How to check messages on Instagram iPhone

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You can send direct messages to groups or individuals on Instagram. Similarly, if someone has sent you a direct message, you would be keen to know how you can access it and send a reply.  

How To Check Direct Messages on Instagram

Once you have opened your Instagram account, go to your homepage. You will notice the mail icon on the screen’s top right corner. Tap it to go to your Instagram Direct inbox.  

When a new message comes, it will show up here. When you see the message icon on the screen’s top right corner, you should notice a number count. That is the number of new messages that have to come to your inbox since you last checked it.   

Now, you can have a look at the messages that you have received. The most recent message will appear on the top and the least recent at the bottom of the list. Messages which have not been read yet display a blue dot next to it.  

Unread Messages  

In case you have received too many messages, you can search for a particular message through a search field provided at the top of the page. You can enter a phrase, keyword, or name of the user in order to search relevant messages in your inbox. To open a message or conversation thread, you need to tap it. There is a message field which you can use to send a reply. You can send text, pictures, GIFs, and more through Instagram’s direct message feature.

There is a camera icon on the right side of every message. You can tap it, take a photo or make a video, and send it as a reply.   

To exit your inbox tap the arrow back at the top left corner of your screen, and you will get back to your homepage.

Instagram Message Requests

It is possible to receive messages from users who you don’t follow. These messages will appear as message requests and you can choose to either accept or decline them. If you choose to accept it, you can view the message and send a reply as well. If you decline it, the sender will not be able to send you anymore new messages. The user who sent you the message will not know that you viewed it unless you accept the request.

To see your message requests, go to your direct message inbox. At the top of the screen, under the search bar, you will see your message requests in blue on the right side of the screen. If you have message requests, it will say “### Requests”. Click here to view the requests.

Once you open the message, you can click “Decline” or “Allow” to accept or decline the message request.

Can’t Check Messages on Web  

Unfortunately, Instagram’s web version does not have a direct messaging feature. It is among some of the key features that Instagram currently does not allow on its web version.

However, you can still enjoy all the regular features of Instagram if you have a Windows PC. You can send and receive direct messages including videos and photos. You simply need to download the Instagram app onto your computer to enjoy all the regular features.

Instagram began as a social networking platform for exclusively sharing photos and videos.

But, over the years, it has evolved to support features such as comments on posts and direct messaging to promote greater user involvement. As a result, today, Instagram includes all of the characteristics of a typical, sophisticated social media messaging app. This is a particularly useful piece of information from a marketing point of view.

Now you can use Instagram to create and send text messages, incorporate images/videos within your direct messages, and even conduct video calls.

Whether you want to send a single DM (commonly used term for “direct message”) or an entire batch of them, Instagram lets you do it all. Here in this blog, we have listed a few of the ways through which you can check Instagram messages from any device. 

Read this article until the very end to know all about how to check messages on Instagram.

How To Check Your Instagram Messages?

Assuming you’re an avid Instagram user or want to increase your brand’s presence on the platform, you might be inclined to get Instagram alerts that keep you instantly updated on all actions surrounding your account and its followers.

You can check your Instagram messages by launching the Instagram app on your phone or personal computer and heading over to Instagram Messenger. 

When you open the app, you’ll see the total number of unread messages. It’s highlighted in red over the airplane-looking mail icon. 

Then, as you go through your unread DMs, you’ll see that the app displays them in chronological order, from most recent to oldest.

We recommend that you enable phone alerts on Instagram to instantly check your messages. So, whenever you get a new message from any person, it will remain displayed as a notification on your smartphone’s screen until you open the app and respond to it. You may also access your messages by swiping to the left on your notification on the main screen. 

If you turn your notifications off, you will not be alerted when you receive a message. Thus you will only be able to see them upon manually checking your phone. We recommend that you enable alerts if you want to be in touch with your followers at all times. That way, you wouldn’t miss a single message from any of your loyalists!

By default, Instagram will notify you whenever there is an activity involving your account. However, you may further refine the sort of posts for which you want to get notifications or exclude content from which you do not wish to get notifications.

As of now, staying within the purview of this blog, we are exclusively going to discuss how you can manage notifications for your Instagram DMs.

Follow the set of instructions in this section to activate Instagram DM alerts using the app:

• Open the Instagram app on your smartphone

• Open the Instagram Menu by clicking on the hamburger icon on the upper right corner of your screen

• Navigate to the “Settings” menu and choose “Notifications”

• Check that the “Pause All” toggle button is turned off

• You may then customize your alerts for particular actions, in this case, “Direct Messages”

The message screen keeps you informed in case you’re unsure whether your recipient has received your message. On your inbox screen, you will be able to view each message’s status, indicating when it was viewed or how long ago you had sent it if the message has not yet been viewed.

If you get an Instagram DM from an individual whom you do not follow, it displays as a request instead of a chat in your inbox. If you accept their request, you may respond to their message without necessarily having to follow the other person. If you refuse their request, on the other hand, the other account will be unable to reach you unless you follow them back.

How to Turn On Notifications For Instagram Direct Messages (DMs) on an Android Phone?

In this segment, we will show you exactly how you can activate alerts on Instagram for your Android smartphone. The measures you need to take for this are quite basic and easy to implement. You no longer have to be concerned about missing an essential DM from any of your followers.

To turn on message notifications on your Android smartphone, simply follow the instructions listed below:

• Open the Settings app on your Android device, which looks like white gear against a tainted backdrop. Alternatively, you may find Settings in the App Drawer as well.

• Scroll down and select Apps within the menu. It’s located nearly in the middle of the Settings menu. Opening it will provide a list of all the mobile apps that are already installed on your smartphone.

• Scroll throughout the list of apps until you find Instagram. This may be found under the app list starting with the letter “I”. Tap the “Show notifications” button present beneath the app’s name. 

Alternatively, certain Android smartphones have the “Allow peeking” button for notifications. Tap the “Allow peeking” toggle button (which is grey when turned off) within the Notifications section. When it becomes blue/green, it indicates that your Instagram alerts for DMs are now enabled.

Also, you can tap the grey “Treat as priority” toggle button if you wish to get Instagram alerts even when your phone is in the “Do Not Disturb” aka “Airplane” mode.

How to Turn On Notifications For Instagram Direct Messages (DMs) on an iPhone?

If you want to check your Instagram messages on your iPhone, simply follow the steps listed below:

• On your iPhone, tap the Settings option
• Next, open the Settings menu

• Select “Notifications”

• Search for Instagram by swiping through the list of applications

• Turn on the “Allow Notifications” toggle button by tapping on it

When the “Allow Notifications” toggle button goes green, you can be assured that Instagram notifications for direct messages on your iPhone have been turned on. Instagram will now 

notify you of any new message that you receive.

How to Check Your Instagram Direct Messages on a Mac, Windows, or Chrome Browser

If you don’t have your phone with you, you can always check your DMs via your personal computer. Activating Instagram alerts on your PC is a simple step that will not take longer than a minute to accomplish.

Since your PC accommodates a bigger interface, you might find it simpler to traverse through the app settings on it. Besides, Instagram’s website interface is reportedly said to perform an excellent job of offering a pleasant user experience.

Simply follow these instructions to enable Instagram DM notifications: 

• Go to Instagram’s official website by simply typing out Instagram in the Google search bar and pressing Enter 

• Sign in to your account by filling in your login credentials in the required fields

• Select the Messages icon (paper airplane icon present in the top-right corner of the title bar)

• Browse through the list of chats displayed in the left panel and click on the specific chat tab to check all the messages relating to that account

• You may include emojis and images when replying from Instagram’s desktop browser version

Instagram also has a Windows app that you can use in place of your browser. Simply download the app from the Microsoft Store, login or sign up for your account, and use it as you would use the browser or mobile app version. 

How to Deactivate Instagram Message Notifications?

As soon as you open an Instagram chat either directly or after getting redirected from your device’s notification, it gets marked as “Seen.” This is an irreversible process, and there might be situations where you would not want this to happen. For example, say you were too busy to respond immediately but feared your recipient feeling affronted by your prolonged silence. 

Well, luckily for you, there is a workaround for Instagram’s Read Receipts feature – Turning off your notifications. To do so, simply follow the set of instructions given below to get started:

• Launch the Instagram website or app and head over to your profile
• Select the menu option (three vertical lines present in the top right)
• Select Settings from the menu

• Now, go to “Notifications“
• Choose Messages (or Direct Messages as visible in certain versions of the app)
• Tick the circle next to “Off” under Message Requests and Messages

And your Instagram Direct Message notifications will get deactivated. 

Read Instagram Messages on the “Airplane” mode

We have briefly discussed how you can enable Instagram Message alerts even if your phone is on the  “Airplane” mode.  In this section, we will discuss how you can avoid registering your read receipts via the “Airplane” mode. Simply follow the instructions given below to learn how:

• Turn off your Wi-Fi/mobile data and then turn on your phone’s Airplane Mode

On your Android smartphone, you can reach the Quick Settings Menu by swiping down from the top of the main screen.

• To activate Airplane mode on an iPhone, swipe down the main screen to access the Control Center and choose Airplane mode

• Now visit your Instagram inbox
• Read the messages
• Log out from your account
• Turn off the Airplane mode
• Log into your account with the WiFi connection re-established

So now, after following all the steps above, you would’ve safely viewed your preferred Instagram message without registering the ominous “Seen” receipt.

Wrapping Up

Instagram’s direct messaging feature is known to function smoothly without any glitches. In addition, its system boasts a user interface that is simple and easy to use. The only difficulty, according to some users, is the read-receipt functionality.

When you notice that someone has seen your message but you have not received a response, it might get awkward to proceed. It also works the other way round if you send a message but never receive a read receipt.

Regrettably, there is no privacy setting that you may change to avoid this. Even the Airplane Mode technique does not always work, especially if you’re using Instagram through your browser rather than the mobile app itself.

CTA: Instagram DMs are an invaluable resource for brands to foster customer loyalty and trust. Sending personalized messages to your followers helps drive engagement and conversions, which is the ultimate purpose of marketing on Instagram. To learn more about using Instagram DMs for increasing your engagement, visit SocialPilot