Instagram users are flooding feeds with hyper-saturated memories from 2016, reviving VSCO filters, matte Kylie lip kits and Pokemon Go snapshots exactly ten years later.
At a Glance
- Celebrities and everyday users are posting 2016 throwbacks featuring dog Snapchat filters, chokers and acai bowls
- The trend marks the decade anniversary of what many call the last “carefree” year before politics and the pandemic darkened feeds
- Critics highlight 2016’s lows: Brexit, the Pulse nightclub shooting, police killings and Zika
- Why it matters: The wave of nostalgia exposes a generational divide over whether 2016 deserves romanticizing
The revival began two weeks ago when people mined camera rolls and Snapchat memories for photos stamped with winged eyeliner, bold eyebrows and Coachella-boho outfits. Boxing-style captions like “2026 is the new 2016” accompanied the posts, according to meme database Know Your Meme.
Katrina Yip, who shared her own 2016 photos, laughed at how synchronized the memories look: “When I’m seeing people’s 2016 posts, even if they were in different states or slightly different ages, there’s all these similarities, like that dog filter or those chokers or The Chainsmokers. It makes it so funny to realize that we were all part of this big movement that we didn’t really even know at the time was, like, just following the trend of that time.”
The aesthetic package is unmistakable:
- Matte liquid lipstick in dusty pinks and taupes
- Over-filtered VSCO presets pumping saturation to summer-camp levels
- Chokers, flannels tied round waists and mirrored aviators
- Acai bowls, boxed water and Triangl swimwear photos shot from above
Steffy Degreff, 38, told News Of Los Angeles the pull is less about fashion and more about how platforms once operated. Chronological feeds ended when friends ran out of updates, algorithms felt “less malicious” and politics had not yet swallowed timelines. “2016 was the beginning of the end of a golden era of when people felt really good about the internet and social media and politics,” she said.
Paige Lorentzen, 31, contrasted the era with today’s neutral-toned “quiet luxury” minimalism. “Back then, it was the brighter the saturation on your photos, the better. Everything felt like summer.”
Yet not everyone joined the nostalgia loop. As the meme spread, counter-posts slammed the idea of reliving 2016. Users on X begged, “Why is everyone trying to bring back 2016? Please don’t actually,” and “i thought we all agreed that was a terrible year.” The Cut ran the headline “Who would want to relive this?” listing Brexit, the Pulse nightclub attack that killed 49, the police shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile and the Zika outbreak.
Those who cherish the year acknowledge the darkness but separate personal timelines from global headlines. Lorentzen remembers senior-year beach life in California: “It was before adulthood… that carefree young California girl era.”
Content creator Teala Dunn, whose mid-2010s morning-routine vlogs attracted millions of teenage subscribers, links the fondness to pre-pandemic normalcy. “I didn’t realize how much we took for granted normal life pre-Covid… Things were just a lot more fun.”
Dunn, who still posts but shares less of her private life, says 2016 felt freer because “people were just posting for their friends… They weren’t celebrities or educational accounts.” The feedback loop stayed inside personal bubbles; virality existed but on smaller, less parasocial terms.
The revival also underscores how TikTok’s algorithmic engine has changed creation. In 2016, YouTubers and Instagram influencers were fewer, Vine stars rose and fell, and TikTok had not yet arrived. Today non-creators mostly post milestone events, leaving daily minutiae to professionals chasing algorithmic reach.
Yip sums up the appeal: “It was OK to be cringey, you know?” The blunt authenticity now fuels a longing for the last moment social media felt collectively light before pandemic lockdowns, political upheaval and creator-economy pressure converged.
Key Takeaways
- 2016 nostalgia is surging on Instagram as users post decade-old photos saturated with era-defining filters and fashion
- Supporters miss chronological feeds, smaller audiences and pre-Covid normalcy
- Detractors cite Brexit, mass shootings and disease outbreaks as reasons the year deserves no encore
- The debate highlights shifting attitudes toward content creation and platform culture
