Topic posts can now be shared directly to your Instagram Story without leaving the app

Threads already has over 400 million monthly users, but Meta wants to push that number even higher. With the launch of a new Threads feature this week, the company is making it easier for Threads users to share posts on the app to their Instagram Stories — a move that could leverage Instagram’s larger user base to attract more people to Meta’s X competitor.

On Thursday, the company announced a new feature that lets you share a Threads post to your Instagram Story without having to leave the Threads app, and instead preview how the post will look in your Story directly within the Threads app.

The app previously allowed you to share anyone’s posts to your Instagram Story similar to how you reshare someone’s Instagram post to your Story. They also already offer tools for sharing posts to your Instagram feed or direct messages.

The text-first, Twitter-like app Threads first launched in July 2023 and leveraged its ties with Instagram to quickly grow its initial user base. To sign up, users had to authenticate with their Instagram credentials, which allowed Threads to fill in account details, such as username, bio, and photo, as well as verification status and followers.

With one click, users can instantly follow accounts they’ve already followed on Instagram — and those who aren’t on Threads will receive a notification that someone has added them.

In the months and years following its launch, Meta relied heavily on its other, larger social platforms to continue growing Threads, including by showcasing popular Threads posts on Facebook and adding a similar series of Threads posts for Instagram users. The company also made it easier for users to cross-post from Instagram and Facebook to Threads, which also helped boost adoption.

These moves have paid off. Data from market intelligence provider Sameweb last month indicated that Threads is now seeing more daily usage than Elon Musk’s X on mobile devices. (However,