Forward vs next story on Instagram: what's the difference?
In short
Forward means a viewer tapped through to your next frame; next story means they swiped away to another account's story — one is watching, the other is leaving you.
Both move the viewer on, which is why they are easy to confuse, but they end in different places. A forward tap stays inside your story: the frame ended and they wanted the next one. A high forward count on a multi-frame story is simply people watching it.
Next story is a swipe out of your story into somebody else's. The viewer stayed in stories and picked another account — which makes it a hook problem on that frame rather than an audience problem.
Neither is an exit. A viewer who swipes to the next story is still watching stories; one who exits has closed them. See story exits for that one.
Is higher better?
It depends
Forward taps are neutral. Next-story swipes are the one to watch: a frame with many of them is losing viewers to other accounts.
Where to find it
While the story is live, open it and swipe up to see its activity. Afterwards it is in your Professional dashboard under the content you shared.
Questions people ask
What does forward mean on an Instagram story?
It counts taps on the right side of the screen to move to your next story frame. It is how multi-frame stories are normally watched, so a high forward count is not a bad sign.
What does next story mean in Instagram insights?
It counts swipes from your story to the next account's story. The viewer kept watching stories but left yours, which usually means that frame did not hold them.
Related metrics
- Story navigationNavigation is the total number of times viewers moved through your story — tapping forward, swiping to the next account, tapping back, or exiting — added into one number.
- BackBack is the number of times viewers tapped to return to the previous frame of your story — they wanted to see it again.
- Story exitsExits is the number of times a viewer closed stories altogether while on your story — not moving on to the next frame or account, but stopping.
Sources
- Meta — Instagram Platform insights — The metrics served per media type and for the account
- Meta — Instagram Media insights reference — Metric names and definitions for posts, reels and stories