Instagram Adds Reposts, Friends Tab in Reels, and New Map Feature

Instagram is starting to roll out Reposts and a new Map feature inspired by Snapchat. The app is also adding a new “Friends” tab in Reels where users will see the content their friends have interacted with.

The new Reposts feature adds a native way to share public Instagram posts and Reels videos, similar to how retweets work on Twitter/X. “Reposts will be recommended to your friends’ and followers’ feeds, and they’ll also be in a separate tab on your profile, so you can always go back to revisit your reposts,” the Instagram team explained today.

The new Friends tab in Reels started rolling out earlier this year, and it’s now available globally. It’s available at the top of the Reels feed, and it shows public Reels videos your friends have created, liked, reposted, or commented on.

Lastly, the new Instagram Map, which is rolling out first in the US, lets users share their location with others in real time and see location-based content from their friends and other content creators. Public content that can appear on the map for just 24 hours includes Reels, posts, stories, and notes, but location sharing will be off by default. Instagram will offer granular controls for only sharing your location with select friends, in specific places, and just have it updated when the app is opened.

This new Instagram Map is another feature Instagram ripped off from Snapchat after copying the app’s ephemeral Stories format. If you’re in the US, this new map is available at the top of your DM inbox, and Instagram plans to bring it to more countries soon.