then open the guests option, where you’ll also find requests to join your room. Choose followers to invite and tap Invite. You’ll see whether they join or decline.
• To remove a guest: tap X in the top right of their video frame.
• To join someone’s live: while watching, select the option to join, then tap Send Request. If they accept, you’ll get a notice that you’re about to join the live room. Meta says you may also be asked automatically in the comments.
• Our tip: if you’re the host and no requests come in, check you haven’t turned on Options > Turn off requests to go live. If you’re a viewer and can’t request, the host may have turned requests off.
• Meta says adding photos from your camera roll isn’t available in a live room with guests.

Schedule a live video

Meta says you can schedule a live video from 1 hour to 90 days in advance, in the Instagram app for Android, iPhone and iPad. It isn’t available on computers, and the same public account with 1,000 followers or more rule applies.

1. Tap Create (on Android and iPad, at the top, or swipe right anywhere in Feed; on iPhone, Meta says on the left).
2. Tap Live at the bottom, then Schedule on the left.
3. Enter a title, select a start time, then tap Done.
4. Tap Schedule live video at the bottom.
5. To promote it, tap Share. Meta says shared posts and stories include the title, start time and an option for people to set a reminder.

• Your soonest scheduled live shows on your profile below your profile picture. Tap it to share, edit or cancel it.
• Meta says you get reminder notifications 24 hours and 15 minutes before the start time.
• To edit or cancel: go back to Live > Schedule, then on Android tap Options next to the live (Edit, Cancel live video > OK, or Share link); on iPhone and iPad tap the live, make your changes or tap Cancel live video, then Done.
• You can change the start time up until 45 minutes before it’s scheduled to start.

Add a link to your live (and why you might not see the option)

Meta says adding an external link to a live may not be available to you: it’s currently available to a limited number of Facebook clients in select markets, including the United States, Brazil, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Our note: if there’s no Link option, that’s the likely reason. You can include one link per live.

1. Tap + Create in the top left, then Live at the bottom.
2. Tap Link on the left, then Link again. Enter the destination URL and a title (for example, “Shop now at our store!”), then tap Done.
3. Tap Confirm. Once you go live, the link shows at the bottom of the screen for all viewers.

• Already live? Tap Link on the right and follow the same steps.
• Edit it: tap the link at the bottom > Edit > Link > Edit, enter the new URL and title, tap Done, then Confirm. Or tap Remove link > Remove.
• Website links open in an in-app browser while the live keeps playing. WhatsApp links open WhatsApp, and the live stops playing for that viewer. You can suggest a first message, but Meta says the viewer still has to tap Send and can edit it first.

Watching someone else’s live

• Meta says that when someone you follow is live, their profile picture appears at the top of Feed with a colorful ring and the word Live. Tap or click it to watch, in the app or on instagram.com.
• Meta says the person sharing, and anyone else watching, may be able to see that you’ve joined, and anyone watching can see when you like or comment.
• Comment: tap Comment (app) or click Add a comment in the bottom right (instagram.com). Reply: tap the comment > Reply to (app) or click Reply below it (instagram.com).
• React or share: tap Like in the bottom right and pick an emoji, or tap Share to send it to someone.
• Missed it? If the person shared a replay to their profile, Meta says you’ll see it when you tap Reels.

Report a live broadcast

If you think a live broadcast goes against Instagram’s Community Standards, Meta says you can report it while it’s on:

• In the app: tap Options in the top right of the broadcast > Report, then follow the on-screen instructions.
• On instagram.com: click Options next to Comment at the bottom > Report inappropriate.

• Meta lists self-harm, suicide, physical abuse, bullying or harassment, child abuse and endangerment, and threats of real-world violence among the things to report. If you’re not sure whether it’s real, a joke, or meant to raise awareness, Meta still recommends reporting it, and says your account won’t be affected.
• Your report is anonymous (except for intellectual property reports): the creator won’t see who reported them. You’ll get a message once Instagram has reviewed it, but you may not see what happens to the account.
• Meta says that depending on how serious it is, it may end the broadcast, disable the account or contact law enforcement.
• Someone using your copyrighted work in a live? Meta has a separate copyright report form (external site, opens in a new tab).
• Can’t view a live? Meta says this could be a network or internet connection issue, and you can also report it.

Find a past live in your Live Archive and share it as a reel

Meta says you can share a live from your Live archive as a reel, in the app for iPhone, iPad and Android (not on computers).

1. Go to your profile (tap Profile or your profile picture in the bottom right; on iPad, your profile picture on the left).
2. Tap Menu in the top right, then Archive.
3. Tap Stories archive at the top (on iPad, Posts/Stories archive), then Live archive.
4. Tap the live you want to share, then Share at the bottom.
5. On the reels publish screen, add a caption or tag people, then tap Share. (On iPad, follow the on-screen instructions.)

Live not in your archive? Check Save Live to Archive

Meta says your lives are saved to your Live archive automatically, unless you turn that off. To check: tap Create > Live > Settings > Live, and make sure Save Live to Archive is on.

• Meta says turning this off deletes any lives you share from that point on, instead of saving them to your archive. Our advice: leave it on if you might want a replay later.
• Archived lives can’t be seen on Instagram unless you choose to share them.
• To delete an archived live: go to Live archive (same path as above; on iPad, Meta’s delete steps say Stories archive), tap the live, then tap Delete and Delete again to confirm. Our advice: download or share it first if you might want it later.
• Meta says archived lives you shared publicly will be used to improve AI at Meta unless you delete them or make your account private.

See insights for your live video

• Meta says Live insights are available for up to 30 days after a broadcast ends, and only in the Instagram mobile app.
• To view them: go to your profile, tap the live video, then View insights. For a past live, go to Professional dashboard (or Your dashboard on a personal account) > Content you shared, then choose the live video. If you don’t see the dashboard, tap More > Settings & activity.
• Metrics include Viewers, Peak concurrent viewers (the most people watching at once), Comments, Shares and Accounts engaged.

Save your live to your phone (and why comments are missing)

• Share a replay right away: Meta says that on the screen after you end your live, you can tap Share as reel, add a caption or tag people, then tap Share. Meta says replays won’t include likes or comments, the viewer count restarts, and you can’t edit or trim the live before sharing it.
• Find your shared replay: go to your profile, tap Reels below your bio, then tap the video. Meta says the viewer count shown on your profile grid only includes people who watched after you shared it. Our note: so don’t worry if it’s lower than the number who watched live.
• Save it right away: Meta says that after you end a live, you can tap Download Video to save it to your phone’s camera roll, and that you can only do this right after you’ve ended it. Only you see this option.
• Comments and likes missing? Meta says that when you save a live to your profile or download it (including from your Live Archive), only the video is saved, not comments, likes or viewers.
• It can take a minute to save to your phone, especially for longer videos.

How to know it worked

• You can start a live video and viewers can see it.

Still not working? Your next steps

1. Instagram crashing when you open the camera? See Instagram keeps crashing.
2. Going live in a broadcast channel? See Instagram channels.

Frequently asked questions