Instagram is Finally Developing a Dedicated iPad App to Boost App Usage: Report

Instagram is working on a dedicated iPad app, after years of users requesting support for devices with larger screens, according to a report. The development comes 15 years after the platform was launched. The Meta-owned photo and video sharing platform has yet to announce any plans to launch an app designed for the iPad. Instagram users currently have the option to use a centre-aligned, zoomed in version of the Instagram app for iPhone on Apple's tablets, or access the Instagram website via a browser like Safari.

Instagram iPad App Reportedly Begins 15 Years After Social Network's Debut

The Information reports (via 9to5Mac) that Instagram is working on a version of its application that is designed to run on the iPad. A current employee told the publication that the platform's decision to develop a dedicated iPad app could "further drive usage of Instagram".

The publication states that the decision to work on a dedicated app for Instagram on the iPad could have been prompted by two factors. Instagram's biggest rival, TikTok, faces the risk of a ban in the US, under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act. 

The recent tariffs levied on several countries, including India, by US President Donald Trump could also have spurred the company to work on an iPad app, according to the report. If the claims in the report are accurate, Instagram is finally developing an iPad app, nearly a decade and a half after the platform was launched in 2010.

Instagram head Adam Mosseri has downplayed the importance of a dedicated Instagram app for iPad over the past few years. In 2022, Mosseri responded to a post in X (formerly Twitter) by YouTube creator Marques Brownlee (@mkbhd), stating that an iPad app was "still just not a big enough group of people to be a priority."

Users can currently download the Instagram app for iPhone on an iPad, but the app appears at the centre of the screen. It can be expanded to fill the screen, but it is still a zoomed in version of the app, which is designed to work on a much smaller display. An iPad app could take advantage of the additional screen real estate offered by the iPad.

It's worth noting that the development of an Instagram app for the iPad could take a considerable amount of time. Another Meta-owned service — WhatsApp — has been testing a version of the messaging app for iPad for several months now, with no word on a release date.