How to access Instagram's secret retro icons for its 10th birthday

It’s Instagram’s 10th birthday today. And it has a gift for users.

In celebration of a decade of life, the app is letting users switch to retro and colorful app icons. This comes on the heels of iOS 14’s aesthetic home screen trend, and I, for one, am not complaining.

Instagram tweeted out a cryptic emoji message to its followers yesterday. It hinted that something exciting was on the way, and told users how to get the hidden feature.

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It actually takes relatively few steps to get a cute new icon. All you have to do is make sure you have the latest version of the Instagram app, and head over to your account Settings. There, pull down on that screen (a good pull, it puts up some resistance!) until the emoji pop up, and then you should be taken to the icon options menu — as shown in the video below.

There are retro icons for the original Instagram users who want a taste of nostalgia, or colors like Gold, Sunrise, and Pride Rainbow that can match your overall home screen look. Just make your selection, and it should change on your home screen automatically. If it doesn't change right away, try restarting your phone, and that should do the trick.

This birthday gift makes me wish all apps had icon changing options, since it sure beats the tedious Shortcuts method the teens have been using. Alas, all good things must come to an end, and Instagram is only letting you change your icon until the end of the month.