Get Started Free
Docs/Messaging Channels/Instagram DMs

Instagram DMs

Connect your Instagram Professional account so your AI agent automatically replies to every Direct Message. Whether visitors ask about products, services, pricing, or store hours, the agent responds from your knowledge base — instantly, on every DM, day or night.

Requirements

  • •An Instagram Professional account — either Business or Creator type. Personal accounts cannot use the Messaging API.
  • •The Instagram account must be linked to a Facebook Page in Meta Business Suite. This is required by Meta regardless of whether you use Messenger.
  • •Admin access to the connected Facebook Page.
ℹ️
To convert a personal Instagram account to a Professional account: go to Instagram Settings → Account → Switch to Professional Account. This is free and reversible.

Connecting via OAuth (recommended)

1

Open Deploy → Instagram

In your agent's left sidebar, click Deploy, then select the Instagram tab.
2

Click Connect Instagram

This starts Meta's OAuth flow. Log in with the Facebook account that has admin access to the Page linked to your Instagram.
3

Grant permissions

AIChatVault requests the permissions needed to read and send Instagram DMs: instagram_manage_messages and pages_messaging. Approve both.
4

Select your Instagram account

If your Facebook account manages multiple Instagram accounts, choose the correct one from the list.
5

Connection confirmed

The page shows your Instagram username, linked Page ID, and connection status. The agent is now live.
6

Test it

Send a DM to your Instagram account. The agent should reply within seconds.

Manual connection (advanced)

If OAuth is not practical for your setup, you can connect manually by entering:

  • •Page Access Token — a long-lived token generated in Meta's Graph API Explorer with instagram_manage_messages and pages_messaging permissions.
  • •Facebook Page ID — the numeric ID of the Facebook Page linked to your Instagram account.
  • •Instagram username — your @handle (without the @ symbol).

Manual tokens can expire. If the agent stops replying, reconnect via OAuth or generate a new long-lived token in Meta's developer tools.

What the connected view shows

  • •Instagram username — the account currently linked.
  • •Instagram account ID — the Meta API identifier.
  • •Facebook Page ID — the Page the Instagram account is connected to.
  • •Connection method — OAuth or Manual.
  • •Token expires at — shown for manually connected integrations; OAuth tokens are refreshed automatically.
  • •Connected at — when the integration was authorised.

Stats tab

The Stats tab shows:

  • •Messages received, AI replies sent, reply rate, and last message timestamp.
  • •A 14-day bar chart of daily DM volume.
  • •A paginated message log showing each DM and the agent's reply side by side.

Disconnecting Instagram

Click Disconnect on the Connect tab. The agent immediately stops replying to DMs. Message history and stats are preserved. To resume, reconnect via OAuth or re-enter manual credentials.

💡
Instagram users often send very short messages like "price?", "available?", "link?", or "DM me". Add Q&A pairs covering these short-form phrases — they match reliably and produce instant, helpful replies that keep visitors engaged rather than leaving without an answer.

Previous

WhatsApp Business

Next

Facebook Messenger

Was this page helpful?