Instagram has updated its live streaming eligibility rules, now requiring users to have at least 1,000 followers and a public account to go live. This policy change means that public accounts with fewer than 1,000 followers can no longer initiate live broadcasts. Meta confirmed this shift, explaining that the stricter criteria aim to improve the overall experience for creators hosting Live sessions and enhance the feature’s usage quality.
This new requirement currently applies explicitly to public accounts with 1,000+ followers, but Meta is in the process of rolling out similar limits to private accounts as well. As a result, private accounts with fewer followers will soon face comparable restrictions, likely ending the ability to livestream even to close friends, which was introduced as a feature last year.
The rationale Meta provided centers on ensuring a better experience for broadcasters and viewers, though the company hasn’t detailed why smaller accounts degrade this experience. Speculation suggests the move could help reduce misuse, improve stream quality by focusing on creators with established audiences, or reduce resource consumption by limiting livestreams to those with a substantial following.
This change aligns Instagram with other platforms that enforce minimum follower counts for live streaming, like TikTok’s 1,000-follower requirement or YouTube’s 50-follower rule.