Instagram Now Allow Users to Schedule DMs

Instagram has quietly introduced the ability for users to schedule direct messages. The Meta-owned social network confirmed on Monday that the new feature is rolling out to all users globally.

The update will be especially useful for creators and brands that want to schedule outreach messages at optimal times. 

The option to schedule DMs will also be useful for regular users who want to reach their friends at a certain time due to different time zones. The feature could also be put to use to send a reminder about something at a certain point in the future.

The users can schedule a DM by typing out a message, holding down the send button, and then selecting a date and time to send the message. Instagram lets them schedule a message up to 29 days in advance. Once a message, the user will see a banner notifying them of having “1 scheduled message” every time they open the chat until the DM is delivered.

Instagram has been building out DMs and adding new possibilities for both creators and regular users in the past few weeks. It recently introduced the ability for users to share their locations with friends via DMs, directly challenging services like Apple’s Find My and Snapchat’s Snap Map. 

The social networking service also started letting users customize names in DMs by adding nicknames for themselves or others.

For creators, Instagram recently added tools that will allow them to sort and filter their message requests. They can now sort through these messages by follower count, verified accounts, brands, creators, and other factors.