The real reason why Instagram's iconic square grid is shifting to rectangles

Have you perfectly curated your Instagram feed based on the app's square grid?

Well, we have some bad news for you as that is all set to change, with the social media platform announcing that it is moving from squares to rectangles.

Some Instagram users are already seeing the update appear on their accounts, and it's been messing up the positioning of people's posts - particularly with celebrities who used the square layout to post different parts individually to create bigger photos on their feeds.

We've had the Instagram square grid since the app was created in 2010 and is considered to be a signature feature of the platform, so why the big change after 15 years?

Speaking about the news, Instagram boss, Adam Mosseri, explained the decision behind the latest update is down to the fact that the "vast majority of what is uploaded to Instagram today is vertical".

"I know some of you really like your squares. And square photos are sort of the heritage of Instagram," he said.

"But at this point, most of what’s uploaded, both photos and videos, are vertical in their orientation. And it just is a bummer to overly crop them. I know it's a change. I know it's a bit of a pain, but I think it's a transitional pain."

Mosseri added: “I think people will, over the long run, be excited that more of their photos and more of their videos are actually visible as intended in the profile as opposed to aggressively cropped".

This notable update has sparked plenty of social media reactions, with many expressing annoyance at this change messing up both their own and their favourite celebrity's feed

"Instagram changing the square layout to rectangles have got to be their worst update yet….wtf is this," one user on X, formerly Twitter, commented.

Another person similarly wrote: "Instagram changing my feed from square to rectangle is literally making me FURIOUS".

"The rectangle instagram grid has f***ing ruined my carefully curated account aesthetic i’m MAD," a third person didn't hold back.

Swifties are less than impressed to see how this has impacted Taylor Swift's feed.

"Instagram will pay for their crimes oh my… they just ruined like every K-pop groups account," another user pointed out.

Some users accused Instagram of "wanting to be TikTok" given this update had been implemented during a time when the US TikTok ban and reinstatement drama was going on at the weekend.

"They wanna be TikTok so bad," one person said in response to the news.

Another person said: "Not everything has to look like TikTok... bring back the square grid. The rectangle grid is already for the reels".

"Instagram has officially made my accounts layout rectangles instead of squares.. u will never be TikTok," a third person posted.

However, the app looking at doing this kind of update since since 2022, according to reverse engineer Alessandro Paluzzi, who posted the news on X, formerly Twitter, three years ago.

Plus in August last year, Mosseri also shared that limited testing of this was taking place: "We're actually testing a vertical grid, for those of you who haven’t seen it yet, for your profile, instead of squares".

Elsewhere, what is 'vanish mode' on Instagram and how do I use it?

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