Instagram introduces customisable app icons for teen accounts

Instagram is bringing a touch of personalization to its younger users with a new feature that lets teens customize the app’s icon on their home screen.

Exclusively available for Teen Accounts, the update allows users to choose from six unique aesthetics — including fire, floral, chrome, cosmic, slime, and more. Each design has been created in collaboration with illustrator Carlos Oliveras Colom (@doncarrrlos) and Instagram’s in-house design team.

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The move marks one of Instagram’s more playful updates aimed at helping teens express themselves creatively while maintaining a sense of control over their experience. The new feature builds on Instagram’s ongoing efforts to make the platform more youth-centric — focusing on personalization, privacy, and positive digital habits.

“I’m honored that I got trusted to bring some fun to life,” said Carlos Oliveras Colom. “If I was a teen, I’d change that icon every day, either to express what I’m feeling or the vibe I’m setting for the day.”

To try the new feature, users with Teen Accounts can simply tap the Instagram logo at the top of their home screen to unlock the icons and select their preferred theme.

Instagram says the customization aims to help teens “focus on what matters most — their friends, the content they care about, and having control over their experience.”

The update comes as part of a broader push by Meta to give younger audiences more creative tools and autonomy across its apps, while still maintaining guardrails around safety and well-being.