Instagram's PWA appears to be on its way to Windows 10

By Sean Endicott
published

Facebook seems to be moving on from OSMeta on Windows 10.

Instagram PWA Microsoft Store
Instagram PWA Microsoft Store (Image credit: Aggiornamenti Lumia)

What you need to know

  • The Instagram PWA will be in the Microsoft Store soon, according to a report.
  • The current Instagram app on Windows 10 hasn't received an update since 2018.
  • Facebook recently launched a refreshed Messenger app on Windows 10.

The progressive web app (PWA) of Instagram appears to be on its way to the Microsoft Store. Aggiornamenti Lumia reports that it will be available in the Microsoft Store "very soon."

This news comes as a mixed bag for many Instagram users on Windows 10. On the one hand, progressive web apps allow companies to update apps more frequently because a single update can push across several platforms. This would be welcomed by Windows 10 users since the Instagram app on Windows 10 hasn't been updated since July 2018. On the other hand, PWAs don't always have feature parity with native applications. In the case of Instagram, the PWA does not have access to direct messaging (nor photo uploading, but that's expected).

See more

Since we don't have confirmation from Instagram on the PWA's availability, we can't say what features will ship with the new version of the app. Facebook seems committed to refreshing its apps. Facebook Messenger beta largely closes the feature gap between the Windows 10 version and iOS and Android versions of Messenger. There's a chance that a similar tactic with Instagram could lead to a better app that's updated more often than the current version.

Sean Endicott
Sean Endicott
News Writer and apps editor

Sean Endicott brings nearly a decade of experience covering Microsoft and Windows news to Windows Central. He joined our team in 2017 as an app reviewer and now heads up our day-to-day news coverage. If you have a news tip or an app to review, hit him up at sean.endicott@futurenet.com (opens in new tab).

8 Comments
  • Whats the point? with edge now able to install a website as an app...
    They must do a proper app or dont do it at all
  • 1. A Store is a clearer place for non-technical people.
    2. Windows Apps integrate with the Action Centre better than Web Apps from Browsers do at the moment.
  • Well this is just about the most stupid thing ever if they take down the Instagram app from the store. You can upload images and direct message from that app.
  • This is good to see but Microsoft really needs to hurry up and replace EdgeHTML with the Chromium version of Edge on a system level before more of these pop up. It's just going to be more painful for developers the longer they wait to make the change.
  • Well the OneDrive UWP app was replaced with a PWA, and users can't use the app as a Share target any more. The same will happen with Instagram (the only way to upload pictures currently). PWA is the future? Going backwards more like
  • Maybe the share function will be updated later? I mean it does not sound to complicated to add a share feature to pwa's.
  • Well, it has landed. And it's terrible. If I want to visit the website, I can. But this app has lost all the functionality that used to be there. It's pointless.
  • Yey dark mode...pretty pls.