Instagram has begun testing a new user interface that rearranges the application’s main navigation tabs to prioritize its Reels and DMs features. The experiment is available as an opt-in for some users.
The bottom navigation bar has been significantly reordered in the test version. The new layout starts with the Home tab on the far left, followed by the Reels tab. The third position is now occupied by DMs, directly replacing the former Create button. The Search tab moves to the fourth position, and the profile icon remains in its original place on the far right. This update also introduces the ability for users to swipe horizontally between all the bottom tabs. Previously, swipe gestures were limited to opening DMs from the right screen edge and accessing the content creation screen from the left.
Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri announced the experiment in a Threads post, explaining the company’s rationale. “We’re organizing the app around what people use the app for most, which has increasingly been reels and DMs,” Mosseri said. “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.”
This strategic focus aligns with the platform’s recent growth metrics. Instagram recently surpassed 3 billion monthly active users, and Mosseri identified Reels, DMs, and recommendations as the primary drivers of this expansion in recent years. Consequently, the company is concentrating its development efforts on features related to these core areas of engagement.
In a related development, Instagram is working on a feature to give users more control over its recommendation algorithm, although a complete opt-out from recommendations is not planned. The company’s emphasis on short-form video is also demonstrated in other recent product initiatives.
The newly launched Instagram app for the iPad, for instance, features a Reels-first interface that opens directly to the video feed rather than a mixed-content scroll feed. A separate, but similar, Reels-focused user interface is also being tested for mobile users in India and South Korea. This version displays Reels on the homepage directly below Stories and alters the bottom menu to place the DMs tab in the second position and a “Following” tab in the third, providing access to content from followed accounts.
The company’s focus on short-form video extends to AI-generated content with the introduction of the new Vibes app, which is designed to deliver short videos created with artificial intelligence. Instagram has not announced a timeline for when the new tab arrangement might be released to all users.
