Instagram Launched Animated Text In Stories, & Each Font Has Different Movements

Instagram's latest text update is making it so easy to animate your Story posts. On Monday, Feb. 8, the tech giant decided to give users a more lively alternative to static texts and fonts by rolling out an animated text option — and TBH, the eye-catching addition is long-overdue. If you're ready to try it out, here's how to get animated text in Instagram Story to spice up your photos and videos.

Considering Instagram has already rolled out animated GIFs and stickers on Story as a way to engage followers, the highly-anticipated Feb. 8 announcement that users can now make their text move as well was a welcome one. While the feature — which was first sighted in July 2020 by app researcher Alessandro Paluzzi — was previously only available through third-party apps, you can now use animated versions of the static texts and fonts you've grown accustomed to. Every static text option comes with a different corresponding animated look, giving you so many options to spice up your Instagram Story photos and videos.

To try it out for yourself, you'll want to first make sure your Instagram app is updated to the latest version (version 174.0). Then, open the app and head to your Story camera. Every iOS and Android Instagram user should currently have access to the feature, so if you don't see it, try restarting your app and double-checking if you have an update waiting.

To find the animated text, you'll want to snap a picture or video like usual in Stories. Then, tap the text button (Aa) at the top right corner of the screen like you'd normally do to add static text. You'll now see four icons at the top of the screen instead of just three, and the animate button is located at the far right. (It looks like an italicized "A" with two horizontal lines on its left side.)

After you've found the animate text button, choose a style from the nine font styles at the bottom of the screen, write out whatever you want to say, then tap that animate button. Your text will then become animated and, depending on the font style you choose, you can expect to see it flashing on your screen or appearing letter by letter with a variety of different aesthetics. If you're not a fan of one look, go back and adjust the font to find one you like — each font has a different movement.

TBH, it's surprising that it took this long for Instagram to roll out a feature that allows you to animate different texts and fonts, but now that it's here, have fun trying out the different looks and adding a new engaging element to your Story posts.