Instagram Just Became Snapchat With 'Stories' That Disappear After 24 Hours

Instagram today announced the launch of a new feature called "Instagram Stories," which lets its users post customized images and videos onto their profile, abiding by the ephemeral rule of rival service Snapchat: every post disappears completely within 24 hours. The company said that this lets users not have to "worry about overposting" and clogging up their profile in the process.

Stories will appear in a bar at the top of each user's normal Instagram feed, updating with new posts of all the same friends, family members, and popular accounts they follow. Each time someone posts a new picture or video within their Story, a colorful ring circles their profile picture. Jumping into Stories is as easy as tapping on one of those profile photos, and swiping to move back and forward through each user slideshow.

instagram stories

Today, we’re introducing Instagram Stories, a new feature that lets you share all the moments of your day, not just the ones you want to keep on your profile. As you share multiple photos and videos, they appear together in a slideshow format: your story.

With Instagram Stories, you don’t have to worry about overposting. Instead, you can share as much as you want throughout the day — with as much creativity as you want. You can bring your story to life in new ways with text and drawing tools. The photos and videos will disappear after 24 hours and won’t appear on your profile grid or in feed.

Comments are allowed on Stories, but are only able to be sent through Instagram's direct message feature, because "unlike regular posts, there are no likes or public comments." Keeping in the vein of Snapchat, you can swipe up on your own story to see every Instagram member who has viewed the post so far. To add a bit of flair to a profile, users can also post specific Stories to their page if they decide they want to keep the photo or video longer than 24 hours.

Some users are reporting that the Instagram Stories update has already been added to their device via an update that describes only "Bug fixes and performance improvements," but the company itself mentioned that the update should begin rolling out to iOS and Android devices "over the next few weeks." You can download the Instagram app for free on the App Store. [Direct Link]

Popular Stories

iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.1 Beta 1

Monday September 22, 2025 12:44 pm PDT by
Apple released the first beta of iOS 26.1 today, just a week after launching iOS 26. iOS 26.1 mainly adds new languages to Apple Intelligence, but there are a few other features that are worth knowing about. New Apple Intelligence Languages Apple Intelligence is now available in Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. AirPo...
iPhone 17 Pro and Air Feature

Two iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air Colors Appear to Scratch More Easily

Friday September 19, 2025 10:02 am PDT by
As reported by Bloomberg today, some of the new iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air models on display at Apple Stores today are already scratched and scuffed. French blog Consomac also reported on this topic. The scratches appear to be most prominent on models with darker finishes, including the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max in Deep Blue, and the iPhone Air in Space Black. Images Credit: Consoma ...
apple tv 4k new orange

Next Apple TV Expected to Launch This Year With These New Features

Monday September 22, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
The next Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Likely Features N1 Chip With Wi-Fi 7 Last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the next Apple TV would be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, which is...
Apple Intelligence General Feature 2

iOS 26.1 Adds New Apple Intelligence Languages and Expands AirPods Live Translation

Monday September 22, 2025 11:15 am PDT by
With iOS 26.1, Apple Intelligence is gaining support for additional languages, including Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. Apple announced plans to expand the languages that can be used with Apple Intelligence last year, and now the added language support is here. Apple Intelligence is now available in the following...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone Like 'Two Titanium iPhone Airs' Joined at the Hinge

Monday September 22, 2025 2:16 am PDT by
Next year's rumored foldable iPhone will showcase an ultra-thin design resembling "two titanium iPhone Airs side-by-side," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Writing in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says Apple's first foldable device will be "super thin and a design achievement," combining Apple's thinnest iPhone form factor with cutting-edge folding...
iPhone 17 Pro and Air N1 Feature

Some iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone Air Users Experiencing Intermittent Wi-Fi Issue

Monday September 22, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple's latest iPhone models launched on Friday, and some early adopters of the devices are experiencing intermittent Wi-Fi issues. Affected customers say Wi-Fi connectivity periodically cuts out on the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air, with hundreds of comments about the issue posted across the MacRumors Forums, Reddit, and the Apple Support Community over the...
iPhone 17 Pro USB C Port

iPhone 17 Pro Max's USB-C Charging Speeds Tested With Apple Chargers

Monday September 22, 2025 7:29 am PDT by
The website ChargerLAB has tested the iPhone 17 Pro Max's USB-C charging speeds with a variety of Apple's chargers, from 18W to 140W. The device reached a peak charging speed of around 36W with the following Apple chargers:40W Dynamic Power Adapter with 60W Max 61W USB-C Power Adapter 67W USB-C Power Adapter 70W USB-C Power Adapter 96W USB-C Power Adapter 140W USB-C Power AdapterFor...

Top Rated Comments

keysofanxiety Avatar
119 months ago
Meh, no thanks. I already use Snapchat to post silly/funny images or videos to my story. I'd prefer to keep Instagram with images that I shoot, then edit using the various apps on my iPhone before posting to IG. One app to post to my "story" is more than enough for me.
But can you make your cat shoot freaking laser beams out of its eyes?

Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mrgraff Avatar
119 months ago
I miss the "good old days" when an app did one thing and did it well. If you wanted to do something else, then you downloaded a different app. Nowadays, everything has to be a features smorgasbord in order to steal users and revenue from each other.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zorinlynx Avatar
119 months ago
I don't get this new obsession with stuff that vanishes forever.

Do we not want to save cool things to look back on them later anymore? Nostalgia is a wonderful feeling; I love finding stuff I posted online 15 years ago. If I'd been using Snapchat like services back then, there would be nothing!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
captain cadet Avatar
119 months ago
Did Instagram just become Samsung?
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Chatter Avatar
119 months ago
Next up: swipe left or right if you like the story.
If you like it, a dating profile pops up for quick contact.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sbrhwkp3 Avatar
119 months ago
Wow. Now that's just annoying.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)