INSTAGRAM DMs

You can send messages, photos and videos in chats to one or more people on Instagram.

Messages won’t appear in feed, search or your profile.

Send a message

1. Click or on the left.

2. Click in the top left.

3. Select the people you’d like to send a message to.

4. Enter a message. You can also click to select a photo or video from your library.

5. Click Send.

To message someone you follow, you can also go to their profile and click Message.

When you send a message to someone who doesn’t follow you or isn’t already connected to you, your message is sent as a message request and can only contain text. You can’t send photos, videos or voice notes until they accept your message request.

Keep in mind, Instagram accounts you message may use third party apps or automated services to send messages in chats.

If you’re having trouble sending a message to someone on Instagram, try these troubleshooting steps to help solve the issue.

Learn how to view, react and reply to messages you receive.

To unsend a message you’ve sent in a chat on Instagram:

1. Click or on the left.

2. Select the conversation and go to the message you’d like to unsend.

3. Click next to the message.

4. Click Unsend, then click Unsend to confirm.

Once you unsend a message, it will no longer be visible to people included in the chat. Keep in mind that the people you sent it to may have already seen your message.

Note that your Data Download file doesn’t include messages that you’ve unsent from your Instagram account.

You can start an audio or video call with up to 8 people on Instagram.

Start a call

To begin an audio or video call on Instagram:

1. Click or on the left.

2. Click an existing conversation on the left or start a new conversation.

3. From your chat, you can:

   • Click in the top right to start an audio call.

   • Click in the top right to start a video call.

4. Click Start call.

The person or group you call will receive a notification that you’re calling them.

Keep in mind that anyone you’ve accepted a message from, except for verified accounts, can video call with you. To prevent someone from video calling with you, you can block them.

Manage a call

While on an audio or video call, you can:

• Enter full screen. Click in the top right to expand your call screen.

• Update camera and audio settings. Click in the top right to make changes to your camera and audio settings.

• End a video call. Click at the bottom to end your video call.

To manage who can send you message requests on Instagram:

1. Click More in the bottom left, then click Settings.

2. Below How others can interact with you, click Messages and story replies.

3. Click Message controls.

4. Choose whether message requests from people on Instagram go to your Message Requests folder or whether to receive them at all.

Note that you’ll need to accept message requests in your Message Requests folder before they appear in your Chats list. Messages from people you follow on Instagram will appear in your Chats list.

Manage group chat message requests

You can choose who can add you to groups.

To manage group settings:

1. Click More in the bottom left, then click Settings.

2. Below How others can interact with you, click Messages and story replies.

3. Click Message controls.

4. Click Who can add you to groups. From here you can tap:

   • Everyone on Instagram: Group chats from Instagram accounts you’ve already connected with will appear in your Chats list. All other group chats will be sent to your Message Requests folder.

   • Only people you follow on Instagram: People you follow or have messaged before can add you to groups.

Accounts you’ve blocked won’t be able to send you message requests or add you to groups. If the account you’ve blocked is in a group chat you’ve been added to, you’ll be notified before you join the chat. Note if the person you blocked has multiple Instagram accounts, you may need to block each account.

Learn how to report a message on Instagram.

Instagram lets you send messages to one or more people in chats. These messages can include text and photos or videos you take or upload from your library. You can also send the following things as a message:

• Posts you see in feed

• Disappearing photos and videos

• Instagram profiles

See messages you’ve sent in chats

1. Click or on the left.

2. Click the conversation you want to view.

When you send a post from feed as a message, it’ll only be visible to people who can already see it. For example, if you send a post from a private account as a message, only people who follow that account will be able to see it.

Photos or videos sent in a chat can’t be shared through Instagram to other sites like Facebook or Twitter, and won’t appear on hashtag and location pages.

Learn how to view messages you’ve received on Instagram.

You can send a photo, reel or carousel you see on Instagram as a message in chats. Messages won’t appear in feed, search or your profile.

Share a post to a chat

1. Click below the post you'd like to send.

2. Click the person or group from the list below or click Search to search for someone.

3. Click Write a message... to add an optional message, then click Send.

Keep in mind that when you send a private account’s post as a message, only people who follow that account will be able to see the post. The person who uploaded the post won’t be notified.

You can send a disappearing photo or video to others in chats on Instagram. The photo or video is no longer visible to the person that received it after they’ve viewed the content, unless you’ve allowed a replay of it.

Send a disappearing photo or video

To send a disappearing photo or video:

1. Tap or in the top right of Feed.

2. Tap a chat from your Chats list or start a new chat.

3. Tap in the bottom left.

4. You can choose to:

   • Take a photo or video. Tap the circle at the bottom of the screen to take a photo or tap and hold the circle to record a video.

   • Upload a picture or video from your device. Tap the image icon in the bottom left of the screen to choose a photo or video from your device.

5. Customize your photo or video by adding text, a drawing or GIF.

6. Before sending the photo or video, tap the icon in the bottom left of your screen to:

   • Select View Once to let the person or group receiving your photo or video only view it once.

   • Select Allow Replay to loop your photo or video and to let the recipient open and replay your photo or video one more time before it disappears.

   • Select Keep in Chat to keep a preview image of the photo or video visible in the chat thread.

7. Tap Send in the bottom right.

Keep in mind

• You can only send disappearing photos or videos to people who follow you or have already approved messages from you.

• You can’t view your disappearing photos or videos after you’ve sent them in a chat, but you can see if they were seen or if we detect someone took a screenshot.

• When you send other message types using Instagram Direct (example: posts from feed, text, hashtags), those messages don’t disappear and will remain visible in the conversation.

Learn how to also turn on vanish mode in your chat to send disappearing messages, photos, videos and other content.

This feature isn’t available to everyone.

Notes gives you a space to share updates and thoughts as short posts with certain people. You can share up to 1 note with others on Instagram.

Your note will appear at the top of your inbox in Instagram messaging and above your profile picture in your profile.

Share a note

Click an option below to learn how to share a note from your inbox or profile in the Instagram app.

From your Instagram inbox

1. Tap or in the top right of feed.

2. Tap Note… above your profile picture at the top of your inbox.

3. Enter a note of up to 60 characters. You can also:

   • Mention someone in your note if the user allows it.

   • Add music to your note by tapping . Note: Music notes aren’t available in all countries.

   • Write a prompt.

   • Add a video to your note using your device’s camera by tapping your profile picture and then tapping the blue button at the bottom to begin recording your video. Videos can only be 2 seconds long. Note: If a video note is created from your inbox, it will not be visible in your profile.

4. Select to share your note with Followers you follow back or your Close Friends.

5. Tap Share in the top right to share your note.

Keep in mind that certain notes, like notes with GIFs or videos, will not appear on your profile.

From your Instagram profile

1. Tap or your profile picture in the bottom right to go to your profile.

2. Tap Note… above your profile picture.

3. Enter a note of up to 60 characters. You can also:

   • Mention someone in your note if the user allows it.

   • Add music to your note by tapping . Note: Music notes aren’t available in all countries.

4. Select to share your note with Followers you follow back or your Close Friends.

5. Tap Share in the top right to share your note.

About your note

You and others will see your note at the top of the inbox and your profile for up to 24 hours. After this time, your note will no longer be visible on Instagram. Your note can be deleted at any time by tapping on it, then tapping Delete note. Learn more about what happens to content you’ve deleted from your Instagram account.

People that see your note can like or reply to it. Only you can see who’s liked or replied to your note.

You can see a list of who liked your note by tapping your note. You can start a conversation with someone who’s liked your note by tapping next to their name.

When people reply to your note, it will start a conversation between you and them only. You can find these conversations in your inbox.

Notes you share must follow our Community Standards. When a note is reported, we have tools and reviewers to help us identify, review or remove content that may violate our Community Standards. Even after 24 hours, when a note is no longer visible, it can be subject to additional review processes. Learn more about our content review process and how to appeal Instagram’s content decision.

Leave a new note

You can leave a new note at any time. Your new note will replace any current note you’ve shared with other accounts.

To create a new note:

1. Tap your note at the top of your inbox or profile, then tap Leave a new note.

2. Enter a note of up to 60 characters.

3. Select the audience for your note.

4. Tap Share in the top right to share your new note.

Learn how to like and reply to notes you see or add a note to a post or reel on Instagram.

This feature isn’t available to everyone.

You can like or reply to notes that you see at the top of your inbox or above someone’s profile picture in their profile on Instagram.

Like or reply to a note

1. Tap someone’s note you see at the top of your inbox or at the top of their profile.

2. From here you can:

   • Tap to like the note.

   • Tap Send message… and enter your reply. Tap Send. Your reply will be sent as a direct message.

You can also like someone’s note by double-tapping the note at the top of your inbox or their profile.

If you see a note that doesn't follow our Community Standards, you can report it.

Keep in mind that when you:

• Like a note: Only the person who shared the note can see your like.

• Reply to a note: Your reply will start a conversation between you and them only. You can find these conversations in your inbox.

Learn how to respond to a prompt or mute or unmute notes from someone.