How to manipulate your algorithm
Five ways to influence your social media recommendations before pressing "Delete Account"
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For as long as social media has existed, social media accounts have also been deleted. Goodbye MySpace, Rest in Peace Tumblr, Sleep with the Fishes Finsta1.
The dialogue to purge your socials can get stronger in the new year as resolutions and overall disillusionment set in.
Every social media platform’s algorithm is aptly criticized by the public. (I’ve written on it for both Threads and X myself). Sometimes, you just get sick of the content. Facebook spits out erroneous posts, TikTok recommends you a childhood acquaintance you don’t want to see, X is a cluster of negativity, and Instagram has…well, Reels. (JK2).
I’m a big believer, however, that the algorithm is in your hands – quite literally.
People who leave social media often complain that they “didn’t like what they were seeing.” This is a valid issue, but one I would argue is fixable – the whole concept of an algorithm relies on adapting to the users’ current preferences. At the end of the day, no matter the platform, the algorithm is showing you what it thinks you want to see.
That doesn’t stop it from getting it wrong.
However, there are some steps you can take before you jump to deactivating or deleting your account. I’ve started and managed many a social media account, and I’ve narrowed down what I do to make sure I like what I’m seeing. These are not fail-safe, all-encompassing, peer-reviewed techniques, but they are what I’ve found to work.
So, what can you do to manipulate your algorithm? Let’s take a look.
1. Seek out targeted hashtags/search for specific interests
This one is what it sounds like. If you are interested in books, troll the #BookTok hashtag for a bit. If you want cooking content on Instagram, search tags like #recipes. Treat the search bar like a Google bar, assuming the platform will remember this information later and tailor your feed accordingly. Certain social platforms allow you to follow these hashtags, too.
On Instagram, if you search a hashtag, there is a “+” button in the upper right hand corner that will allow you to follow the topic. On TikTok, go to “Settings and privacy” > “Content preferences” > “Manage topics.” On X, if you go to “Privacy and Safety” > “Content you see,” you can select certain topics and interests, as well as an option to show content in your current location. On Facebook, you can favorite “people and Pages to prioritize posts in Feed.” On Bluesky, you can follow Starter Packs.
2. Actually engage with content you like
Okay, this might be the simplest and yet most underrated point. If you want the algorithm to know you like certain content, ✨engage✨ with it! What does this mean? Like, comment, subscribe, share. The more you engage with a certain thing, the more you’ll continue to see things like it. The amorphous digital brain stores this information for later. It knows you like this, so it’ll recommend a similar but perhaps equally enticing thing. Expect cousins, not twins, at first.
If you pair engagement with my first point, you’ll send a flamin’ hot flare out to your algorithm that this is the type of content you want to see in order to stay on the platform. And that is the social media platform’s ultimate M.O. – users leaving is the worst thing that could happen, so the algo will do everything it can to get you to stay. Likes on X are private now, and on various social media platforms, you can express interest in content by liking posts, comments, and stories.
This might be where you’re going wrong if you’re getting content you don’t like – maybe you’re spending time reading the clickbait or giving into rage-bait3. Unfortunately, no matter how innocuous or curious your intentions, your algorithm notes this.
3. Follow specific accounts
Who you follow becomes a big indicator of what you’ll see. For example, if you want to see more fashion content on your feed, follow celebrities like Hailey Bieber or Kendall Jenner. Follow your favorite sports teams for more sports recommendations. Seek out fanpages for books, shows, or movies you like. The algorithm will pick up on these follows and recommend you similar people or brands.
If you want to have control over your timeline, X and TikTok allow you to toggle specifically between “For you” feeds and “Following.” A “For you” page is your quintessential algorithm – what the social media platform is predicting you’d like. “Following” limits your content to those you’ve opted to follow. Hopefully, these are people and brands you like. If not, this leads me to my next point…
4. Unfollow, mute, and block
Influencing your algorithm isn’t just about what you want to see. It’s about what you don’t want to see. Remove people, places, and things you’ve lost interest in by unfollowing. As Marie Kondo says, if it doesn’t bring you joy, get rid of it. This might take some time, but go through your “following” and un-add accounts one by one. You’ll thank me later.
Muting and blocking can be huge assets, too. On X, I will often mute spoilers for TV shows or vulgar words I don’t want to see by going to “Privacy and Safety” > “Mute and block.” You can block pundits, bots, or haters if you want to go the extra mile in locking down your account’s exposure. On TikTok, holding down on a video allows you to click “Not interested.” On Facebook, you can snooze people for a certain amount of time if you want to hit pause on their content. You can also “softblock” on Instagram or other platforms, which is where you block someone and then unblock them to signal you don’t want to see their content, but they aren’t permanently excommunicated.
5. Set your preferences (as much as you can)
Dig around in the “Settings and privacy” tab on your (least) favorite platforms. You might be surprised what you find – and this can also help you know and limit what kind of data the platform is collecting from you.
On Facebook, if you go to “Settings & privacy” > “Content preferences” > “Manage defaults,” you can determine what kind of content the platform can serve you related to political content, low-quality content, unoriginal and problematic content, sensitive content, and fact-checked content. On X, if you go to “Privacy and safety” > “Inferred identity,” this allows X to “personalize your experience with your inferred activity, e.g. activity on devices you haven’t used to log in to X.” You can also choose to get personalized ads. On TikTok, if you want to make a big move, go to “Settings and privacy” > “Content preferences” > “Refresh your For You feed” to completely reset your algorithm.
These are just a few of the ways you can take back control of your algorithm. It all narrows down to six words: Seek out the content you want. Do more research before deciding to ditch an account just because you don’t like its recommendations.
But hey, if you want to delete your social media accounts, power to ya.
Read my last story: In: 2025. Out: Whatever That Was
My weekly roundup:
🎶 What I’m Listening To: SOS Deluxe: LANA by SZA
🎞️ What I’m Watching: I’m on my bi-annual Glee rewatch binge
🔎 What I’m Reading: Bunny by Mona Awad
📱 What I’m Scrolling: Zendaya’s (left hand) at the Golden Globes
⚠️ What’s On My Radar: Is 80s music scary now?
Read the full Gen Z Dictionary here.
Finsta: Fake Instagram account, burner/spam account
JK: Just kidding
Rage-bait: Social media content meant to incite