Reply to Instagram DMs
Instagram direct messages arrive in Instagram Direct, which works like the WhatsApp Chatbox: conversations on the left, the thread in the middle, type and send.
The rules around when you may reply are different, though, and that is what this page is really about.
Instagram's three windows
WhatsApp has one rule — 24 hours. Instagram has three, counted from the customer's last message to you:
| Time since their last message | What you can do |
|---|---|
| Within 24 hours | Reply freely, as many times as you like |
| 24 hours to 7 days | One message only, and it must come from a person |
| More than 7 days | Nothing. They have to message you first |
The clock restarts every time they send something new, so an active conversation never closes.
The 24-hour-to-7-day window is one message, not a window of messages
Use it deliberately. If a customer asked a question three days ago, you get a single reply to resolve it — and it needs to be written by a person, not automated. If they answer, you are back inside the 24-hour window and can talk normally again.
Past seven days, Wap2b will not let you send. There is no template equivalent on Instagram — no paid way to reopen a conversation the way a WhatsApp template does.
What replies cost
Every Instagram DM you send is charged, at the Instagram message rate on the pricing page.
This is the opposite of WhatsApp, where replies inside the 24-hour window are free. Worth knowing before you plan around it:
| Starting a conversation | Paid, needs an approved template | Not possible — they message first |
| Replying inside the window | Free | Charged per message |
| Receiving a message | Charged, small flat rate | Free |
The two channels are near mirror images: on WhatsApp you pay to receive and answer for free, on Instagram you receive for free and pay to answer.
So on Instagram, a long back-and-forth costs more than the same conversation on WhatsApp. It is still cheap per message — just not free, and it is drawn from the same prepaid balance.
Replying
Open a conversation and type. You can send text, and images or video.
Wap2b works out which window you are in before it sends, so it will not let you send something Instagram is going to reject. If you cannot type, the conversation is past seven days.
Differences from the WhatsApp inbox worth knowing
- No templates. There is no approved-message system on Instagram, so there is no way to start a conversation and no way to reopen a closed one.
- The customer is a handle, not a phone number. Instagram gives you their username, not a phone number, so Instagram conversations do not join up with your WhatsApp contacts.
- Replies are written by your team. AI Assistants currently answer on WhatsApp; on Instagram the AI handles comment moderation rather than DMs. See Moderate comments automatically.
If something goes wrong
- You cannot type in a conversation. More than seven days since their last message. Nothing to be done but wait for them.
- Your reply failed. Either the window closed between opening the thread and sending, or the account has been disconnected. Check Instagram accounts.
- Nothing is arriving at all. Open Connection health in the inbox — it shows when the last message and the last webhook actually arrived, which distinguishes a quiet week from a broken connection.
- A send was refused for balance. Instagram DMs are charged, so an empty balance stops them. Add funds.