How To React to Messages on Instagram

Reacting to a message on Instagram puts a small emoji on that message instead of sending a new one. It’s the quickest way to say you liked something, found it funny or got the point, and it keeps the chat tidy because nothing new lands in the thread. There are three ways to do it, and which one you use depends on how picky you want to be about the emoji.

• Double-tap. Double-tap any message in a chat to add your default reaction, which starts out as a heart.
• Press and hold. Hold your finger on a message to open the reaction row, then pick any emoji you like.
• On a computer. On instagram.com, hover over a message and click the emoji icon beside it.

How To React to a Message in the App

The press-and-hold route gives you the most choice, and it works the same on iPhone and Android. You can react to text, photos, videos and posts someone has shared into the chat.

• Open Instagram and tap the Messages icon.
• Open the chat with the message you want to react to.
• Press and hold the message until a row of emoji appears above it.
• Tap one of the emoji, or tap + to search the full set and pick any other.

Your reaction appears in a small bubble under the message, and everyone in the chat can see it. If you hold a message and also see options like Reply and Forward, you’re in the right menu. The reaction row sits at the top of it.

Use Double-Tap for Your Default Reaction

Most people react with a heart, so Instagram gives the heart its own shortcut. Double-tap a message and your default reaction lands on it straight away, with no menu to open. Double-tap the same message again to take it off. The heart is only the starting point, and further down you’ll see how to swap it for any emoji you use more often.

How To React on a Computer

Instagram’s help page on reacting and replying to messages describes the browser version. Click Messages on the left, open the conversation, then “hover over a message you receive” and click the Emoji icon that appears next to it. Pick an emoji from the small row that opens, and the reaction shows under the message just as it does on your phone.

Double-clicking a message is the browser’s shortcut and adds a heart. The one thing a browser can’t do is change which emoji appear in your reaction row. That setting only exists in the app, so if you want a different quick set, make the change on your phone.

How To Change or Remove a Reaction

Reactions aren’t permanent. You can swap the emoji or take it off completely, and the message itself stays exactly as it was.

Swap It for a Different Emoji

Press and hold the message again and tap a different emoji. Each person gets one reaction per message, so the new emoji replaces your old one rather than sitting next to it. If you want to say more than one emoji can, a short reply will do it better.

Take It Off

Tap your reaction in the small bubble under the message. A list of the reactions on that message opens, and you’ll see Tap to remove under yours. Tap it and your emoji disappears. If your reaction was the default one, double-tapping the message again removes it too. On a computer, click the reaction under the message and choose to remove it.

How To Customize Your Quick Reactions

The six emoji in your reaction row aren’t fixed. Instagram’s Direct features page lists “custom reactions” among the ways to express yourself in chats, and you can set them up from any conversation in the app.

• Press and hold any message in any chat.
• Tap + at the end of the reaction row.
• Tap Customize next to Your reactions.
• Tap the slot you want to replace.
• Choose the emoji you want there, then tap the checkmark to save.

The first slot is the one double-tap uses. If you replace the heart with, say, a thumbs-up, double-tapping a message will send the thumbs-up from then on. The new row applies to every chat, not just the one you opened, and you can change it back the same way whenever you like.

When You Can’t React to a Message

If holding a message doesn’t bring up the reaction row, the fix is usually on your side. Work through these in order and test a message after each one.

• Update Instagram from the App Store or Google Play, since reaction features change with app versions.
• Close the app completely and open it again.
• Log out of your account and log back in.

If the reaction row still won’t open, clear the Instagram cache on Android, or offload and reinstall the app on iPhone, then log back in. It’s also worth checking whether the message is still there. Instagram’s help page on unsending messages says that once someone unsends a message, “it will no longer be visible to people included in the chat”, so there’s nothing left to react to.

On a computer, you should be able to react, double-click and remove reactions. If you can’t find a Customize option there, nothing is broken. That setting is simply part of the app only.

Questions About Instagram Message Reactions

Can everyone in a group chat see my reaction?
Yes. A reaction in a group chat is visible to every member, and tapping the reaction bubble under a message shows who left each emoji. If a busy group keeps pinging you with reactions, you can mute the chat the same way you’d mute someone on Instagram, and you’ll still see everything when you open it.

Is reacting to a story the same as reacting to a message?
Not quite. When you tap a quick reaction on someone’s story, the emoji arrives as a message in your chat with that person rather than as a reaction on a message. Reactions in a normal chat stay on the message until you remove them, unlike messages sent in vanish mode, which disappear once they’ve been seen and the chat is closed.

When a Reply Works Better

A reaction is perfect for photos, jokes and quick updates that don’t need an answer. It tells the other person you saw it without adding another message to the thread, and in a lively group chat it saves everyone from a string of “haha” replies.

It works less well when someone has asked you a question, shared bad news or is waiting on a decision. A thumbs-up on “Can you make it Friday?” can read as a yes to one person and a brush-off to another, so a few typed words are kinder. On a professional account, a reaction plus the orange flag in Instagram DMs lets the sender know you’ve seen it while you keep the chat marked for a proper answer.