Instagram’s messaging feature allows users to send private messages to each other. However, sometimes these messages may appear greyed out or dimmed. There are a few potential reasons why your Instagram messages are showing up as grey:
You’ve muted the conversation
One of the most common reasons your messages are grey is because you’ve muted the conversation. Muting a conversation on Instagram stops you from getting notifications from that thread, and it also greys out the messages.
To mute an Instagram conversation on mobile:
- Open the conversation you want to mute
- Tap the name of the person you’re messaging at the top
- Tap “Mute”
To unmute the conversation, follow the same steps and tap “Unmute” instead.
The other person muted the conversation
If the person you’re messaging has muted your conversation, your messages will appear grey on their end. You won’t see any difference on your side though.
There’s no way to tell for sure if the other person has muted your chat. The grey messages are the only indication.
Your message is pending
Sometimes if there are issues connecting to the Instagram server, your messages may show up grey temporarily while the send is pending. Usually it will go through normally after a few minutes once the connection is restored.
You don’t have internet connection
If you have a poor internet connection or no connection at all, your Instagram messages will appear grey until your phone reconnects to the internet. Once you’re back online, they should send normally.
The account you’re messaging is disabled or deleted
If the account you’re trying to message is disabled or deleted, your messages will never actually send. They will remain greyed out forever.
Unfortunately there’s no way to recover a conversation with a disabled or deleted account. The only option is to start a new chat with someone else.
You’ve been blocked
If the recipient blocked your account, your messages to them will show up as grey instead of sending. This is Instagram’s way of notifying you that you can’t contact that person anymore.
You won’t get any kind of alert that you’ve been blocked. The grey messages are the only way to know your account has been blocked by the recipient.
You’ve been restricted
In some cases, Instagram may restrict your account if you violate their terms of service. This means you can’t perform certain actions, like messaging other users.
If your account has been restricted, your messages will remain grey and unsent until the restriction is lifted.
How to Fix Grey Instagram Messages
Here are some tips to troubleshoot grey conversations on Instagram:
- Check your internet connection and try sending again
- Close the Instagram app and reopen it
- Update the Instagram app in your phone’s app store
- Turn your phone off and back on again
- Log out of Instagram and log back in
- Uninstall and reinstall the Instagram app
If none of those help, the issue is likely that you’ve been muted, blocked or restricted. Unfortunately there’s nothing you can do on your end in those cases.
Prevent Your Messages From Appearing Grey
To avoid having your own messages show up grey for other people, here are some tips:
- Don’t mute conversations unless you really need to
- Avoid sending too many messages in a short time
- Don’t spam others or send promotional content
- Don’t violate Instagram’s terms to avoid restrictions
Sending meaningful messages and having genuine conversations is the best way to make sure your messages get through and don’t end up greyed out.
Conclusion
Grey Instagram messages usually indicate some type of issue with the delivery or receipt of your messages. The most common problems are muting, blocking, restrictions, and connection problems.
To resolve greyed out conversations, first troubleshoot your internet connection. Then consider whether you may have been muted, blocked or restricted. These settings prevent your messages from going through and show up as grey instead.
With some effort, you may be able to revive some conversations from grey message purgatory. But in other cases, like being blocked, there’s unfortunately no way to recover the chat.
To avoid having your own messages appear grey, be selective about who you message, don’t mute conversations unnecessarily, and avoid behaviors that would get you restricted. Maintaining genuine conversations is the best approach for keeping your Instagram messages out of the grey zone.
