Instagram tests changing 'following' to 'friends' in user profile

Instagram is testing changes that place greater emphasis on connections between users who follow each other, according to Business Insider.

As part of the test, the platform is replacing the ‘Following’ count on some user profiles with a ‘Friends’ count. The new label reflects the number of people who mutually follow one another, rather than the total number of accounts a user follows.

The platform is running the update as a small global test, a Meta spokesperson noted, cited in the media report. The goal is to understand how users respond to seeing more content from friends in the app.

In a post shared by app researcher Radu Oncescu in November, the platform replaced the 'Following' count with a 'Friends' label, showing the number of users who have a mutual following relationship on the app.

The spokesperson also stated that friends are central to the platform’s experience, and it is exploring ways to make these connections more visible and meaningful.

Meta is also testing changes in the feed that label some content as ‘friends’ instead of ‘posts’ or ‘following,’ according to Business Insider.

The experiment comes as the platform’s feed has increasingly featured content from influencers, brands and automated accounts, reducing the focus on posts from personal connections. In recent years, the platform has added features aimed at strengthening interactions among friends, including tools centered on direct messaging.

These updates include ‘Close Friends,’ a shared Reels feed called ‘Blend,’ and a friends-focused feed within the Reels tab that shows content friends are engaging with. Instagram has also introduced a social mapping feature similar to Snapchat’s map.