Instagram Teams up With Giphy for GIF Comments, Expands Reels Editing Tools

Instagram now lets you reply to Reels and posts using animated GIFs, and a few new editing options are headed to Reels in the near future.

Both Reels and replies on Instagram are getting an upgrade, with GIF comments (through GIPHY) and three new clip editing features. So now you can express yourself with something more complex than an emoji and have more control over how you present your Reels.

Commenting with a GIF is pretty much as it sounds: You post a GIF instead of text or an emoji, with Instagram pulling from GIPHY's extensive library. This means Instagram users can at least respond with silly animal animations and moving memes, just like other social media platforms. Though the GIPHY integration does mean that you'll have to search for the GIF that best fits your intention rather than being able to upload your own.

But if sharing video Reels is more your thing, soon you'll have three more ways to hone your posts. The new Split function will let you divide your video into multiple clips (which can then be edited separately). Instagram is also adding Speed controls, so you can make your clips go faster or slower depending on your preferences.

For those who like to really dig into editing, Replace will allow you to swap a current clip out for a new one without affecting other clips in the Reel. Meaning if you decide to replace a clip in the middle with something else, you won't have to worry about timing, placement, effects, and so on being thrown off.

GIF reactions are out now globally via the Instagram mobile app, though the feature doesn't appear to be functioning in the web browser version yet. Additional editing options for Reels are expected to roll out globally within "the next few weeks," but a more precise date hasn't been given.