Direct for Instagram, the companion direct messaging app for the photo-sharing social media platform, is being killed off by Instagram in the next few weeks.

direct for instagram
First spotted by social media commentator Matt Navarra, this news was delivered to users of Direct for Instagram via an in-app notification, which informed them that the standalone app is "going away" and that their conversations would be transferred to Instagram proper.

In the coming month, we'll no longer be supporting the Direct app. Your conversations will automatically move over to Instagram, so you don't need to do anything.


Direct was released in December 2017 as a Snapchat-style app with a camera-first focus, allowing Instagram users to message friends with "fun" photos, videos, and boomerangs. Users who installed Direct had their DM inbox removed from the regular Instagram app to encourage them to use the break-out app for all messaging on the social platform.

"We want Instagram to be a place for all of your moments, and private sharing with close friends is a big part of that," the Facebook-owned company said at the time. "To make it easier and more fun for people to connect in this way, we are beginning to test Direct – a camera-first app that connects seamlessly back to Instagram."

Direct was initially rolled out to Chile, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Turkey and Uruguay, but Instagram never gave the app a global release, which is perhaps testament to the fact that the idea never really took off.

According to TechCrunch, Instagram will continue developing Direct features but within its main app. These new features, which have appeared variously in testing, include encryption in direct messaging, the ability to watch videos with other people, and a web version of the direct messaging feature.

Top Rated Comments

jamツ Avatar
64 months ago
all this time on instagram and ive never seen it or heard of it
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zorinlynx Avatar
64 months ago
I wish they'd fix the Instagram website and make it more fully featured. You can't post from it, or send messages. It's really idiotic to have to reach for my phone to do something on Instagram when I'm already sitting in front of a computer with a real keyboard and giant screen.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nburwell Avatar
64 months ago
Huh. I didn't even know Instagram had a standalone "DM" app.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
retta283 Avatar
64 months ago
I wish they'd fix the Instagram website and make it more fully featured. You can't post from it, or send messages. It's really idiotic to have to reach for my phone to do something on Instagram when I'm already sitting in front of a computer with a real keyboard and giant screen.
Snapchat is the same. No way to view/send anything on desktop. I don't have any of these apps installed and it sucks because there is no desktop version. Don't use FaceBook, but I will on occasion be linked to Instagram posts, and the desktop version isn't that great.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SoN1NjA Avatar
64 months ago
all this time on instagram and ive never seen it or heard of it
I wasn't either, I've yet to see any tech articles or tips in the IG app that mention it
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
squizzler Avatar
64 months ago
Waiting for: “independent studies show Instagram makes women more unhappy, so we’ve decided to shutter the whole thing”.
What’s your point?


Didn’t know they had a messaging app.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

reset password request iphone

Warning: Apple Users Targeted in Phishing Attack Involving Rapid Password Reset Requests

Tuesday March 26, 2024 4:34 pm PDT by
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
iPhone Home Screen Gradient Blank Spaces 1

Sources: iOS 18 Lets Apps Be Placed Anywhere on Home Screen Grid

Sunday March 24, 2024 1:33 pm PDT by
iOS 18 will give iPhone users greater control over Home Screen app icon arrangement, according to sources familiar with the matter. While app icons will likely remain locked to an invisible grid system on the Home Screen, to ensure there is some uniformity, our sources say that users will be able to arrange icons more freely on iOS 18. For example, we expect that the update will introduce...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18: What to Expect From 'Biggest' Update in iPhone's History

Wednesday March 27, 2024 11:10 am PDT by
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. "The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone's software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade," wrote Gurman, in a r...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2024 Event for June 10 to 14

Tuesday March 26, 2024 10:02 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
apple maps 3d feature

Apple Maps May Gain Custom Routes With iOS 18

Tuesday March 26, 2024 3:10 pm PDT by
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
iPad Pro 2024 Landscape Camera Feature

New iPad Pro Again Rumored to Feature Landscape Front-Facing Camera

Monday March 25, 2024 5:43 am PDT by
The next-generation iPad Pro will feature a landscape-oriented front-facing camera for the first time, according to the Apple leaker known as "Instant Digital." Instant Digital reiterated the design change earlier today on Weibo with a simple accompanying 2D image. The post reveals that the entire TrueDepth camera array will move to the right side of the device, while the microphone will...
sonoma desktop wwdc

Apple Releases macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 With Fix for USB Hub Bug

Monday March 25, 2024 10:10 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sonoma 14.4.1, a minor update for the macOS Sonoma operating system that launched last September. macOS Sonoma 14.4.1 comes three weeks after macOS Sonoma 14.4. The ‌‌‌‌macOS Sonoma‌‌ 14.4‌.1 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Settings. There's also a macOS 13.6.6 release for those who...