Instagram’s newest feature is all about GIFs

Instagram is one of the many social services that allows its users to add GIFs to their posts, but that’s where anything GIF-related stops. Let’s say your friend posts an animated sticker in stories and you wish to reply with a GIF. Well, that’s not possible, or at least it wasn’t until today.

Earlier today, Instagram announced that users can now reply to their friends’ stories using GIFs pulled from GIPHY. In order to take advantage of the new feature, Instagram users must update their apps via the App Store or Google Play Store.

Judging by the number of replies Instagram’s tweet received soon after the announcement, the ability to reply to stories with GIFs is a welcome addition to the service. Make sure to update your app to try it out now.

Meanwhile, Instagram confirmed last week that it’s testing reactions to direct messages, another long-awaited feature that we might get in the not so distant future. Of course, these are the improvements that we know of, but there might be others in the pipeline.