Instagram announced on its blog this afternoon that starting this week, users of the photo sharing service will finally be able to switch between multiple accounts. Users can now add up to five accounts through their profile settings.
This is a long overdue update for Instagram—rival social networking sites have offered account switching for years. Facebook added the service way back in 2010 so users could manage personal and professional pages without logging out. Even Twitter, which lately has been accused of being behind the curve, has had account switching since 2013.
Many of the people who were happiest about the Instagram update were social media editors, who no longer have to log out if they want to switch between professional and personal accounts. Social media professionals tweeted that they were “crying tears of joy” because of the news.
Charlotte Zoller, the social media director at Pitchfork, told the Observer that even though she loves Instagram, until now it had been annoying to have both a personal and professional presence on the site.
“Instagram is so simple and effective, which is why people love it so much,” Ms. Zoller said. “But it’s also been such a frustrating experience. Switching between accounts puts a damper on daily activities. If you have a complicated password, which you should, there’s a lot of copying and pasting.”
Ms. Zoller, who said she balances accounts for herself and her dog along with the Pitchfork accounts, admitted there were possible downsides to account switching.
“It’s possible that you can spam more people in a short amount of time,” Ms. Zoller said.
But Ms. Zoller’s overall reaction can be summed up in three words.
“I am thrilled,” she said.
