diff --git a/src/components/nav_panel/nav_panel.js b/src/components/nav_panel/nav_panel.js
index 438615da..28fafed8 100644
--- a/src/components/nav_panel/nav_panel.js
+++ b/src/components/nav_panel/nav_panel.js
@@ -88,6 +88,7 @@ const NavPanel = {
       privateMode: state => state.instance.private,
       federating: state => state.instance.federating,
       pleromaChatMessagesAvailable: state => state.instance.pleromaChatMessagesAvailable,
+      supportsAnnouncements: state => state.announcements.supportsAnnouncements,
       pinnedItems: state => new Set(state.serverSideStorage.prefsStorage.collections.pinnedNavItems),
       collapsed: state => state.serverSideStorage.prefsStorage.simple.collapseNav
     }),
@@ -98,6 +99,7 @@ const NavPanel = {
           .map(([k, v]) => ({ ...v, name: k })),
         {
           hasChats: this.pleromaChatMessagesAvailable,
+          hasAnnouncements: this.supportsAnnouncements,
           isFederating: this.federating,
           isPrivate: this.privateMode,
           currentUser: this.currentUser
diff --git a/src/components/navigation/filter.js b/src/components/navigation/filter.js
index 31b55486..5474a8ac 100644
--- a/src/components/navigation/filter.js
+++ b/src/components/navigation/filter.js
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-export const filterNavigation = (list = [], { hasChats, isFederating, isPrivate, currentUser }) => {
+export const filterNavigation = (list = [], { hasChats, hasAnnouncements, isFederating, isPrivate, currentUser }) => {
   return list.filter(({ criteria, anon, anonRoute }) => {
     const set = new Set(criteria || [])
     if (!isFederating && set.has('federating')) return false
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ export const filterNavigation = (list = [], { hasChats, isFederating, isPrivate,
     if (!currentUser && !(anon || anonRoute)) return false
     if ((!currentUser || !currentUser.locked) && set.has('lockedUser')) return false
     if (!hasChats && set.has('chats')) return false
+    if (!hasAnnouncements && set.has('announcements')) return false
     return true
   })
 }
diff --git a/src/components/navigation/navigation.js b/src/components/navigation/navigation.js
index 40100f97..7f096316 100644
--- a/src/components/navigation/navigation.js
+++ b/src/components/navigation/navigation.js
@@ -76,6 +76,7 @@ export const ROOT_ITEMS = {
     route: 'announcements',
     icon: 'bullhorn',
     label: 'nav.announcements',
-    badgeGetter: 'unreadAnnouncementCount'
+    badgeGetter: 'unreadAnnouncementCount',
+    criteria: ['announcements']
   }
 }
diff --git a/src/components/side_drawer/side_drawer.js b/src/components/side_drawer/side_drawer.js
index 680216dd..27019577 100644
--- a/src/components/side_drawer/side_drawer.js
+++ b/src/components/side_drawer/side_drawer.js
@@ -95,7 +95,8 @@ const SideDrawer = {
       }
     },
     ...mapState({
-      pleromaChatMessagesAvailable: state => state.instance.pleromaChatMessagesAvailable
+      pleromaChatMessagesAvailable: state => state.instance.pleromaChatMessagesAvailable,
+      supportsAnnouncements: state => state.announcements.supportsAnnouncements
     }),
     ...mapGetters(['unreadChatCount', 'unreadAnnouncementCount'])
   },
diff --git a/src/components/side_drawer/side_drawer.vue b/src/components/side_drawer/side_drawer.vue
index 4101cb03..887596f8 100644
--- a/src/components/side_drawer/side_drawer.vue
+++ b/src/components/side_drawer/side_drawer.vue
@@ -192,6 +192,7 @@
           </a>
         </li>
         <li
+          v-if="currentUser && supportsAnnouncements"
           @click="toggleDrawer"
         >
           <router-link
diff --git a/src/modules/announcements.js b/src/modules/announcements.js
index 0f8b6d09..e4d2d2b0 100644
--- a/src/modules/announcements.js
+++ b/src/modules/announcements.js
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ const FETCH_ANNOUNCEMENT_INTERVAL_MS = 1000 * 60 * 5
 
 export const defaultState = {
   announcements: [],
+  supportsAnnouncements: true,
   fetchAnnouncementsTimer: undefined
 }
 
@@ -20,6 +21,9 @@ export const mutations = {
   },
   setFetchAnnouncementsTimer (state, timer) {
     state.fetchAnnouncementsTimer = timer
+  },
+  setSupportsAnnouncements (state, supportsAnnouncements) {
+    state.supportsAnnouncements = supportsAnnouncements
   }
 }
 
@@ -40,6 +44,10 @@ const announcements = {
   getters,
   actions: {
     fetchAnnouncements (store) {
+      if (!store.state.supportsAnnouncements) {
+        return Promise.resolve()
+      }
+
       const currentUser = store.rootState.users.currentUser
       const isAdmin = currentUser && currentUser.role === 'admin'
 
@@ -72,6 +80,15 @@ const announcements = {
         .then(announcements => {
           store.commit('setAnnouncements', announcements)
         })
+        .catch(error => {
+          // If and only if backend does not support announcements, it would return 404.
+          // In this case, silently ignores it.
+          if (error && error.statusCode === 404) {
+            store.commit('setSupportsAnnouncements', false)
+          } else {
+            throw error
+          }
+        })
     },
     markAnnouncementAsRead (store, id) {
       return store.rootState.api.backendInteractor.dismissAnnouncement({ id })