Instagram is testing a brand new layout for its app that puts its two most popular features—Reels and DMs—right at the front. The head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, announced a test that will provide some users with a new menu bar featuring a completely different arrangement of tabs.
If you’re part of the test, the current menu bar with its tabs for your feed, search, and creating a new post will be replaced. The new layout swaps the search and Reels tabs, and gets rid of the dedicated “create” button in favor of a new tab for direct messages. The new design also lets you swipe between the tabs.
Mosseri admitted that these kinds of big changes can “take time to get used to,” which is why the test is optional for now. But it’s a clear signal of where the company is headed. For months, Meta has been saying it wants to prioritize messaging and short-form video. The company even tested a similar new layout in India earlier this year.
“Reels and DMs have driven most of our growth at Instagram over the last few years, so we are exploring making them the first two tabs,” Mosseri said.
This is a major shift for an app that started as a simple way to share photos. For many long-time users, the move away from photography might be jarring. But for Meta, it’s all about chasing the latest social media trends. The company is betting that the future of Instagram is less about posting photos and more about watching videos from creators and then chatting about them privately with your friends.
