Instagram Will Test Profile Redesign That Features Cleaner Look

Instagram has been busy adding features and refreshing its user experience over the last couple of years, and now another change is coming. Instagram has announced that it will be rolling out a slight redesign to user profiles to make the app easier to use.

“Your profile is where you share who you are on Instagram, so starting today we’re testing ways you can better express yourself and more easily connect with the people you care about on your profile,” Instagram said on its blog. “Over the next several weeks, you may see features re-arranged at the top of your profile including changes to icons, buttons and the way you navigate between tabs, which we hope will make profiles easier and cleaner to use. The photos and videos you’ve shared on your grid won’t change.”

Instagram also shared some images showing what the redesigned profiles will look like, and it appears that the changes are small but provide a cleaner look. The user’s profile picture will be located at the left side with their bio placed on the left. The Verge pointed out that follower counts appear to be de-emphasized and are no longer found on top of the profile itself. This specific change is similar to what Twitter has done to its iOS app.

Right below will be the follow button and a button to start a new message thread. The user’s Instagram Stories Highlights will still be presented as a carousel with circular icons. When visiting a profile, users will have access to view mutual followers by tapping on the user’s Following tab. This should make it easier for some to decide on whether or not to follow back someone whom they haven’t actually met in real life.

The biggest change is the addition of tabs on top of the user’s photos and videos. The tabs show options for grid view, posts view, IGTV, Tagged and Shop. The Shop tab is specifically for users who have a Business profile and it provides visitors easy access to products being sold. Business profiles are also getting extra buttons for Directions, Call, Email and “Star Order” located just below the followers count.

“We’ve been working on these changes and will test them in phases and different combinations with our community over the next several weeks. We’ll continue to experiment and update the experience as we learn from your feedback,” the company said.