I’ve always felt vulnerable due to the lack of privacy on Instagram. But there’s no option to view Instagram stories privately. Most people create fake accounts, but that’s not worth the effort. That’s when I turned to third-party anonymous Instagram viewers, but they either come with shady logins or redirect me to an ad on every click. After testing several tools, I’ve compiled this review to help you avoid the same issues I encountered and maintain your online privacy.

Overview of Anonymous Instagram Viewer
Getting used to a new tool always comes with its own questions, and I get that. The last thing you want is to start using one of these tools and suddenly your computer is working by itself. But don't worry, the tools I'm reviewing in this article are tried and tested by me.
First off, you’ll want to choose the right viewer tool. There are plenty of options available, each with its own quirks. Some tools require you to install something, while others work directly in your browser, no installation needed. And while some are free, others might come with a price tag, but we’ll get into which ones are worth it a bit later.
Once you’ve settled on a tool, it’s time to find the profile you want to check out. All you have to do is enter the username of the person or business you want to view. Make sure that you have the right username because there are a lot of impostors with fake profiles on Instagram. But honestly, it's pretty easy to find the profile you are looking for if it's a popular account, just search for it on Google, and if it's not so famous, you can still find it under their profile name.
Once you've found your profile, you can do multiple things with these Instagram story viewers. In most of these tools, you can view stories, posts, and even highlights. And the best part is that they all show the results like how you would see them on Instagram, but the only difference is that you have your spy hat on this time, pretty neat, huh?
Top 5 Anonymous Instagram Viewers
Now that you have a concept of how these anonymous Instagram story viewers work, let’s see what you can expect from the top 5 anonymous story viewer tools out there. Before choosing which Instagram anonymous story viewer is for you, it’s important that you look at each tool's pros and cons, which I’ve compiled from my personal experience. Most of these tools are designed to give you the utmost privacy while you enjoy Instagram stories.
EmbedSocial
EmbedSocial is a handy anonymous Instagram viewer with a neat feature. When you type in a username, the active stories from that account pop up right on the website. Within seconds, as soon as someone posts Embed Social updates, which means that when you search for stories from their username, you can view them instantly and even download them with a handy button.

Privacy is one of the redeeming features of this tool. It has a free tier, which has limits, but there are no ads, nor does it require downloads or any annoying logins, proving that they don't collect any of your personal information. So, whatever the reason that you're looking at an Instagram profile, privately Embed Social will let you watch Instagram without leaving behind a trace.
The only thing that's needed, like I mentioned in the previous section, is a username. So if it's a celebrity, a competitor, or even an ex (don't worry, we don't judge), this tool will let you view anonymously if you're at home with your laptop or even travelling and watching on your phone.
I found Embed social to be simple to use, and honestly, there was no login or ads on the tool. But you are only allowed to search once per day, which personally is a bummer, specifically when I'm trying to do some research and the limit alert pops up.
How to use:
Using this website is extremely easy. As soon as you go to the website the process is laid out directly and it’s pretty self-explanatory. Here’s how to use Embed social anonymous Instagram viewer to view an Instagram story.
Step 1: Alright, first of all, head over to the Embed Social Instagram viewer website.

Step 2: As soon as the site loads, you will see a search bar. Go ahead and paste the
username in the search bar.

Step 3: You can then download the stories you want by clicking on the “Download” below them.

Insta Stories Viewer
Insta Stories Viewer is the second tool, and it's pretty similar to EmbedSocial. It’s a free and simple service for viewing Instagram stories anonymously, no need to log in. Just type in the username of the account you want to check out, hit search, and you’re good to go.

It works by viewing the story through one of the service’s accounts, so the website won't even know that you're the one viewing, meaning that they in fact can't leak anything even accidentally, cause it doesn't exist. The feature I love the most, though, as someone who's bilingual, is that the website is available in languages other than English. There are languages like German, Spanish, Russian, Italian, French, and Turkish available on it.
Insta Stories Viewer is pretty basic and simple to use, honestly, and the interface, I felt, was more attractive, but that’s about it. There’s no direct download button, so you might have to download each individual picture, which is very time-consuming.
How to use:
Using this tool is almost identical to EmbedSocial, there’s nothing complicated, so if you understood how to use EmbedSocial, then you will likely understand this as well.
Step 1: Alright, first of all, head over to the Insta Stories Viewer website.

Step 2: As soon as the site loads, you will see a search bar. Go ahead and paste the
username in the search bar.

Step 3: You can view the stories; however, since there is no direct download button here, you’ll need to right-click and save them to your pc.

Inflact
Inflact takes a different approach by offering separate tools for various Instagram tasks, instead of one all-in-one viewer. They have a profile analyzer, user search tool, Instagram stories viewer, and even an Instagram viewer, all designed to give you deeper insights into Instagram content.

One neat feature is the auto-save, which allows you to view older stories that are saved on the server for up to seven days. However, there are some limitations on the free tier: you can only view three profiles per day and twelve content views, with a total of three downloads per day. Profile analytics are also limited.
Besides the Instagram story viewer, Inflact offers other tools like a profile analyzer, which helps you dig deeper into any Instagram profile, and a hashtag generator to find trending tags for your posts. Keep in mind that while the free tier offers a good amount, the paid version unlocks more features. For example, Inflact’s free version lets you view three profiles per day, which is actually more than EmbedSocial’s free trial limit.
Inflict is pretty intuitive and has a lot of other features, but most of these additional features are locked behind a paywall, which can be annoying. But otherwise, it’s a great tool.
How to use:
Let’s see how to use Inflact Instagram stories viewer to view and download someone's Instagram stories.
Step 1: Alright, first of all, head over to the Inflact Instagram stories viewer website.

Step 2: As soon as the site loads, you will see a search bar. Go ahead and paste the
username in the search bar. Then click “VIEW STORIES” to generate the live stories.

Step 3: Lastly, select the story you want to download, then click on it, and then find and click the “Download” button in the top right.

StoriesStalker
Our fourth tool is StoriesStalker, and it really stands out in terms of features, especially since it's completely free. This tool lets you discreetly explore Instagram without anyone knowing. You can watch and download active stories anonymously, even save content after it disappears. StoriesStalker also lets you access deleted photos and videos, keeping you updated on profile changes while maintaining your privacy.

In addition to stories, you can explore other content too. It allows you to view and save deleted comments, check who liked posts, and track changes in followers and followings. The best part? There’s no need to sign up or log in to use any of these features, making it super simple and convenient to use. StoriesStalker truly offers a lot of value for free.
I really love the additional features of this website, and honestly, it’s easy and quite useful when you get used to it. That said, it’s so slow, and there are ads everywhere on the website, which is so annoying.
How to use:
Now, although this website might be a bit complicated for first timers, let’s see how we can use it.
Step 1: Alright, first of all, head over to the StoriesStalker website.

Step 2: As soon as the site loads, you will see a search bar. Go ahead and paste the
username in the search bar. Then click “View anonymously” to generate the live stories.

Step 3: Lastly, select the story you want to download and then go ahead and click on the download button.
GreatFon
Finally, we're at our last tool, GreatFon. Not only does this one let you view and download profiles, stories, followers, reels, and tagged web posts anonymously, but rather you can even search popular hashtags and view the posts within them all without needing an account. It's like the incognito version of Instagram.

The process to use it is the same, and they haven't tried anything complex. Upload your username, the same as before, and wait for the results. The rest is up to you. But there's a catch, of course, there's always a catch. It only works for public accounts, so you'll need the usernames to be of public accounts only.
This one was as it marketed itself, it cut right to the chase, but it did have fewer advanced features as compared to the other tool. But what I loved was its detailed breakdown with graphs explaining the activity of the Instagram account, which makes it perfect if you're in a research role.
How to use:
Finally, onto our last guide, let’s see how to use Greatfon to view stories anonymously.
Step 1: Alright, first of all, head over to the Greatfon website.

Step 2: As soon as the site loads, you will see a search bar. Go ahead and paste the
username in the search bar. Then click the search icon.

Step 3: Lastly, select the story you want to download, then click on it, and then find and click the “Download” button at the bottom.

Comparison of the Above 5 Tools
It can still be confusing selecting the right tool, so I’ve put together this table comparing different features of the tools so that you can make the right decision.
| Tool | Ads Presence | Ease of Use | Device Compatibility | Registration Needed | Speed | Security |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EmbedSocial | No | Easy | Mobile, PC | No | Fast | High |
| Insta Stories Viewer | No | Easy | Mobile, PC | No | Fast | Medium |
| Inflact | No | Easy | Mobile, PC | Yes | Fast | High |
| StoriesStalker | No | Medium | Mobile, PC | No | Slow | High |
| Greatfon | Yes | Easy | Mobile, PC | No | Medium | Medium |
Bonus Tool – Toolsmart Instagram Video Downloader
So far, we’ve explored several tools that let you watch Instagram stories and explore content anonymously. Each tool has its own unique features, from the simplicity of EmbedSocial to the versatility of Inflact, and the straightforward approach of StoriesStalker. These tools really come in handy when you're looking to view stories without leaving a trace, but they don’t always cover everything you might need.

One problem I frequently faced when doing research for articles or during my freelance work was the inability to save video content from Instagram after viewing it anonymously. I’d use these tools to watch stories, but then I’d need a separate solution to download and store the content I wanted.
That’s where Toolsmart Instagram Video Downloader comes in. While it doesn’t support anonymous viewing, it’s perfect for saving Instagram video content after you’ve checked it with one of the story viewers. For instance, if you’ve used an anonymous viewer to watch a story, you can easily use Toolsmart to download and store that video for later use. It’s a seamless way to capture and keep content without jumping through multiple hoops.
This tool has been a vital part of my social media strategy. Whenever I’m researching a competitor, it’s important that I know everything about their video, but I don't want to keep anonymity as well, which this tool helps me keep.
How to use:
Here’s a simple guide to get started with Toolsmart’s Instagram Video Downloader. You don’t need to sign up or download anything.
Step 1: Open your browser and head over to the Toolsmart Instagram Video Downloader site.

Step 2: Back on the Toolsmart site, just paste that link into the input box on the page.

Step 3: Click the “Download” button and give Toolsmart a few seconds to process the video. After that, just save the file to your device.

FAQs
Q1: Does EmbedSpecial’s Instagram Story Viewer require a login or Instagram account?
No, you can view public stories anonymously without needing to log in or connect your Instagram account.
Q2: Can I use EmbedSpecial to view private or close friends’ Instagram stories?
No, it only works with public stories, so you can't access private or restricted content.
Q3: Is Insta Stories Viewer mobile-friendly?
Yes, Insta Stories Viewer works well on both mobile and desktop browsers, so you can use it on any device.
Q4: Does Insta Stories Viewer save any of my browsing activity?
No, it doesn't collect or store any personal data. It’s just a browser-based viewer to keep things private.
Q5: Can Inflact’s Anonymous Story Viewer download stories?
Yes, Inflact allows you to download many public stories, so you can save them to your device.
Q6: Is there a fee for using Inflact’s viewer tool?
Viewing stories is free, but some features like scheduled downloads or analytics may require a premium plan.
Q7: Does StoriesStalker show who viewed the story?
No, StoriesStalker keeps things anonymous. The person whose story you view won’t know you’ve seen it.
Q8: Can StoriesStalker be used on all browsers?
Yes, it’s compatible with popular browsers like Chrome, Safari, and Firefox.
Q9: What makes GreatFon different from other Instagram viewers?
GreatFon lets you explore not only stories but also reels and highlights, plus it includes profile analysis tools.
Q10: Can Toolsmart Instagram Video Downloader download private IG stories?
No, Toolsmart only supports public Instagram story links for downloading.
Q11: Do I need to install an app for Toolsmart Instagram Video Downloader?
No, Toolsmart is completely web-based, so no installation is required.

