Social Media

Managing Your Instagram DMs Just Got Easier

Smart 360

01 Sep 2025 — 1 min read

Image credit: Instagram Creators

Instagram is doubling down on messaging with a new set of inbox management tools. Over the past few years, the platform has steadily shifted from being a place to browse polished feed posts into a hub of private, real-time conversations. Users today are far more likely to engage through DMs than by liking a photo or replying to a Story. With this in mind, Instagram is now rolling out updates that make managing high volumes of messages far easier, especially for creators and brands.

What’s New in DMs

Advanced Inbox Filters: You can now sort your inbox by story replies, unread messages, unanswered threads, followers, and verified users. This means creators no longer need to dig through endless message requests just to find a genuine brand inquiry or a loyal fan’s reply.
Custom Shortcuts: The filter “pills” at the top of your inbox can be rearranged to suit your workflow. For example, a business may want “Unanswered” upfront to avoid customer messages slipping through the cracks, while influencers might prioritize “Verified.”
DM Folders: A completely new feature that lets you build your own folders inside the inbox. Whether you want a dedicated folder for brand collaborations, customer support, or loyal community members, folders make it much easier to structure your private conversations.

Who Gets Access?

The new filters and folders will be available to all Professional accounts and personal accounts with more than 100K followers. That makes these tools particularly useful for:

Brands, who can finally separate customer questions from casual DMs and deal with support issues faster.
Creators, who often face hundreds of daily messages and risk overlooking potential collaborations or important community interactions.
Marketers, who need to stay on top of influencer relationships and business leads without losing valuable time to inbox chaos.

In short, these updates don’t change how Instagram works but they change how you work on Instagram. And in today’s environment where conversations drive loyalty, and loyalty drives growth, a more organized inbox could make all the difference.

Inbox chaos just got a little easier to manage.

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