How to Enable Direct Messages on Instagram

Wondering why you might be missing out on valuable conversations on Instagram? The answer could be hidden in your Direct Message settings. Getting your DM controls right is the first step to building a community, talking to customers, and connecting with other creators on the platform. This guide will walk you through exactly how to check, enable, and manage your Instagram Direct Messages on both mobile and desktop, so you never miss another important connection.

Why Managing Your Instagram DMs Matters

Direct Messages are far more than just a private chat feature, they are a direct line to your audience, customers, and collaborators. For brands and creators, this is where real community building happens. A well-managed inbox can be a powerful tool for customer service, allowing you to answer questions, resolve issues, and provide a personal touch that builds incredible loyalty. It's a space for gathering honest feedback, connecting with potential partners, and even guiding interested followers toward a purchase.

Think of it this way: your public feed is your storefront, but your DMs are where you have one-on-one conversations with the people who walk inside. Neglecting this channel is like ignoring a customer standing at your counter. By making sure your DMs are open for business and efficiently managed, you open the door to deeper relationships and new opportunities that simply can’t happen in a public comment section.

First Things First: Know Your Instagram Account Type

Before you adjust any settings, it’s important to know which type of Instagram account you have, as this affects the messaging tools available to you. Instagram offers three types of profiles:

• Personal Account: This is the default account type. It’s perfect for casual users who want to connect with friends and family. DM functionality is straightforward, without the extra organizational tools of other account types.
• Creator Account: Designed for content creators, public figures, and influencers. Creator accounts unlock valuable features like advanced analytics, creator-specific inbox filters (Primary and General folders), and the ability to use Quick Replies to answer frequent questions.
• Business Account: Best for brands, retailers, and organizations. Business accounts get the same inbox filtering and Quick Reply features as Creator accounts, plus additional benefits like the ability to add a physical address, contact buttons, and run ads.

If you plan to use Instagram professionally, switching to a Creator or Business account is highly recommended for the enhanced messaging features alone.

To check or switch your account type:

1. Go to your profile and tap the three horizontal lines (☰) in the top-right corner.
2. Select Settings and privacy.
3. For creators, tap on Creator tools and controls. For businesses, tap on Business tools and controls.
4. Here you can tap Switch account type to change to a different profile or confirm your current one.

How to Enable and Control Your DMs on the Instagram App

Most people manage their Instagram on their phones, so let’s start with the mobile app. The platform gives you granular control over who can send you messages, helping you keep your inbox organized and free from spam while remaining accessible to the right people.

Accessing Your Message Controls

Finding the right menu is the first step. The path is pretty simple:

1. Go to your Instagram profile.
2. Tap the hamburger menu (☰) in the top-right corner.
3. Tap on Settings and privacy.
4. Scroll down and select Messages and story replies.
5. Tap on Message controls to open up your options.

Once you’re in the Message controls menu, you’ll see several options that dictate how you receive messages from different groups of people.

Understanding Message Controls

Inside this menu, Instagram breaks down message permissions into categories. Here's a look at what each one means and how to set them up for your goals.

Who can message you?

This section is broken down into a few key groups, allowing you to set specific rules for each. For each group listed below, you'll generally have two options:

• Allow messages: This sends messages from these users directly to your main Chat list (or into your Primary/General folders if you have a Creator/Business account).
• Deliver to Message requests folder: This option routes messages from this group to a separate "Requests" folder. You won't get a notification, and the sender won't know if you've seen their message until you accept the request.
• Don’t receive requests: This will block all messages from that group from ever reaching you. It's a useful option for limiting spam but can also block out potential customers or collaborators.

You can fine-tune these settings for the following groups:

• Your followers on Instagram: These are the people who already follow you. In most cases, you’ll want to allow them to message you directly. Set this to “Allow new messages as chats.”
• People on Facebook: If you've connected your Instagram and Facebook accounts through Meta's Accounts Center, this setting determines if Facebook friends or people who've messaged your Facebook page can contact you on Instagram. You can have these delivered to "Message requests" if you want to keep them separate.
• Others on Instagram: This is a big one. It covers everyone else on Instagram who doesn't follow you. If you're a business or creator who wants to be discovered, you should set this to “Message requests” so potential customers, clients, or partners can reach out. Setting it to "Don't receive requests" can cause you to miss big opportunities.
• People in your group chats: This setting controls whether people you're in a group chat with, but who you don't follow, can message your main chat list.

Managing Your DMs from Your Computer (Instagram Web)

Many social media managers, marketers, and business owners work primarily from a desktop computer. Thankfully, Instagram’s web interface gives you a similar level of control over your direct messages.

Here’s how to access the settings on your computer:

1. Go to Instagram.com and log in.
2. Click the More (☰) icon in the bottom-left corner of the sidebar.
3. From the menu that appears, click Settings.
4. In the Settings menu, click on How others can interact with you.

From this screen, you’ll find largely the same set of message controls as on the mobile app. You can decide who is allowed to message you directly and who gets sent to your message requests folder. The layout is different, but the options are the same, allowing you to maintain consistent settings whether you’re on the go or at your desk.

Next-Level DM Management for Businesses and Creators

Once you’ve enabled DMs, the work of managing them begins. For accounts that receive a high volume of messages, Instagram provides a few tools to help you stay organized and efficient.

Using Message Filters: Primary and General

In Creator and Business accounts, your inbox is automatically split into two tabs: Primary and General. This is an incredibly helpful feature for organizing your conversations.

• The Primary tab is meant for the messages you want to see first. Notifications are turned on by default for this tab. It’s the perfect place for conversations with important clients, collaborators, friends, or family.
• The General tab is for messages that are lower priority. Notifications are off by default for this tab. You can move less-urgent conversations here to review them later without having your screen constantly light up with notifications.

To move a chat between tabs, simply swipe left on the conversation (on mobile) or click the three-dot menu (on desktop) and select “Move to General” or “Move to Primary.”

Setting Up Quick Replies to Save Time

If you find yourself typing the same answers over and over again, Quick Replies will be a game changer. This feature lets you save responses to common questions and insert them into a conversation with a short keyboard shortcut.

To set up Quick Replies:

1. Go to your Settings and privacy.
2. Select Business tools and controls (or Creator tools and controls).
3. Tap on Saved replies (previously called Quick Replies).
4. Tap the (+) icon to create a new reply. Here, you’ll assign a short, easy-to-remember Shortcut word (e.g., “hours”) and write out the full Message you want to save.

Now, when a user asks about your hours, you can just type “hours” in the message compose box and tap the blue speech bubble icon that appears to auto-populate your full, pre-written response. This is perfect for FAQs about shipping, pricing, availability, or event details.

Troubleshooting Common DM Issues

Even with everything configured correctly, sometimes things don't work as expected. Here are a few common issues and their solutions:

• "Someone said they messaged me, but I can't see it."
  Your first move should always be to check your Message Requests folder. It appears as a small, blue link on the far right of your main inbox screen on mobile, and at the top of your chats list on desktop. There's a good chance the message is waiting for you there.
• "My DMs are on, but I'm not getting notifications."
  This is likely a device-level setting. Go into your phone's notification settings, find the Instagram app, and be sure that notifications are allowed. You should also check Instagram’s in-app notification settings under Settings and privacy > Notifications > Messages to fine-tune your alerts.
• "Can I receive messages from someone I’ve blocked?"
  No. When you block someone on Instagram, it completely cuts off all communication. They won't be able to message you, and any past message threads between you will disappear from your inbox (but remain in theirs).

Final Thoughts

Opening up your Instagram DMs is a simple yet powerful move to deepen your connection with your audience. Having the right settings is just the start, the real value comes from actively managing those conversations to build your brand and nurture your community, one message at a time.

But when you're managing multiple social platforms, keeping up with DMs and comments can quickly become a full-time job. That's actually why we built Postbase. Our unified inbox pulls all your conversations from Instagram, TikTok, and other platforms into a single, clean dashboard, so you never miss an important message again and can reply without constantly jumping between apps.