How do message requests work?
Instagram sorts DMs by relationship. Meta's documentation for professional accounts says all new conversations from users who aren't followers appear in the Requests folder. The same applies in the other direction for comment DMs: a private reply goes to the commenter's inbox if they follow you, and to their Requests folder if they don't.
What happens to a request in practice?
- A non-follower DMs your account: it lands in your Requests folder.
- Your tool answers it through the API: Meta moves the thread to your General folder.
- A non-follower comments your keyword: your DM lands in their Requests folder.
- A Requests conversation goes 30 days without activity: Meta stops returning it in API calls.
Why do message requests matter for DM automation?
If most of your commenters don't follow you, as is common on a reel that travels, many of your DMs land where people check less often. They still arrive; people just need to know to look. The fix is to tell them, in the caption and under their comment.
How does ReplyRep help with message requests?
On Lite and up, Comment Auto Reply posts a public reply under each comment, worded differently every time, so people know a DM is on its way. A follow gate asks commenters to follow first. Read can you DM someone who doesn't follow you on Instagram for the full rules, and the comment-to-DM feature.
Make sure every DM gets seen
Pair each DM with a public reply that tells people where to look.
Related terms
- Private reply: the comment DM that lands in Requests for non-followers.
- Opt-in: why a business can only message people who interacted first.