Tapping the Instagram option opens up the Instagram app, eliminating the need to navigate back to the home screen to open Instagram. According to TechCrunch, which first confirmed the change, Instagram does not yet have a similar feature for easily navigating to Facebook. The social media company says that the change is designed to help users keep in touch with friends on both platforms.
The separate accounts have to be linked — a feature that’s available in the settings options. Users that don’t have linked accounts (or do not have an Instagram account) won’t see changes to the menu inside their Facebook app.
Since Facebook and Instagram are both owned by the same company, the separate apps still have a few tie-ins. Instagram users can tap a switch to share the same shot to Facebook, though the feature is also available to cross-post to Twitter and Tumblr as well.
The two platforms also allow cross-posting from Instagram into a Facebook Page. Facebook recently launched an update that allows Pages managers to access Instagram and Messenger interactions without leaving the platform when using a desktop browser after bringing the feature to the mobile apps. The cross-platform functionality allows Pages users to reply to messages and comments as well as reviews and visitor posts all through the Pages app.
While the latest update is available for every user and not just businesses or Pages, the cross-compatibility inside Pages remains the most robust option. Users can cross-post from Instagram and now open Instagram from the Facebook app, but replying to comments still requires switching apps unlike inside the Pages app. In an earlier test, Facebook and Instagram experimented with sharing notifications from both platforms, but the idea has not become part of the publicly available app.
