An otherwise free social media platform, Instagram is testing paid subscriptions with a small group of creators in the US. Find out more here!

On Wednesday, Instagram announced it would begin rolling out a paid subscription feature to a limited number of US creators. The feature will enable these select users to access exclusive content of Instagram Live and Stories. This group of creators and influencers will increase over the coming weeks.

Currently, the ten creators in the test group include @alanchikinchow, @sedona._, @alizakelly, @kelseylynncook, @elliottnorris, @jordanchiles, @jackjerry, @bunnymichael, @donalleniii and @lonnieiiv.

How Will Instagram Subscriptions Work?

Following a structure not dissimilar to Patreon, paying fans will be able to view subscriber-only content on the platform. Payments will be made monthly, and those users will get a purple badge next to their username, signalling their subscriber status to the creator.

Whilst Instagram is used as a marketing tool to help businesses then make money, many users rely on the platform directly to earn a living. Speaking on the tests, head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri said:

“Creators do what they do to make a living, and it’s important that that is predictable. Subscriptions are one of the best ways to have a predictable income — a way that is not attached to how much reach you get on any given post, which is inevitably going to go up and down over time.”

At the moment, Instagram is testing subscriptions at 8 different price points: $0.99, $1.99, $2.99, $4.99, $9.99, $19.99, $49.99 or $99.99. The creator will be able to choose which price they wish to offer subscriptions for. Parent company, Meta has claimed it will not be taking a share of any revenue until 2023. It isn’t yet clear how much of a cut Meta will take, but Mark Zuckerberg has already stated that it will be less than 30%.

Mosseri has said he hopes to add to this new subscription feature on Instagram. He has also suggested the possibility of allowing creators to export their subscriber list to other platforms.