Breakreach
LoginRegister
Guide · Instagram DMs

Can you auto DM new followers on Instagram?Not through the public API. Here's what works.

Not through Meta's public API: Instagram has no webhook for new followers, and a business can only message people who wrote first. The tools that greet new followers either run Meta's invite-only Follow to DM beta (ManyChat, on accounts Meta makes eligible, one message per person a week) or send through a browser extension, outside the API. What works for everyone: give new followers a reason to write first.

Updated October 8, 2026 · Checked against Meta: Instagram webhook fields, Meta: Instagram Messaging API (Instagram Login), Meta: Instagram IG User reference and 7 more sources

Why can't a tool DM someone when they follow you?Instagram never tells it.

Automation runs on webhooks: Instagram calls the tool when something happens. Meta's list of Instagram webhook fields has fifteen of them (comments, mentions, messages, story insights and so on) and none for follows. The account's API data has followers_count, a number, and no list of who followed when.

Even with that list, the message couldn't go out. Meta's messaging rule is: “Only after an Instagram user has sent your app user's Instagram professional account a message can your app send a message to the Instagram user.” A follow isn't a message.

So how do “auto DM new followers” tools work?Two ways, and only one is on Meta's terms.

Meta's Follow to DM beta, through ManyChat

ManyChat's help center describes a Follow to DM automation “currently in beta”, where “Eligibility for this automation is determined by Meta, not Manychat” and “Meta reviews account eligibility on a weekly basis”. Meta allows “only one Follow to DM message per user per week”, across all accounts they follow, and it triggers once per follower. It isn't in Meta's public documentation, so other tools and your own code can't use it. If you're on ManyChat and your account is eligible, it's the one official route.

Browser extensions and password-based tools

The rest act like you in the Instagram app. FollowToDM's homepage says its “Sending runs through a browser-extension workflow rather than the official Meta API”, while your browser is open. Instagram's Terms of Use forbid “accessing or collecting information in an automated way without our express permission”, and apps that collect Instagram passwords. Its help center lists using “an app or service to interact with Instagram in unauthorized ways” among the causes of a restricted account.

What works instead?Get new followers to write first.

Every one of these opens a conversation on Meta's terms, so the welcome message can go out in seconds, with a link, a question or a code. Pick one or two and say it where new followers look: your bio, a pinned post, a highlight.

  • A link in your bio that opens a DMig.me/m/yourname?ref=welcome opens a conversation with you; the ref starts its own welcome flow when they write. “Tap for the free guide” gives them a reason.
  • A keyword in a pinned post or highlight“DM START for the beginner's guide.” A keyword automation answers each one.
  • Comment to DM on your reelsNew followers often come from a reel. “Comment GUIDE” turns that moment into a DM with Comment to DM. Set it up.
  • A thank-you for story mentionsPeople who tag you in a story get a reply with a code, and Instagram lets you answer.
  • Meta's FAQ questionsUp to four questions shown when someone opens a chat with you, set in the Instagram app (Messages, Tools, Frequently asked questions).

Set up a welcome flow in the appA ref link or a keyword, then the welcome.

In Breakreach, a welcome for new followers is an automation they start: a ref link in the bio, or a keyword you mention. These are the real screens, on our demo account Northbeam Coffee.

  1. app.breakreach.com/dashboard/northbeam/automations
    The Automations page with the DM templates and the Your own flow card

Or with the APIA ref trigger returns the link to share.

The same flow through POST /v1/dm-automations. Full reference on the DM automations API page.

  1. 1

    Create the welcome flow on a ref link

    The response carries refLink, the link to put in your bio. reentry once greets each person one time.

    POST /v1/dm-automations
    curl https://api.breakreach.com/v1/dm-automations \  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BREAKREACH_API_KEY" \  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \  -d '{    "accountId": "6701a2f4c9e84b0012a3b4c5",    "name": "Welcome new followers",    "trigger": { "type": "ref", "ref": "welcome" },    "reentry": "once",    "steps": [{      "type": "message",      "text": "Welcome {first_name}! Here is the beginner brew guide we promised",      "button": { "title": "Open the guide", "url": "https://northbeam.coffee/guide" }    }]  }' # {"automation":{ …, "refLink":"https://ig.me/m/northbeam.coffee?ref=welcome" }}
  2. 2

    Or a keyword you mention in the bio

    A keyword trigger with exact match answers people who send just the word.

    keyword trigger
    {  "accountId": "6701a2f4c9e84b0012a3b4c5",  "trigger": { "type": "keyword", "keywords": ["start"], "match": "exact" },  "steps": [{ "type": "message", "text": "Hi {first_name}! Here's where to start",    "button": { "title": "Start here", "url": "https://northbeam.coffee/start" } }]}

Is a welcome DM to new followers worth it?When they asked for it, yes.

A message nobody asked for reads as spam, and Meta's Developer Policies require consent before contacting people on Messenger or Instagram. A welcome that someone triggered by tapping your link or sending a word is the opposite: they want the guide, the code or the answer, and they get it in seconds.

It also opens the conversation for 24 hours, so a follow-up question (“beginner or advanced?”) and a handoff to your team can follow, all within Meta's rules.

Breakreach

Give new followers a reason to write first. Breakreach answers in seconds, with your link or a question.

Set up a welcome flow

DM hasprice

5 steps
started

northbeam.coffee

Instagram · Direct

Hi! What's your wholesale price for 10 kg?

Here's our café price list, free shipping from 5 kg 👇

See the price list

1 hour later

They opened the price list

Want a free tasting kit for your café?

Yes pleaseNot now

Yes please

Handed off to your team, in the Inbox

Sources

Read on October 8, 2026. Breakreach's own limits come from its code.

FAQ

Follower DMs, answered.

Short answers, sourced above.

Not through Meta's public API: there's no webhook for new followers, and businesses can only message people who wrote first. ManyChat runs Meta's Follow to DM beta on accounts Meta makes eligible; other tools use browser extensions, outside the API.

Through a browser extension or a tool that uses your password, it goes against Instagram's Terms of Use, which forbid automated access without Instagram's permission. Meta's own Follow to DM beta, available through ManyChat on eligible accounts, is within the rules.

Get them to write first: an ig.me link in your bio that starts a welcome flow, a keyword in a pinned post, comment to DM on your reels, or a thank-you for story mentions.

Per ManyChat's help center, Meta allows one Follow to DM message per user per week, across all the accounts they follow, and it triggers once per follower.

Keep reading

How to automate Instagram DMsComments, keywords, stories, ref links.Auto DM from commentsComment to DM, in the app or the API.Auto-reply message examplesWelcome, away, FAQ and link replies.Instagram DM limitsWhat Meta documents, with links.ManyChat alternativesPrices checked on each vendor's page.DM automationsFlows with buttons, follow checks, handoffs.
Instagram
TikTok
LinkedIn
YouTube
X
Facebook
Threads

Put your socials on autopilot.Live in two minutes.

Get started

Plans from $29 a month. Cancel anytime.