IG Scroll Brake
IG Scroll Brake adds intentional stopping points to Instagram so you can browse without falling into an endless scroll.
Instead of removing Instagram content, the script lets you view a limited number of posts or Reels before pausing further scrolling. When you deliberately choose to continue, press the Load more button.
Features
- Shows up to 10 posts before pausing feeds and grids.
- Shows up to 5 Reels before pausing continuous Reels.
- Supports Instagram’s Home and Following feeds.
- Supports Explore results.
- Supports profile Posts, Reels, and Tagged grids.
- Supports comments on individual posts.
- Works with Instagram’s dynamically loaded and virtualized content.
- Recognizes Reels even when Instagram reuses a single video element.
- Prevents further navigation using the mouse wheel, trackpad, touchscreen, keyboard, or Reels Next button.
- Pauses media beyond the current limit and removes autoplay from it.
- Lets you move backward through Reels you have already viewed.
- Remembers your progress when opening a post and returning to the previous page.
- Maintains separate progress for different feeds, profiles, comment threads, Explore, and Reels.
- Supports both light and dark mode.
- Uses an Instagram-inspired interface with the familiar gradient, camera icon, and blue action button.
How It Works
The script creates a hard scrolling boundary after the allowed number of items:
- Posts, grids, and comments: 10 items initially
- Continuous Reels: 5 Reels initially
- Load more amount: 5 items by default
When you reach the boundary, an Instagram-themed control appears at the bottom of the page. Press Load more to continue.
You can change the number of items revealed at a time using the number field. Values from 1 to 100 are supported, and your preference is saved locally for future Instagram visits.
Reels Support
IG Scroll Brake handles both ways Instagram currently presents Reels:
- Instagram changes the URL for every Reel, such as
/reel/ABC123/.
- Instagram keeps the
/reels/ URL and recycles the same video element for new content.
Each distinct Reel is counted as it becomes active. After five Reels, further downward navigation is blocked until you explicitly load more.
While the brake is active, it blocks:
- Mouse-wheel and trackpad scrolling
- Downward touchscreen swipes
Arrow Down, Page Down, End, and Space scrolling- Instagram’s Next Reel control
- Scroll attempts past the calculated boundary
You can still move backward through previously viewed Reels.
Progress and Resets
Progress is maintained separately for each Instagram surface during the current browser-tab session.
Returning to the top resets that surface to its initial limit. You can reset by:
- Pressing
Home
- Pressing
Ctrl + ↑ or Command + ↑
- Using Instagram’s refresh or new-post control
- Making a large jump back to the top
The initial limit remains 10 items for regular Instagram content and 5 items for Reels.
Pages Left Unchanged
The script intentionally avoids interfering with:
- Direct messages
- Stories
- Login and account pages
- Instagram settings
- Dialogs and modal windows
- Independently scrollable sidebars
Privacy
IG Scroll Brake is entirely local.
- No analytics
- No tracking
- No external requests
- No account information collected
- No privileged userscript APIs
The only persistent value stored is your chosen Load more quantity. It is saved in your browser’s local storage.
Installation
- Install Tampermonkey or Violentmonkey.
- Press the green Install this script button on this page.
- Open or refresh Instagram.
- Browse normally until the scroll brake appears.
