Instagram has updated one of its most recognizable brand elements and unveiled a redesigned wordmark nearly a decade after its previous version.
The lettering for the Instagram name has been changed but the icon for the app is still the same. Instagram says the new design will be sharper, cleaner and more modern but still be connected to the site’s visual identity.
The new wordmark marks Instagram’s first major change to text-based branding since 2016. Unlike a complete logo overhaul, the latest change is focused on how the word “Instagram” is written.
The lettering has been updated with some of the older style of cursive and print typography to make the name even more contemporary, maintaining some of that flowing character.
Instagram’s leadership has presented the redesign as part of the platform’s ongoing evolution. The company wants its identity to reflect a more modern digital environment but still be recognizable to billions of users. For social media platforms, the move comes as typography, colours and other visual elements become increasingly central to their brand identity.
The timing is also significant. Instagram’s last major visual redesign occurred in 2016 and it brought with it the move from its old camera-centric icon to the now-famous colourful gradient design. That change was initially polarizing, but the new version became one of the most recognizable symbols on social media.
This time it has been mixed. Some users liked the updated appearance and called it cleaner and more modern. Others have questioned whether the new lettering is easier to read, particularly at smaller sizes. There are even jokes on the web where some letters are ambiguous.
On Instagram, the wordmark is just one part of a much larger design language. The platform has previously altered its typefaces and visual system, most notably in 2022 when it introduced Instagram Sans. That change was done to provide creators and users with a new typeface that would work in different languages and formats like Stories and Reels.
The recent wordmark update therefore seems less like a complete rebrand and more like an incredibly targeted evolution of Instagram’s identity.
The company is keeping the core elements users directly associate with the platform while updating the typography around them.
For regular users, the change may seem relatively small. But for creatives, advertisers and businesses using Instagram branding on their marketing and advertising materials, it could be a visual change.
Instagram is growing and this new typography change is in line to keep its identity contemporary while still maintaining the familiar feel that made it so easy to identify with.
