Instagram Business vs Creator account for Manychat
Both professional types connect to Manychat. Above 500k followers, Manychat says use Business. Here’s the Business vs Creator account difference for DMs, then the setup.
ManySetter teamUpdated 6 min read
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Chapter 01Compare
Business vs Creator: what changes for your DMs
Business and Creator are Instagram’s two professional account types. Instagram documents the same DM tools for both; the one Manychat difference is its 500k-follower rule.
Business vs Creator account for DMs and Manychat
| What changes | Business | Creator |
|---|---|---|
| Made for, per InstagramBusiness: Retailers, local businesses, brands, organizations, service providersCreator: Public figures, content producers, artists, influencers | Retailers, local businesses, brands, organizations, service providers | Public figures, content producers, artists, influencers |
| Inbox foldersBusiness: Primary, General and RequestsCreator: Primary, General and Requests | Primary, General and Requests | Primary, General and Requests |
| Saved replies (mobile app)Business: YesCreator: Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Connects to ManychatBusiness: Yes, at any follower countCreator: Yes, up to 500k followers | Yes, at any follower count | Yes, up to 500k followers |
| Facebook Page at setupBusiness: OptionalCreator: Optional | Optional | Optional |
| Private profileBusiness: Not allowedCreator: Not allowed | Not allowed | Not allowed |
| Meta’s Instagram APIsBusiness: SupportedCreator: Supported | Supported | Supported |
Pick Business
- Best for
- Retailers, local businesses, brands and service providers, per Instagram.
- Choose it when
- You run a brand or a service, or have more than 500k followers.
Pick Creator
- Best for
- Public figures, content producers, artists and influencers, per Instagram.
- Choose it when
- You publish under your own name and have up to 500k followers.
Not sure? Instagram lets you switch types anytime. More Instagram setups, by goal, are in our Instagram automation guide.
Chapter 02How to
How to switch to a professional account
Steps from Instagram Help (opens in a new tab) for the iPhone and Android apps, checked October 27, 2026:
Open your settings
Where to click: ProfileMore
Open your profile (bottom right), then tap the menu to reach Settings and activity.
Find Account type and tools
Where to click: For professionalsAccount type and tools
Below For professionals, tap Account type and tools, then Switch to professional account.
Pick a category
Choose what best describes you. The category doesn’t decide Business or Creator.
Choose Business or Creator
Where to click: Switch to professional accountNext
Tap Switch to professional account, choose Business or Creator, then tap Next.
Finish or skip the extras
Add contact details, or tap Don’t use my contact info. Linking a Facebook Page is optional: tap Skip.
A private account goes public
Professional accounts can’t be private. Switching makes yours public and accepts pending follow requests, per Instagram Help.
Already a Creator? Switch to Business
Open Account type
Where to click: Account type and toolsAccount type
From Settings and activity, tap Account type and tools, then Account type.
Switch account type
Where to click: Switch account typeSwitch
Choose Business, then tap Switch. The same path takes you back to Creator.
On a computer, start from More, then Settings, then Account type and tools on instagram.com. Going back to personal removes access to ads and disconnects any linked Facebook Page.
ManySetter
Account connected. Now book calls
ManySetter answers the Instagram DMs your Manychat flows bring in, qualifies each lead and books the calls that fit.
- Works with Business or Creator
- Keeps your Manychat flows
- Books calls on your fit rule
Build and test free · Works with your Manychat account
Chapter 03Connect
Connect Instagram to Manychat
In Manychat, a professional account connects one of three ways:
Via Meta
- Best for
- Follow to DM and Conversions API tracking.
- Limits
- Needs the account in a Meta Business Portfolio.
Via Instagram
- Best for
- A fast start, with no Meta Business account.
- Limits
- Manychat says some advanced features may be limited.
Via Meta Business Suite
- Best for
- Agencies, and ads features in Meta Ads Manager.
- Limits
- Needs a linked Facebook Page you control fully, and a Facebook sign-in.
Open the Instagram channel
Where to click: SettingsInstagramConnect
In your Manychat account, open Settings, pick Instagram, then click Connect.
Pick a method and your account
Choose one of the three methods, then follow its Meta or Instagram window.
Approve the permissions
Review what Manychat asks for, then click Save or Allow. Finish with Let’s Start.
Connecting a client’s account?
Manychat lists three ways: request access, have the client connect and invite you as Admin, or use Meta Business Suite (Manychat Help Center (opens in a new tab), checked October 27, 2026).
Chapter 04Check
Allow access to your messages
Manychat can only access your DMs when Instagram’s Allow access to messages is on. Check it:
Open message settings
Where to click: ProfileMenuMessages and story replies
From your profile, tap the menu, then Messages and story replies.
Find Connected tools
Where to click: Message requests
Instagram Help (opens in a new tab) puts it under Message requests. Manychat’s guide says Message controls: open the one you see.
Turn the toggle on
Where to click: Connected toolsAllow access to messages
Turn on Allow access to messages. Then click Refresh permissions from Manychat’s Help button.
Don’t see Connected tools?
Instagram shows it only for accounts linked to a Facebook Page, Meta Business Suite or a third-party app. Connect Manychat first.
Once a tool answers, your Instagram inbox changes a little, per Instagram’s third-party inbox article (opens in a new tab):
Requests move to General
Requests you answer through a tool land in General, not Primary.
Followed accounts stay in Primary
New chats from people you follow still show up there.
High volume limits the inbox
At high volume, some chats show only in your tool, not in Instagram.
Primary, General and Requests, explained in our Instagram business chat guide.
Chapter 05Next
Add the setter on top
Your account now talks to Manychat. ManySetter plugs into that same Manychat account, Business or Creator.
No automation yet? Build your first one with our comment-to-DM tutorial.
Chapter 06Fix
Instagram won’t connect to Manychat? Check these
Switch to Business or Creator first: Manychat can’t connect a personal account. Above 500k followers, Manychat says use Business.
Turn on Allow access to messages in Instagram, then click Refresh permissions from Manychat’s Help button.
The account is linked to another Manychat account. Log into that one, or ask its owner to transfer it.
Log out of the Instagram account shown in your browser, then connect again.
You need Admin with full control of the linked Facebook Page. Or use Connect Via Instagram, which needs no Meta Business account.
Check Manychat’s permissions in Facebook’s Business Integrations, refresh them in Manychat, then contact Manychat support.
Official sources: Can’t connect Instagram to Manychat (opens in a new tab) and Instagram automation troubleshooting (opens in a new tab).