Instagram has reached a new milestone with 3 billion monthly active users, marking one of the biggest achievements in its 15-year history, according to Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram.
The milestone, announced just ahead of Instagram’s 15th birthday, underlines the platform’s continued dominance as a global hub for creativity, connection, and culture.
From sharing memes in private messages to watching short-form Reels or following creators, Instagram has become deeply embedded in the daily lives of billions worldwide.
“This is a big moment for our global community. Instagram has always been about creativity, and it continues to stand for that. We are focused on building new ways for people to connect, create, and share what matters to them,” Mosseri said in a statement.
To celebrate the milestone, Instagram is also rolling out and testing a slate of new features designed to enhance user experience and strengthen its positioning in an increasingly competitive social media market. Among them is a more customizable Reels algorithm, giving users greater control over the type of content they want to see more or less of.
Navigation on the app is also being simplified, with a smoother swipe transition from the Home feed to Reels to Messages, an attempt to reduce clutter and make discovery easier.
In addition, Instagram is testing a Reels-first mobile experience in India and South Korea, where users will land directly into short-form video content upon opening the app, with a Following tab available for catching up on posts from friends and family. This pilot mirrors Instagram’s new iPad experience, and Meta says lessons from these country tests will shape potential global rollouts.
The update comes at a time when competition for user attention is fierce, with TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Snapchat vying for dominance in short-form video. Yet, Instagram’s ability to keep evolving has helped it maintain its status as one of the most influential platforms worldwide.
As Instagram prepares to mark its 15th year, Mosseri emphasized that the focus remains on creativity: “From DMing your friends memes to keeping up with your favorite creators, Instagram is still the place to connect over what you love. We want to continue building on that.”
