How to Check DM on Instagram (App, Web and Requests)

Instagram doesn't keep your messages in one place. There's an inbox, a requests folder, a Spam folder inside that, and on professional accounts a second inbox. Most missing messages are in one of them.

Updated 2026-10-03

What does DM mean on Instagram?

DM stands for direct message. To DM someone on Instagram is to send them a private message, and your DMs are your inbox of those conversations. Sliding into someone's DMs is the casual version: messaging someone you don't know well.

You can DM anyone whose settings allow it. If you follow each other, the message goes straight to their inbox. If they don't follow you, it arrives as a request they can accept, delete or ignore. Some accounts limit who can message them at all, in their message controls, so the option can be missing on some profiles.

How do you check Instagram DMs on the app?

Open Instagram and tap the messages icon. Depending on your app version, it's the paper plane or the chat bubble, either at the top right of the home feed or in the bottom bar. The inbox lists your conversations with the most recent first and unread ones in bold.

From there:

• Tap a conversation to open it. Swipe or long-press in the list for options such as mute, pin or delete.
• Use the search bar at the top of the inbox to find a conversation by name; the search reaches conversations far down the list.
• Tap Requests, near the top of the inbox, to see messages from people you don't follow.
• On a creator or business account, switch between the Primary and General tabs at the top of the inbox.

Primary and General on professional accounts

Creator and business accounts get a split inbox. Primary is for conversations you want notifications for; General is for the rest, and its notifications can be quieter. You can move a conversation between the two from its menu, using Move to General or Move to Primary. A message that seems to have vanished on a professional account has often just been moved to General.

Where are message requests on Instagram?

In the inbox, tap Requests, near the top of the screen or next to the inbox title depending on the version. Requests holds messages from accounts you don't follow, and from accounts you have restricted.

Each request shows the sender and a preview. Open it to read the full message, then choose:

1. Accept, which moves the conversation into your inbox so you can reply.

2. Delete, which removes the request.

3. Block, which deletes it and stops that account messaging you.

Opening a request doesn't accept it. The conversation only moves to your inbox when you tap Accept, so you can read a message from a stranger before deciding whether to answer. Restricted accounts are a special case, and how to know if someone restricted you on Instagram explains what each side sees there.

Do hidden requests ever show up?

Only if you go looking. Instagram puts requests it judges offensive, unwanted or spam, or that match your Hidden Words list, into a separate folder inside Requests. Its help center currently calls this folder Spam; older versions of the app called it Hidden Requests. You don't get notified about messages that go there, which is one quiet answer to why you're not getting Instagram notifications.

To open it, go to Requests and tap Spam (or Hidden Requests). You can accept, delete or block each one from there.

Instagram's help center adds one exception: messages from accounts you've already connected with won't be hidden, even if they contain words on your Hidden Words list. So the Spam folder is mostly strangers, which is exactly where genuine first contacts, from a brand or an old friend on a new account, can get lost.

If legitimate messages keep landing there, review your Hidden Words settings in Settings. A broad custom word list catches more than you meant it to.

How do you check Instagram DMs on a computer?

Go to instagram.com in a browser, sign in, and click Messages in the left sidebar, or open instagram.com/direct/inbox directly. The web inbox shows the same conversations as the app, and you can read, reply, send photos and react.

Requests and the Spam folder are on the web too: click Requests next to Messages, then Spam for the hidden ones. Professional accounts see their Primary and General tabs.

The web inbox is the easier option for long replies and for accounts that handle a lot of messages, since the conversation list and the chat sit side by side.

Why can't I see some of my Instagram messages?

Work through the folders before assuming a message was never sent:

• It's a request. The sender doesn't follow you or you don't follow them, so it's in Requests.
• It's in Spam. Instagram filtered it, or your Hidden Words caught it, so it's in the folder inside Requests, with no notification.
• It's in General. On a professional account, the conversation may have been moved or sorted there.
• It was unsent. Senders can unsend a message, which removes it for everyone.
• It disappeared by design. Messages sent in vanish mode, or photos and videos set to view once, don't stay in the chat.
• The sender is blocked or deactivated. Their conversation can disappear or show an Instagram User placeholder.

When the issue is read status, not the message

If what you can't see is whether someone read your message, that comes down to their activity status and read receipt settings. How to turn off active status on Instagram covers what those settings hide in DMs.

How do you reply to a specific message on Instagram?

In the app, swipe right on the message you want to answer. A reply bar appears with that message quoted above the text box; type and send. Long-pressing the message and tapping Reply does the same.

On the web, hover over the message and click the reply arrow next to it.

The quoted reply matters in group chats and long threads, where a plain answer can attach to the wrong question. It's also the clean way to answer one of several questions a brand or customer sent in a single burst.

For accounts that get their work through DMs, the inbox is half the job and the profile is the other half. People decide whether to message you from what they see there. How to see who shared your Instagram post covers the DM sends your own posts get, and every Instagram service, including buying Instagram followers for the public count, is on the Instagram page.

Questions people ask about Instagram DMs