Instagram “Secret Friends” - what is this?

mjohnsoncode

mjohnsoncode

Newbie
Joined
Mar 9, 2026
Messages
16
Reaction score
2
Recently saw people talking about something called Instagram “Secret Friends”.

From what I understand it looks similar to Close Friends, but the weird part is that the feature isn’t actually available to normal users. It mostly appeared in a celebrity promo case and nowhere else.

Which makes me wonder - what is this supposed to be?

Instagram already has Close Friends, so creating another “private circle” doesn’t really make much sense unless they’re testing something different.

Could be:
  • just a PR campaign / promo feature
  • a small internal experiment
  • or something that will later replace Close Friends
Right now it feels more like a marketing stunt than a real feature.

Has anyone actually seen this appear on their account?
 
Advertise on BHW
Which country are you based from? Right now; most users see "close friends"; however new features are normally released to certain countries before the larger update is pushed.
 
Which country are you in? Until now, I’ve only heard of “Close Friends” and “Secret Friend,” so I guess that feature is still being tested
 
Its just a test feature Instagram shows to some accounts. Not available to normal users yet. Likely an experiment or promo, nothing official for everyone.
 
I haven’t seen this feature on regular accounts yet. It looks more like a limited test or promotional experiment.
 
interesting, not available yet for all of us
 
It definitely looks like a high-level marketing stunt or a limited alpha test for creators. Instagram often rolls out these 'exclusive' features to celebrity accounts first to build hype before either killing the project or merging it with the existing Close Friends API.
 
I heard they will start testing it with legacy verified accounts first within the USA
 
mjohnsoncode said:
Recently saw people talking about something called Instagram “Secret Friends”.

From what I understand it looks similar to Close Friends, but the weird part is that the feature isn’t actually available to normal users. It mostly appeared in a celebrity promo case and nowhere else.

Which makes me wonder - what is this supposed to be?

Instagram already has Close Friends, so creating another “private circle” doesn’t really make much sense unless they’re testing something different.

Could be:
  • just a PR campaign / promo feature
  • a small internal experiment
  • or something that will later replace Close Friends
Right now it feels more like a marketing stunt than a real feature.

Has anyone actually seen this appear on their account?
Click to expand...
From what I’ve seen, it looks like a mix of testing and a promotional campaign rather than a real feature rollout. A lot of people first noticed it on celebrity accounts (like Selena Gomez), and the “Secret Friends” label with the yellow ring appeared as part of a specific promotion.

Instagram often experiments with new sharing tiers beyond Close Friends, especially with creators and big accounts first. Some reports suggest the idea behind it is an even smaller private circle than Close Friends, where content is shared with a very limited group and others don’t even know it exists.

Right now it seems more like a test or campaign format rather than a feature available to everyone. Instagram usually tests things with creators first before deciding if it’s worth rolling out globally.
 
Advertise on BHW
You must log in or register to reply here.
Sign up now!

Main Menu

Home Main Forum List Black Hat SEO White Hat SEO BHW Newbie Guide Blogging Black Hat Tools Social Media Downloads

Marketplace

Account Selling Content / Copywriting EBooks / Methods Hosting Misc Proxies For Sale SEO - Link building SEO - Packages Social Media Social Media - Panels Web Design More

Making Money

Affiliate Programs Hire a Freelancer IM Journeys Making Money Pay Per Click Site Flipping Want to Buy

BlackHat World

Dispute Resolution Forum Suggestions & Feedback Introductions Lounge
Back
Top