Connect Instagram

Connect a professional Instagram account and control automatic replies for DMs, comments, and story mentions.

Use an Instagram Business or Creator account. Your Meta app must have access to Instagram messages and comment management before these features can work in production.

Watch the setup video

A setup video opens the first time you visit Integrations → Instagram in your browser. Select Play when you are ready, or close the popup to continue setting up. Select Watch setup video at the top of the page to watch it again anytime.

The popup remembers your visit in this browser. It can appear again if you clear browser data, use another browser, or block browser storage. Closing it stops playback. If the video does not load, check your connection or allow Wistia in your browser, then close and reopen it. You can also follow the steps below.

Connect the account

Open Integrations → Instagram. The account card shows Not connected and requires a Business or Creator account. Expand 3 permissions requested to review access to Direct messages, Comments, and Profile and posts. Select Connect Instagram to open Meta's authorization dialog. The button shows Connecting… while the connection starts. Select your professional Instagram account and associated Facebook Page, and verify that Access and manage comments and Access messages are granted.

Check connection health

The account card at the top of the page shows your handle, connection status, and when it was last checked. Select Check connection to check again with Instagram. Expand 3 permissions granted to see Direct messages, Comments, and Button taps. If any permission is missing, the count shows how many are granted, and the expanded list tells you what needs reconnecting.

Verified means everything was confirmed in the last 15 minutes.
Connected means everything was working at the last check, which was more than 15 minutes ago. Select Check connection if you want a fresh result.
Check required means part of the last check did not pass. Select Check connection.
Reconnect required means access has expired or a permission is missing. Select Reconnect Instagram before you turn on automatic replies.

Choose automation

Direct-message replies are on by default. Comment private replies and story-mention replies start off, so you can configure and test them safely before customers receive anything.

Test your settings

Every change under Automatic replies saves on its own as soon as you make it. There is no Save button. The status below the switches shows Saving…, then Saved. The count beside the heading shows how many switches are on; comment replies still need a completed setup before they can run. Comment-to-DM automations are managed separately. Test each reply you turned on with a separate test profile. Look for DMs in Inbox → Instagram, and look for comments on the original Instagram post.

Direct messages

Turn Direct messages off when your team wants to answer manually. Incoming DMs still appear in Fetchply Inbox; the agent simply does not send an automatic reply.

Instagram normally permits a reply only within 24 hours of the customer's message. A delayed message does not restart that window. If it has ended, ask the customer to send a new message in Instagram before replying. The optional seven-day human-agent extension is not enabled in Fetchply.

Voice messages can be transcribed and images can be read when those capabilities are available. If automation is off or transcription fails, the message still appears in Inbox for your team. If Instagram no longer makes an attachment available, open the original conversation in Instagram.

Comment private replies

The Comment private replies setting sends a single private message. It does not post a public reply beneath the Instagram post. For a public reply followed by an opening DM and a button-triggered message, use Comment to DM below.

Under Reply to, choose Comments with keywords or Every comment. To add a keyword, type it and press Enter. Select the × on a keyword to remove it. A keyword only matches whole words, and capital letters, punctuation, and extra spaces are ignored. For example, order status also matches Order—status.

Under Reply with, choose AI reply or Fixed message. A fixed message can be up to 950 characters. Each one uses one message credit, like an Instant Answer.

Comment replies only start once the setup is complete. If you turn on Comment private replies before adding a keyword, or before writing the fixed message, the switch shows Not active yet and no comments are answered. Add the missing keyword or message, and replies start straight away.

Meta permits one private reply to a comment, and it must be sent within seven days of the comment. Use a fresh, previously unanswered comment for testing. Fetchply does not blindly repeat a send when Meta's response is uncertain, because a repeat could consume the only allowed reply.

Follow-up replies are available only after the customer responds by DM, and must be sent within 24 hours of that response. Open their DM conversation to continue. Public comments do not appear as conversations in Inbox. Instagram Live comments are not supported.

Comment to DM: fixed messages with a button

Use Comment to DM to post a public reply under a comment that contains your keyword and send that person a DM with your link. You can ask for a follow or an email before the link is sent. Every message is written by you, and no AI credits are used. See Instagram Comment to DM for setup, the numbers, limits, and troubleshooting.

Story mentions

Story mentions arrive as Instagram message events. When Story mentions is enabled, the agent can respond in that message thread. When it is off, the event is kept in Inbox without an automatic reply.

A customer replying to your own story is a direct message, not a story mention. Those replies follow your Direct messages setting.

Delivery states

Expand Instagram delivery activity beneath the Inbox transcript to see recent automatic attempts. Text and media have separate results, so a successful text does not hide a failed image. Activity is available for up to 30 days and is removed when you delete its conversation.

Sending awaits confirmation. Accepted by Instagram means Instagram accepted the message, not that the customer read it. Not sent means the attempt was refused. Delivery uncertain means Instagram may have received it; check the original thread before sending anything again. Uncertain automatic sends are not replayed.

Reconnecting and disconnecting

Reconnect when connection health requests it, Meta changes the granted permissions, or messages stop arriving. Reconnecting verifies that messages, messaging_postbacks, and comments are active before setup is marked healthy.

To disconnect, select Disconnect account below Automatic replies, then select Disconnect to confirm. Select Keep connected if you change your mind. Disconnecting stops every automatic reply on this account and removes the connection from this agent. Your conversations stay in Inbox. Your Instagram account itself is not deleted or changed.

Your Comment to DM automations are kept when you disconnect. They stop running while Instagram is disconnected and come back as they were when you reconnect the same Instagram account. Connecting a different Instagram account to this agent removes the automations saved for the old account.

Moving the account to another Fetchply agent does not move its old conversation history. New conversations belong to the new agent; old queued events are not answered by the new agent.

Troubleshooting

"Instagram did not connect" after coming back from Instagram

If the connection does not finish, a short message tells you why when you return to Fetchply. When Instagram gave its own reason, it appears below the message after Instagram said:, which is useful to share with support. Select Try again to start over, or Close to dismiss it. Trying again is always safe.

Message says	What to do
You cancelled connecting Instagram	You closed or declined the Instagram screen. Select Try again and approve every permission.
Instagram stopped the sign-in before it finished, or Instagram did not finish signing you in	Read the Instagram said: line for the reason, fix it if it names something you can change, then select Try again.
Instagram did not accept the sign-in	This usually happens if you refreshed the page or went back in your browser while connecting. Select Try again.
You are signed in to a different Fetchply account	Sign out, sign in to the account that owns the agent, then connect again.
You do not have permission to manage integrations	Ask the agent owner to connect Instagram or to give you access to manage integrations.
Instagram did not confirm message and comment updates	Select Try again and approve every permission. If it keeps happening, see "Instagram webhook subscription is missing" below.
We could not read your Instagram account details, or something went wrong on our side	Wait a minute, then select Try again. If it keeps failing, contact support with the time you tried.

Reconnect required

Select Reconnect Instagram and approve all requested permissions. If the warning remains, confirm your Meta app has Advanced Access for Instagram messaging and comment permissions and that all required webhook fields are enabled.

"Instagram webhook subscription is missing" after connecting

The account stays Not connected because the final setup check could not confirm that your account is subscribed to messages, postbacks, and comments. Select Connect Instagram again and approve every permission Meta asks for. If the message returns, ask the person managing your Meta app to confirm that the messages, messaging_postbacks, and comments webhook fields are enabled for the Instagram product and that the app has the approved access it needs, then try once more. Nothing is stored while this message appears, so retrying is safe.

Comments do not trigger a reply

Check that Comment private replies is on and does not show Not active yet. Then check that the comment is new, has not been answered before, contains one of your keywords, and is no more than seven days old.

"Not active yet" next to Comment private replies

Your comment reply setup is incomplete. If Comments with keywords is selected, add at least one keyword. If Fixed message is selected, write the message. The label goes away once the setup is complete.

A change shows "Could not be saved"

Your change is still shown on screen, but it has not been saved yet. Select Retry. If you see a message about permission, ask the agent owner to give you access to manage integrations. If it says Instagram is no longer connected, refresh the page.

"Offline. Changes save when you reconnect."

Your device has lost its internet connection. Keep the page open. Your changes save automatically once you are back online.

The settings are greyed out and show "View only"

Only teammates who can manage integrations can change Instagram settings. Ask the agent owner to update your access.

A DM appears in Inbox but receives no automatic reply

Check whether Direct messages is off, the agent is paused, a teammate has taken over the conversation, or message credits are unavailable. Messages remain in Inbox in each of these cases.

A reply is marked uncertain

Check the conversation in Instagram before sending anything manually. Fetchply intentionally does not repeat an uncertain automatic send.

New messages are delayed

Select Check connection, then send a new test DM after any required reconnect. Old events may not be delivered again by Meta. If new messages remain delayed, contact support with the approximate test time and Instagram username.

Connection checks passed but nothing arrives

Your Meta app still needs the appropriate message and comment access approved, and its Instagram webhook fields enabled. A successful account check cannot confirm those app-level approvals. Ask the person managing your Meta app to verify them.

An inbox reply failed to send or says the reply window is closed

Instagram permits business replies within 24 hours of the customer's most recent message. Once 24 hours have passed, Instagram rejects manual replies from Inbox until the customer sends a new message. Instagram also refuses messages if the customer has disabled message requests, blocked direct messages, or does not follow your business account. When an attempt fails, Inbox displays a clear notification explaining the reason and keeps your draft message safe so you do not lose what you wrote.

Connect Instagram

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