Instagram is undoubtedly one of the most popular social networks available on the market right now. Although it is mostly used on smartphones, the well-known platform can also be used on computers.
We have therefore decided to create a guide in which we explain how to use Instagram for PC using 3 methods.
How to use Instagram for PC via the browser
The quickest and most intuitive solution to be able to use the popular photo social network is to connect to the website using a simple browser that can be Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Microsoft Edge. Through Instagram Web, you can see the posts uploaded by you and your friends, leave comments, like, and do much more.
The only thing that is not currently supported is the ability to upload photos. However, you can get around this restriction by using Instagram for PC in mobile rather than desktop mode.
In this way, you will be able to publish your favorite posts by also applying the effects and filters that you usually use in the smartphone app.
Specifically, it is necessary to hide the user agent of the chosen Internet browser so that it is recognized as a mobile device.
For the uninitiated, the user agent is a string that identifies the browser and allows you to deceive the websites visited, by applying a change, making you believe you are using a navigation app for smartphones and tablets.
If you use Google Chrome, we recommend that you take advantage of the User-Agent Switcher for Chrome extension.
Let’s see the steps to follow:
- Open the Big G browser, connect to the plugin page of the Chrome Web Store and press first on the Add button and then on Add extension from the message that appears at the top.
- Once the installation is complete, click on the extension icon at the top right and choose whether to use iOS, Android, or Windows Phone as a mobile operating system.
- Next, press on the proposed method (eg iPhone 6 or Android KitKat ). Be careful not to select the iPad if you choose iOS as you will continue to see the desktop version of Instagram.
- Now, simply connect to the portal of the photo social network, log in, and follow the normal procedure you do on the app.
To restore Chrome’s default user agent, click on the extension icon at the top, choose Chrome, and press Default.
If you use Firefox, the popular Mozilla browser, you will have to rely on the User-Agent Switcher extension downloadable from the Firefox Add-ons site.
Let’s see how to use it:
- Open the Mozilla browser, connect to the plugin page and click first on + Add to Firefox and then on Install.
- Now, press on the extension icon at the top (the world map) and take the Select a Mobile Device section as a reference.
- In the line below press on the preferred operating system among those proposed ( iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Tizen OS, Nokia Symbian, or Firefox OS ).
- At this point, connect to the Instagram site to use the mobile version.
To restore the default user agent of the Mozilla browser, press the add-on icon and then click on the checkmark at the bottom left.
In case you use Microsoft Edge, do this:
- Open the new browser of the Colossus of Redmond, click on the 3 dots at the top right and choose Development Tools from the menu that appears.
- Once this is done, press on the Emulation tab and then press on the drop-down menu under the heading Browser profile (in the Mode section ) and set Windows Phone instead of Desktop. Alternatively, from the Device drop-down menu, choose a mobile device among those proposed (eg iPhone 7, Nexus 6P, or Microsoft Lumia 950 ).
- At this point, connect to the Instagram website and you’re done.
To restore Edge’s default user agent, simply set Desktop from Browser Profile or Default from the Device menu.
Finally, if you use Safari on your Mac, you can set mobile mode very simply.
Here are the steps:
- Open Safari, click on the Safari menu at the top left and choose Preferences.
- After that, press on the Advanced tab from the window that appears and select the Show Development menu option in the menu bar.
- Once this is done, visit Instagram.com, click on the Development menu at the top, choose the User-agent, and select one of the proposed iOS profiles.
To restore the default user agent, go to the Development menu, choose the User-agent, and select Default (automatic choice).
Once you reach the mobile version of Instagram on your Windows or Mac PC, you can comment on a photo through the text field, put a Like by pressing on the little heart, embed the post on your site by clicking on the 3 dots at the bottom right and choosing Embed from the menu that appears, search for a photo using the magnifying glass at the top, follow someone by pressing the Follow button on the profile page or in the screen of the post displayed, post a photo or video by pressing on the + present at the bottom and choosing the desired content and do much more.
How to use Instagram for computers on Windows 10
Many of you will surely know that Instagram offers an official application downloadable on a PC or tablet equipped with Windows 10.
All you need to do is connect to the page dedicated to Instagram for Windows 10 and click on the Get button to proceed with the download and installation of the Instagram app for PC.
Alternatively, open the Microsoft Store on your computer from Start and search for Instagram using the search bar.
Once this is done, open the newly installed software, fill in the fields Phone number, username or e-mail and password and click on Login to proceed with the login.
Alternatively, click on Login with Facebook if you use Facebook to enter Instagram.
Once you enter the home of the social network, you can upload a photo or video by clicking on the camera at the top left, send a direct message to another user of the social network by pressing on the airplane at the top right, search for content or a person by clicking first on the magnifying glass at the bottom and then typing the word in the Search field at the top, see the like received by pressing on the little heart or manage the personal profile by clicking on the little man.
To comment on a post, simply click on the cloud present just below the photo or video, type the text in the Add a comment … field and click on Publish to publish it. To put Like a post, however, simply press on the little heart.
From the Instagram app for Windows 10 you can also save content by pressing the bookmark icon or share it by pressing on the airplane that you always find under the post.
How to use Instagram for PC via an emulator
As an alternative to Instagram Web and Instagram for Windows 10, you can take advantage of an Android emulator like BlueStacks.
Once the initial configuration is complete, just open the Play Store, search for the Instagram app, install it, start it, log in to your account and do your favorite operation (e.g. post a photo).
