How to Unfollow People in Pinterest Who Don't Follow You

Some Pinterest users feel inclined to reciprocate follows on the social networking site. The more followers you have, the more influence you can exert, which is especially important to some business owners and key influencers. Pinterest’s follow and unfollow features are extremely user-friendly, requiring a simple click to complete. The trick with unfollowing those who don’t follow you is in determining who those people are.

Take a look at the list of people you are currently following by clicking your Pinterest username in the upper-right corner of your account, and then clicking the “Your Profile & Pins” option. On the resulting page, click the “[number of followers] Followers” tab to see a list of people you follow. Depending on the number of followers you have, you may opt to go about comparing in several ways. The first option is to open two Web browsers; open your Followers list in one and your Following list in the other. Resize browsers to allow for a side-by-side comparison of both lists. You can scroll or use your computer’s search feature to find users' names. Those that appear in both lists are users you follow who also follow you. Another option is to copy and paste usernames into a document using Notepad, Google Docs, Microsoft Word or another program of your choice. Create a spreadsheet or table for easier sorting and comparison. Again, those who appear on both lists are people you follow who also follow you.

Once you have determined which pinners are not following you back, you can unfollow them in just a few clicks. Open your Following list, click on a name to open that person’s profile, and then click the “Unfollow All” tab at the top of the resulting page to stop following all of her boards, unfollowing her altogether. Note that clicking the “Unfollow” tab pertaining to a single board means you’ll no longer follow that board, but you’ll still be following any other boards pinned by that member. Also, by unfollowing a member, you’ll no longer see her new pins in your feed, but you may still see her previous pins.

If, after completing the unfollow process, you’re still seeing pins from someone in your feed, you may not have unfollowed that person altogether. As stated, it’s necessary to use the “Unfollow All” tab to unfollow a person; simply clicking the “Unfollow” tab that appears below a single board will not suffice. If you’re certain you’ve used the correct tab to unfollow someone, it’s possible that Pinterest didn’t complete the unfollow request. Navigate back to that person’s profile, click the “Follow” tab, wait 10 seconds, and then click the “Unfollow All” tab. If you’re following a group board that is used by multiple pinners, you may see pins from those people in your feed, regardless of follow status. Although confusing, this doesn’t mean you’re following each individual person. Refer to your earlier comparison of following to followers to see who you’re actually following.

When you come across pins in your feed with the “Related Pin” label, you’re not necessarily following those pinners either -- they’ve been added to your feed by Pinterest based on your activity. Related pins are similar in content to pins you’ve previously liked or clicked on, boards you’re following and websites you’ve visited. Rating related pins enables you to control their appearance in your feed. Use the thumbs up and thumbs down tabs to designate the type of content you enjoy seeing.