Instagram Briefly Tested New Horizontal Feed for Main Posts, Wide Rollout Was an Error

Instagram recently tested a new way for users to browse their feeds, with a feed that scrolled horizontally instead of one that scrolled vertically. This test hit enough users around the world to get "Instagram Update" and "#NewInstagram" trending on Twitter (via The Independent), but Matt Navarra has confirmed that it was just a test that was meant for a "very small" group of individuals.

Anyone who saw the update should see their feeds reverted back to vertical scrolling soon. With the update, users had to scroll through traditional Instagram posts in the same way that they browse through Instagram Stories: by tapping the right or left edges of the screen. This completely replaced Instagram's typical vertical list of posts that users would scroll through, which led to many frustrated responses to the update on Twitter.

Image via @wordswithsam

Well @instagram is ruined pic.twitter.com/xNivrzY0NF

— Alexandra Arsene (@lexaarsene) December 27, 2018

Although not meant for a wide-scale rollout, the update was apparently an attempt to mimic the stories format for normal Instagram posts, since stories have quickly grown to become one of the most popular additions to Instagram following the feature's debut in 2016. Instagram Stories are now bigger than Snapchat, which is the app that originally created the idea of 24-hour disappearing stories.

Those who got the update saw a brief message: "Introducing a new way to move through posts. Tap through posts, just like you tap through stories." The Independent reported that a massive number of users in the United Kingdom received the update on Thursday afternoon.