Instagram is testing a new opt-in user interface to prioritize its Reels and Direct Message features. CEO Adam Mosseri announced the experiment, which reorganizes the app’s main navigation to reflect patterns in how the platform is used.
The experimental design relocates the “Create” button from the bottom navigation bar to the top-left corner of the screen. Consequently, the bottom menu has been reordered. The “Home” tab is now positioned on the far left, followed immediately by the “Reels” tab. The center position, formerly occupied by the create function, is now assigned to Direct Messages (DMs). The “Search” tab has been shifted to the fourth position in the sequence, while the profile icon remains in its original place on the far right of the navigation bar.
In a post on the Threads platform, Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri explained the rationale behind the test. “We’re organizing the app around what people use the app for most, which has increasingly been reels and DMs,” Mosseri stated. He acknowledged the potential adjustment period for users accustomed to the existing layout. “I know these types of changes can take time to get used to, so we’re giving people the option to try this early before we roll it out,” he added. The experiment is currently available on an opt-in basis for a subset of users.
A functional update included in the new design allows users to swipe horizontally between all tabs on the bottom navigation bar. This changes the previous interaction model, where opening DMs required a swipe from the right edge of the screen and creating new content involved a swipe from the left edge. The Meta-owned platform also recently surpassed 3 billion monthly active users. According to Mosseri, Reels, DMs, and content recommendations have been the primary features attracting users to the application in recent years, which provides context for the current strategic focus.
This focus on video and messaging extends to other recent company developments. The company is developing a feature intended to provide users with a degree of control over the Instagram recommendations algorithm, though it will not permit recommendations to be disabled entirely. A Reels-first interface has already been implemented on the recently launched iPad version of the app. On the iPad, the application opens directly to the Reels feed instead of the traditional mixed-content scroll feed seen on mobile devices.
Different versions of a Reels-centric mobile interface are also being tested in specific markets. In India and South Korea, a test UI displays Reels on the homepage directly below the Stories section. The bottom menu in this version features the DMs tab in the second position and a “Following” tab in the third, which allows users to view content exclusively from accounts they follow. Instagram’s expansion into short-form video also includes the new Vibes app, which is designed to deliver short videos generated by artificial intelligence.
Instagram continues to test various iterations of its features to assess public reception before a full-scale deployment. There has been no official announcement regarding a specific date for when the new tab arrangement will be released to all users.
