Instagram Your Message Can’t Be Delivered – How To Fix?
If you get an error message like “Instagram, your message can't be delivered,” then there are two main possibilities;
- The person has blocked you on the social media platform or
- The person sets restrictions from receiving direct Instagram messages from someone, not on their friends list.
If this is your case, this article sheds light on fixing your Instagram message that is not working or sending and getting your messages delivered.
How Do You Fix If Instagram Your Message Can't Be Delivered?
The issue “Instagram your message can't be delivered” occurs when you send a direct message to someone (who does not accept your Instagram request), but you still try sending direct messages to the person.
The reason is that Instagram limits sending direct messages to an unknown and someone who does not accept your friend or message request, considering it spam.
Suppose you receive an “Instagram your message can't be delivered” error message continuously, even when you send a direct message to the other person who is your friend or follower. Dont worry. We have some troubleshooting steps below.
1. Check Your Internet Connection.
The first and foremost thing you must do when you face an issue while sending direct messages on Instagram is to ensure you have a stable and strong internet connection.
The reason is that a weak connection cannot help you connect to the server, failing to deliver your Instagram direct messages.
To test your internet connection, you can open a website (for example – Pinterest or Facebook) on your mobile browser.
Your mobile data connection is good if it loads without any error. Alternatively, if the site did not load, the poor internet connection is the sole reason you receive the “Instagram your message can't be delivered” error.
You can fix this by disconnecting and reconnecting your mobile internet, switching to a 5G connection, increasing the data limit and speed, and connecting your mobile to a WiFi network.
Moreover, you must fix your mobile internet connection problem before sending an Instagram message. If nothing works, get help from the Internet service provider.
2. Sign Out And Sign In Back
Signing out helps you clear the active session on your device. Further, signing in again to your Instagram account starts a new session, so there is a chance that you can get rid of your issue.
Steps to sign out
Step 1 – Open your Instagram app on the Android phone
Step 2 – Click on the Profile picture icon at the bottom right corner of the Instagram feed
Step 3 – Tap on the hamburger icon at the top right corner
Step 4 – Select Settings and privacy settings
Step 5 – Then search for “Log out” from the list of options
Step 6 – When the prompt appears, select “Log out.”
Steps to sign in back
Step 1 – Head toward your Instagram app
Step 2 – Enter your username and password
Step 3 – Click on “Log in”
Step 4 – Now try sending a direct message
Then, check whether you have resolved your issue; if not, dig into the next solution.
3. Update Your Instagram App.
Using an older or outdated app version is also one reason your messages are not delivered on Instagram.
As Instagram keeps updating its functionalities (for instance – voice messages, quick reply Instagram story), there is a growing need to update the app to continue using the latest features and sending direct messages on Instagram.
Here is a quick procedure on how to update your Instagram app;
Step 1 – Go to Play Store on your Android device (App Store in case of iPhone)
Step 2 – Click the Profile icon at the top right corner
Step 3 – Select “Manage apps and device”
Step 4 – Tap on “Updates available”
Step 5 – Search for “Instagram” from your apps list
Step 6 – Click on “Update”
Once your app has been updated, try sending an Instagram direct message and check whether your conversation messages are delivered.
4. Check The Instagram Server Status.
Neither your Instagram app nor the internet connection is your problem, so there might be a possibility that the Instagram platform is down.
Like other online platforms (Facebook Messenger, Twitter, WhatsApp), Instagram sometimes faces outages and stops working.
You can ensure this by checking online sites like Downdetector and determining if the Instagram server is down or has any other issues.
If the Instagram server is down, you can wait until it is back and try sending direct messages to your followers.
5. Delete The Instagram Cache
It is crucial to ensure that not too many cache files are stored on your device.
Cache files are temporary or junk files stored on your device to smoothen the in-app experience. Sometimes, these Instagram app cache files may be overloaded or corrupted, leading to severe issues like Instagram broadcast channel not available, Instagram music limited, or not working.
If your files are corrupted or overloaded, then this might be why your direct messaging system shows some error messages on the Instagram app.
Hence, to clear Instagram cache files stored on your mobile device, below are the set of instructions;
Step 1 – Go to Settings
Step 2 – Scroll and search for “Apps”
Step 3 – Then choose “Manage apps”
Step 4 – Select Instagram
Step 5 – Click on “Storage”
Step 6 – Tap on “Clear data” or “Clear cache”
Wait for some time, then get back to your Instagram account. Try sending a direct message now!
6. Uninstall And Reinstall Instagram App
If clearing the cache files on your device does not help you recover from the “messages not delivered error,” try reinstalling your Instagram app.
How to uninstall an Instagram app?
Step 1 – Navigate to your Google Play Store
Step 2 – Click on the Profile picture icon
Step 3 – Select “Manage apps and device”
Step 4 – Click on “Updates available”
Step 5 – Select “Instagram”
Step 6 – Tap on “Uninstall”
Thats all. Your app will be uninstalled now.
How to reinstall an Instagram app?
Step 1 – Go to your Play Store
Step 2 – Type Instagram on the search bar
Step 3 – Select Instagram from the search results
Step 4 – Click on install
Your app will be installed in a few seconds.
7. Use Your Instagram Web Version.
If you send a text message to someone and encounter an “Instagram message can't be delivered” issue, you can try using a web version of Instagram for texting. We mean this because sometimes you will face a message delivery issue if there is an error in the Instagram app.
If this is your case, then here is a quick procedure on how to send a direct message on Instagram web version;
Step 1 – Open your favorite web browser on your desktop or laptop
Step 2 – Visit Instagram website
Step 3 – Log in with your credentials
Step 4 – Click on the Messenger icon at the left side pane on your insta feed page
Step 5 – Tap on the chat name on your Instagram inbox and start text messaging
Now, check whether you have resolved the Instagram messaging issue.
8. Check Whether Instagram Blocked You.
To prevent spamming, Instagram states that it has restricted the ability to get direct messages from unknown sources who do not follow community guidelines.
Likewise, Instagram warns Instagram user if they were to hit the limit of sending messages. So, suppose you are nearer the limit, you may be blocked from sending Instagram DM.
However, Instagram does not explicitly mention how long a user will be blocked from sending direct messages or DM requests.
But users can know this by checking Instagram notifications when they get a screen stating they have been blocked from sending messages. Or else you can contact Instagram support for further details.
At The Bottom Line
Nowadays, there are a few people facing issues with the Instagram messaging system. Although Instagram has not discussed these messaging issues publicly, people are lucky to fix the problem by themselves using the above-discussed methods.
The notification “Instagram, your message can't be delivered” is an error that prevents you from communicating with others on the platform. So what are you waiting for?
Try the above troubleshooting steps, fix Instagram issues, and send message to others.
