Instagram Just Launched a New Stories Feature That's Really Similar to Snapchat

By Ann-Marie Alcántara

Updated on 8/10/2016 at 11:45 AM

Today, we're introducing Instagram Stories, a new feature that lets you share all the moments of your day, not just the ones you want to keep on your profile. As you share multiple photos and videos, they appear together in a slideshow format: your story. With Instagram Stories, you don't have to worry about overposting. Instead, you can share as much as you want throughout the day — with as much creativity as you want. You can bring your story to life in new ways with text and drawing tools. The photos and videos will disappear after 24 hours and won't appear on your profile grid or in feed. You'll see stories from people you follow in a bar at the top of your feed — from your best friends to your favorite popular accounts. When there's something new to see, their profile photo will have a colorful ring around it. To view someone's story, just tap on their profile photo. It's easy to view stories at your own pace: tap to go back and forward or swipe to jump to another person's story. If you want to comment on something you see, you can tap and send a private message to that person on Instagram Direct. Unlike regular posts, there are no likes or public comments. Your story follows the privacy settings of your account. If you set your account to private, your story is visible only to your followers. However, you can also easily hide your entire story from anyone you don't want to see it, even if they follow you. When watching your own story, swipe up to check out who's seen each photo and video. You can even choose to feature a particular part of your story by posting it on your profile. Instagram has always been a place to share the moments you want to remember. Now you can share your highlights and everything in between, too. Instagram Stories will be rolling out globally over the next few weeks on iOS and Android. To learn more, check out help.instagram.com.

A video posted by Instagram (@instagram) on

Instagram announced a new feature, Instagram Stories, on Aug. 2 — and it's basically just like Snapchat. Instagram Stories can include multiple photos and videos that combine into a slideshow format, and they'll disappear after 24 hours rather than showing up in your profile. To see who's viewed your story, you'll be able to swipe up and check it out, and you can personalize your story with text and drawing tools. Sound familiar? You're not alone and people are taking to both Twitter and Instagram to complain.

No, not the scammer #Petty 😂😂 #InstagramStories x #SnapchatStories

A photo posted by The Shade Room (@theshaderoom) on



This should be Instagram new logo 😂 #InstagramStories pic.twitter.com/QgDlRmvzQT

— Vic Bre (@TheCoolestLame) August 2, 2016


#instagramstories

A photo posted by AFROVIRAL (@afroviral) on


In case you can't tell, people are not particularly happy that Instagram ripped off a key feature of Snapchat, especially since most just want the chronological timeline back. However, Kevin Systrom, CEO of Instagram, isn't dismayed by this notion. In fact, he's proud of bringing such a popular Snapchat feature to Instagram. "This isn't about who invented something," said Systrom to TechCrunch. "This is about a format, and how you take it to a network and put your own spin on it."

Guess we'll see soon enough if Instagram keeps this feature around and if people actually end up loving it.

— Additional reporting by Laura Marie Meyers