Quality over Quantity: Instagram's New Time Limit Tools

Instagram’s latest update encourages users to step away from the app. But could their encouragement of time limits lead to greater success for the company?

These new tools invite users to limit the time spent on the platform. This could be seen as the opposite of what most companies’ goals are: to spend as much time using the app as possible. But the limitations Instagram is adding encourage users to experience higher quality of time rather than a higher quantity of time.

Instagram’s latest update adds new tools that allows users to track the time they spend on Instagram, mute push notifications, and set daily alerts for when they hit their daily time limit on the app.

An average internet user consumes 135 minutes of social media usage per day, according to Statista, a statistic-compiling company. This number has grown from the reported 90 minutes of daily usage in 2012.

Countless articles promoting healthier lifestyles encourage internet users to “unplug” and spend time away from screens. Even Forbes warns against too much social media for all generations, citing several studies that show social media deteriorates mental health.

While there are benefits to the connections social media brings and maintains, there’s no argument that users are struggling to limit their screen time. With these updates, Instagram is positioning itself to come alongside the social health movement rather than fight it. Users will likely begin to view Instagram as a platform that encourages their well-being rather than one that takes away from it, increasing their long-term loyalty to the company.