Find that whenever you try to send a DM on Instagram to someone but it doesn’t work?
One of the best features of Instagram is its direct messages (DMs, in short) that allow you to engage with your followers.
Instagram is also increasingly being used by different businesses to promote their products. Thanks to the DM feature, it’s easier than ever to answer queries from users as well as strike sponsorship deals with the various different Instagram pages.
However, there are recent reports from users that they are having problems viewing as well as sending/receiving direct messages on Instagram. In this guide, we will show you a couple of ways on how you can possibly fix this issue on your Instagram account.
Let’s get started.
- 1. Check Your Internet Connection.
- 2. Update the Instagram App.
- 3. You Are Not Following the Person That You Messaged.
- 4. Reinstall the Instagram App.
- 5. Clear Instagram’s Data and Cache (Android Devices).
- 6. Contact Instagram for Support.
1. Check Your Internet Connection.
The first thing that you should do if you are not receiving DMs on your Instagram app is to check your network connection.
One way you can go about to check the network connection is to test by using another app or searching using a browser.
Now, there are instances where you are connected to a network connection but it is running slow and unstable. To verify this, you can perform a speed test to check if you are getting the correct speed bandwidth based on your internet subscription plan. You can use a reliable internet speed tester such as Fast.com (provided by Netflix) which can effectively measure both your upload and download speeds to verify if there is an underlying issue.
Now, if the speed test result comes out slow or not close to your normal speed bandwidth, you can try resetting your internet router. It is possible that your router is not establishing a proper connection with your ISP (Internet Service Provider) which causes a slow internet connection.
You can reset your internet router by unplugging the router’s power cable located at the back. Then, wait for at least 10 – 15 seconds before plugging in the power cable to your router.
If restarting the router did not solve the issue on your network connection, it is best that you contact your internet service provider to report the problem with their internet service.
2. Update the Instagram App.
If your device is running an old version of Instagram, there’s a high possibility that it is no longer supported by Instagram and it is having difficulty communicating with Instagram’s servers. This causes the app to not receive new direct messages from other people since it cannot access the servers.
In this case, you can fix the issue by updating your Instagram to the latest version so that you are sure that it has the latest fixes and security updates.
How to Update Instagram on Android Devices.
For Android users, you can update the Instagram app via the Google Play Store. Follow the steps below to guide you through the process.
- On your Android device, go to the App Drawer and tap on Google Play Store to launch the app.
- Now, inside the Google Play Store, you will find a search bar at the upper portion of the screen. Tap on the button with three horizontal lines located on the left side of the search bar.
- After that, it will prompt the side menu to appear. Tap on My Apps & Games tab.
- Lastly, Google Play Store will automatically check for an update to all the applications installed on your device. Tap on the Update button at the side of the Instagram app if an update is available.
Wait for the update to finish downloading and installing. Now, try to launch the Instagram app to check if you can already use the direct message feature on the app.
How to Update Instagram on iOS Devices.
If you are using an iOS device, you can update your Instagram app by doing the following:
- Open your iOS device and open the App Store.
- Next, inside the App Store, you will find a navigation bar at the bottom of the screen. Tap on the Updates tab that is located on the right side of your screen.
- Lastly, the App Store will check for an update for all the apps on your device. Tap on the Update button at the side of the Instagram app if there’s an available update.
Now, try to open the Instagram app and see if the direct messaging feature already works properly.
On the other hand, if you are still encountering problems with the application after updating it. You can proceed to the next method below.
3. You Are Not Following the Person That You Messaged.
Instagram has a feature that lets you control who can send you direct messages.
If the person you are messaging only allows messages from user accounts that are following them, then send a follow request first to that person before trying to send them a direct message.
On the other hand, if other people are unable to message your account, then they can also do the same thing. Ask them to follow you first so that they can send you a direct message on the app.
Lastly, remember to check your Message Request tab if the person is messaging you for the first time.
4. Reinstall the Instagram App.
If the Instagram app on your device is not working properly, there is a chance that some of its files and resources got corrupted which causes it to encounter glitches and bugs like the problem with direct messages.
To solve this, you can try uninstalling the Instagram app and downloading it again to ensure that your device has a fresh copy of the software and there are no corrupted files.
How to Reinstall Instagram on Android Devices.
On Android devices, you can follow the steps below to guide you on the process of reinstalling the Instagram app.
- Open your Android device and go to the App Drawer. Now, find the Instagram app.
- Next, press and hold the app icon until the Options menu pop-up.
- After that, tap on Uninstall to remove the Instagram app on your device.
- Now, open the Google Play Store and search for Instagram.
- Lastly, tap on the Install button to start the installation process.
This can take a few minutes depending on the speed of your internet connection and the device you are using. After the Instagram app has been installed, login to your account and try to use the direct message feature to check if the issue has been resolved.
How to Reinstall Instagram on iOS Devices.
For iOS devices, the process is almost the same but you would use the App Store instead to reinstall the application.
- On your iOS device, go to the main screen and find the Instagram app.
- Next, press and hold the Instagram app icon until the Options menu appears.
- Now, tap on Delete App to start removing the Instagram app from your iOS device.
- Lastly, go to the app store and search for Instagram. Tap on the Install button to start installing the app.
Wait for the process to complete which may take several minutes. After that, log in to your Instagram account and try to send a direct message to check if the issue is resolved.
If you are an iOS user, you can jump to Method 6 as the next solution is only for Android devices.
5. Clear Instagram’s Data and Cache (Android Devices).
If the Instagram app on your Android device has been installed for quite some time, then there’s a possibility that some of its files got corrupted while updating the application or during use.
In this case, clearing the Instagram app’s data and cache would revert back any changes to Instagram’s system files which ensures that the installed copy of the app is working properly.
You can follow the guide below on how to clear Instagram’s data and cache.
- On your device, tap on the Settings app to launch it.
- Now, tap on the Apps tab inside the Settings app.
- Next, scroll down and tap on the Instagram app inside the Apps tab.
- Lastly, tap on Storage and press the Clear Data button. Please take note that the position of the Clear Data button may vary depending on the device that you are using.
After clearing Instagram’s cache and data, open the Instagram app, and try to send a few direct messages to other persons to check if the issue with Instagram DM not working is resolved.
Now, if you are still having problems with Instagram’s direct messaging feature, you can proceed to the last method below to try and fix the issue.
6. Contact Instagram’s Support.
The last thing that you can do to try and fix the problem on Instagram DM not working is to report the issue to Instagram. The problem can be with Instagram and no troubleshooting method would work unless they resolve the issue on their side.
To report an issue on Instagram, you can follow the steps below.
- On your device, launch the Instagram app.
- Now, on the navigation bar at the bottom, tap on the button that displays your Profile Photo.
- Next, tap on the button with three horizontal lines located at the upper right part of your screen to open the side menu.
- After that, tap on the Settings button from the side menu.
- Inside the Settings page, tap on the Help tab then, press on Report a Problem.
- Lastly, write down in detail the problem that you are experiencing with the Instagram app and provide a screenshot if applicable. Then, tap on the Submit button.
This ends our guide on how you can fix the problem with Instagram DM not working on both Android and iOS devices. If you know other methods that can possibly fix this issue, kindly share it in the comment section below. We would love to give you credit once we update this article.
If this guide helped you, please share it. 🙂
