DM templates · Instagram
Instagram DM templates for the messages you send most
These are the 12 DMs most Instagram accounts end up writing again and again: a first reply, a price answer, a nudge, a thank-you, a polite no and more. Copy one, change the parts in curly brackets and send it. Each fits Instagram's messaging rules, which decide when an account may write and what it can send.
Updated 6 October 2026 · 12 templates
12 messages to copy
Tap a card to copy the message. Swap anything in braces, like {name}, for your own words before you send it.
Automatic first reply
Hi, thanks for your message! Quick heads-up: this reply is automatic. A real person reads every DM, and you'll hear from us here by {time}.
Saying it's automatic is more than good manners: Meta's policy requires automated chats to say so. Leave out {name}, because an automatic reply sends the same words to everyone.
First DM after a keyword comment
Hey, thanks for commenting on the post! I've set this DM to go out automatically so you don't have to wait. Want the details? Just reply YES.
Until they answer, this is the only message Instagram lets you send them, so it ends on a question. Their reply opens 24 hours for the link and anything else.
The link, once they reply
Here you go: {link} Have a look, and if anything's unclear, ask me here. Happy to help.
Send it straight after their reply, while they're still in the app. One link per message is easier to tap than three in a row.
Answer to “how much?”
Thanks for asking! All our prices are on this page: {link}. Tell me what you need and I'll point you to the option that fits best.
The list answers the question and the offer to help keeps the chat going. It also works as an automatic reply to anyone who messages the word PRICE.
Booking a time
Happy to book you in! Every free slot is here: {link}. If none of them suit you, tell me which day works and I'll see what I can do.
If you take bookings by hand instead, ask for the day first. Each extra back-and-forth is another chance for them to drift off.
Nudge when they go quiet
Hi {name}, just checking the link came through okay. Any questions before you decide? No pressure either way.
Send it once, within 24 hours of their last message. If there's still no answer, leave it there.
Thank-you after an order
Thank you for your order, {name}! We're getting it ready now. If anything about it isn't right when it arrives, reply here and we'll fix it.
Send it while the chat is still open, within a day of their last message, and keep any sales pitch out of it.
When something went wrong
I'm really sorry about this. Could you send me your order number and a photo of the problem? I'll look into it today and come back to you here.
Ask for everything you need in one message, so they don't have to answer three separate questions.
Away or after hours
Thanks for writing! This is an automatic reply: we're away right now and back at {time}. Leave your question here and it'll be the first one we answer.
Give a real time, not “soon”. Anything automated has to go out within 24 hours of their last message, so don't promise an automatic follow-up after a long weekend.
Reply to a collaboration request
Thanks for thinking of me, I'd love to hear more. Could you share the brand, the idea, the timeline and the budget? I'll come back to you with my rates by {time}.
Asking for the budget up front saves both sides a week of polite messages.
A polite no
Thank you for reaching out, I really appreciate it. It's not the right fit for me at the moment, so I'll pass this time, but I wish you all the best with it.
Kinder than silence, and it closes the thread without inviting a debate.
Thanks for a Story mention
You tagged us in your Story, thank you, that made our day! Would you mind if we shared it on our account too?
Ask before you repost. Their answer in the DM is a clear record that they said yes.
Set it up in DMFast
Comment INFO, get the details by DM
Someone comments on your post
INFOPublic reply under their comment
Just sent you a DM with the details 📩First DM (plain text)
Hi! This is an automatic DM because you commented INFO. I've got the full details from the post ready for you. Want them? Reply YES and I'll send them over.Yes pleaseEverything from the postSee the detailsInstagram gives you one message per comment until the person answers, so this one is short and ends on an easy yes. Their reply opens a 24-hour window, and the card with the link goes out inside it.
Pick a post
Connect your Instagram account, then choose the post or Reel it runs on, or every post.
Set the word: INFO
Anyone who comments INFO gets a reply under their comment and a DM. Capitals don't matter.
Paste the message
Add the public reply and the first DM shown here. Once they answer, your link follows as a card.
Free plan, no card. Instagram professional accounts and Facebook Pages.
Rules to know
- A comment can get one private reply, and it has to be sent within 7 days of the comment. That covers comments under posts, Reels, live broadcasts and ads.
- Comments left during an Instagram Live can only get that private reply while the broadcast is still running.
- After the private reply, you can only write again once they answer, and then within 24 hours of their answer.
- In any chat, automated messages have to go out within 24 hours of the person's last message, and inside that window they may include promotions. Meta's human agent tag gives a real person up to 7 days to reply by hand.
- Automated chats must make clear that people are talking to an automated service.
- Only professional accounts (Business or Creator) can use Meta's messaging API, and it has no tool for DMing all your followers at once.
Sources
What makes a DM template work
Most DMs are read on a phone, in a few seconds, by someone doing something else at the same time. The templates above share four habits that suit that reader.
- Answer first. If they asked the price, the price or the price list comes before any pleasantries.
- Ask one question at a time. A message with three questions usually gets an answer to one of them.
- Say who is writing. Anything that runs automatically should say so near the start; a person can sign off with their first name.
- Give one next step: a link, a yes-or-no question or the time you'll be back. Not all three.
Tip: Instagram's private reply includes a link to the post the person commented on, so your first DM doesn't need to explain which post you mean.
Which of these can run on their own
Messages that are the same for everyone can go out automatically. The rest need a person who knows the order, the budget or the problem. The timings below apply to anything sent through Meta's API, which is how automation tools send.
| Template | Automatic? | Timing |
|---|---|---|
| Automatic first reply | Yes, for any new DM | Goes out as soon as they write |
| First DM after a keyword comment | Yes, from a comment keyword | One per comment, within 7 days of it |
| The link, once they reply | Yes, after their answer | Within 24 hours of that answer |
| Answer to “how much?” | Yes, from a DM keyword such as PRICE | As soon as they ask |
| Away or after hours | Yes | As soon as they write |
| Thanks for a Story mention | Yes, or by hand | Within 24 hours of the mention |
| Booking, nudge and thank-you | Either way | Within 24 hours of their last message |
| Support, collaboration and polite no | Best by hand | Within 24 hours, or up to 7 days for a person using the human agent tag |
Mistakes that get DMs ignored
- Sending “Hi {name}” from an automation. If the tool doesn't fill in names, people get the curly brackets exactly as you typed them.
- Opening with a paragraph about your brand. They wanted the link or the price, so give them that first.
- Promising “check your DMs” under a comment when nothing arrives. Test the trigger from a second account before the post goes live.
- Following up three times. One nudge inside the 24 hours helps; more feels like pressure.
- Fake urgency. “Only 2 left” when there are 200 left costs more trust than it earns in sales.
- Pasting the same link into every message. If they already have it, answer the question they actually asked.
What to measure
Two numbers show whether a template works. The first is how many people answer your first message. If a keyword post gets 200 comments but only a handful of replies, the question in that DM is too vague or too long. The second is how many of the people who answer go on to tap the link, which a tracked link can show for each message.
Also watch the gap between the automatic reply and the first human one. If your away message says 10am and people hear back at 4pm, change the message or the rota.
Questions people ask
Can I send one DM to all my followers?
No. Meta's messaging API only lets a business answer people who messaged it or commented, so there's no official way to DM every follower at once. Tools that promise mass DMs work outside the official API.
Why does the first DM after a comment ask a question instead of sending the link?
Until the person answers, that first message is the only one Instagram lets you send them. A short question gets the answer, and the answer opens 24 hours in which you can send the link, buttons and anything else. In DMFast the first message is plain text and the link card follows their reply.
How long after a DM can a tool still reply?
Messages sent through Meta's API, which automation tools use, must go out within 24 hours of the person's last message. With Meta's human agent tag, a real person can answer by hand for up to 7 days in tools that support it.
What if a post gets thousands of keyword comments?
Instagram allows at most 750 private replies to comments per hour for each account. DMFast stays under 700 and queues the rest; because a comment can be answered for 7 days, the queued replies still go out.
Can I use these templates on a Facebook Page?
Most of them, yes: Messenger follows the same 24-hour rule. Skip the Story mention one, since DMFast's Story triggers only work on Instagram. For a Page's greeting and away message, Meta Business Suite has its own tools.
Related templates
More DM templates
Send these messages automatically
DMFast replies under the comment, sends the first DM in seconds and your link once they answer, day and night. Free plan, no card.
Start free