After years of requests and workarounds, Instagram is officially on the iPad. The new, native app embraces a video-first design, opening directly to Reels while scaling Instagram’s core features to the tablet’s larger canvas.
A Video-First Interface Built for Tablets
The iPad app puts Reels front and center, launching straight into a full-bleed feed optimized for bigger displays. Stories sit at the top of the interface as on iPhone, and messaging is built in, making it easy to jump between watching, posting, and conversations without juggling windows.
A revamped Following tab introduces three clear filters. “All” blends recommended content with posts and reels from accounts you follow. “Friends” narrows the view to recommendations from accounts you follow that follow you back. And “Latest” restores chronological order, letting you scroll recent posts and reels from followed accounts without algorithmic reshuffling.
Layouts have been tuned for fewer taps and more context. Instagram says you can view messages and notifications side by side, reducing back-and-forth navigation. While watching a reel, comments can expand without shrinking the video, preserving immersion while enabling real-time replies and moderation.
A Long-Requested, Strategically Timed Move
Instagram’s absence on iPad had become something of a tech industry punchline. Company leaders, including Instagram head Adam Mosseri, previously argued that an iPad app wasn’t a top priority versus phone features. The shift now reflects both user demand and a broader strategic pivot: Reels engagement keeps climbing, and a larger screen offers a stickier, lean-back video experience.
Industry analysts have repeatedly noted the iPad’s outsized footprint in the tablet market, with research firms reporting Apple’s line as the category leader by shipments. For Instagram, meeting audiences where they already stream long sessions—on the couch, in landscape, often with a keyboard nearby—aligns with Meta’s messaging on earnings calls that video discovery and AI-driven recommendations are driving meaningful time spent and monetization gains.
The timing also dovetails with evolving creator workflows. Many creators storyboard, edit, or rough-cut on tablets using tools like CapCut, LumaFusion, or Final Cut Pro for iPad. A native Instagram app simplifies the last mile: preview on a bigger display, manage comments while staying in the reel, and keep an eye on DMs and notifications in a split view.
What Changes for Users and Creators
For everyday users, the iPad app makes catching up feel less cramped. The chronological “Latest” filter offers a predictable scroll, while the “Friends” view should help surface content from people you actually interact with—a subtle fix for relevance fatigue.
For creators and brands, the dual-pane layouts matter. Moderating comments while the reel stays full size helps keep engagement flowing without interrupting playback. Responding to DMs while monitoring notifications can speed up community management, particularly during launches or live campaigns.
Instagram has not detailed tablet-specific creation tools at launch—no explicit callouts for Apple Pencil workflows or Stage Manager enhancements were included—but the foundation is here. Expect iterative updates that lean into the iPad’s strengths as a content screen and a light workstation.
Availability and Requirements
The new Instagram app is rolling out now for iPads running iPadOS 15.1 or later. Once installed, your existing login, privacy settings, saved collections, and notifications carry over, and the app retains parity with core iPhone features, with a heavier emphasis on Reels and streamlined navigation.
The launch answers one of Instagram’s most persistent feature requests with a pragmatic, video-forward take on the tablet experience. It won’t replace the phone for quick snaps, but for watching, commenting, messaging, and managing a growing number of creator workflows, the iPad finally has a seat at the Instagram table.
