Instagram Live comments: answer them with a DM, and what you can't do

Comments on an Instagram Live arrive while you are on camera, and the people who write them are the warmest audience you will get: they showed up in real time. For a creator or a business the question is what happens to those comments afterwards. Through Meta’s official API a tool can send one private DM to a person who commented on your Live, and only while the broadcast is running. It cannot post a public reply under a Live comment, and it cannot hide one. VivaDialog follows those rules, and this article shows where Live comments appear and how to answer them.

For the other places Instagram comments come from, see the Instagram comment automation guide.

What Meta allows on a Live

Meta’s documentation of Instagram private replies says that for Instagram Live, private replies can only be sent during the live broadcast. The same page sets the limits that apply to every comment: one message to the commenter, and follow-ups only after the person answers, within 24 hours of that answer.

A comment typed during a Live has no public reply path, so anything you want the person to see must go in the DM. And the window is the broadcast itself, which is much shorter than the seven days that apply to comments on a post.

How Live comments reach VivaDialog

When your Instagram account is connected, VivaDialog receives Live comments through Meta’s live_comments webhook and stores each one in the inbox with an origin of “live”. You do not turn anything on for that.

In the inbox, a Live comment carries a LIVE badge. The hint next to it reads “Comment on a live video. Meta allows only a DM reply.” If you open one, the Reply by DM option is the one that works. A public reply is refused with the message that Meta does not allow public replies to live comments.

If you answer by hand, keep the DM short and make it stand alone. The person can only continue the conversation after they reply to it. How to send an automatic DM when someone comments on Instagram has wording tips that apply here too.

Automate the DM during a Live

The reason to automate is speed. A person who comments “link?” at minute 12 of a Live needs the link while you are still talking, and you cannot type 200 DMs on camera.

1. Open Automations, click New rule on the Rules tab, and pick Live comment INFO, details by DM with Use this. It starts on a comment that contains info and sends a DM.
2. Under What starts this automation?, keep New comment.
3. Under Which messages?, change the words to what you will ask viewers to type, such as link, price, code. Capital letters do not matter.
4. Open Advanced settings. Under Only from, pick Comments on my live video. The hint says it runs on comments during an Instagram live.
5. Under How should it reply?, choose Don’t reply. The editor tells you why: live comments cannot get a public reply, so the DM in the next step does the work.
6. Under Also send a DM?, tick Send a private DM to the person who commented and write the DM. Replace any text in square brackets with your own link or offer.
7. Use Test it first, then click Save rule. Check that the rule is on before you go live.

Leave Wait before running? empty for a Live. VivaDialog can wait 1 to 60 minutes before it acts, which suits a post comment, but a private reply is only allowed while the broadcast runs, so a long wait can push the DM past the end of the stream.

Because Only from is set to your live video, the rule does not run on comments under your normal posts. For those, build a separate rule.

Say it on camera

The DM can come from an account the person does not follow, and then it lands in their message requests instead of their inbox. Tell viewers what to type and that the details arrive by DM. People who expect the message open it.

What you can’t do, and the workarounds

• No public reply. If you want a visible answer, say it aloud on the Live.
• No hiding. The Hide comment action skips Live comments. Handle abuse inside Instagram while you are live.
• No second push after the broadcast. Once the Live ends, you cannot send a private reply to a Live comment. Ask people to write to you by DM if you want to reach them later.
• Facebook Live is not covered. VivaDialog’s Live trigger is for Instagram Live.

Live comments also follow the limits every automation runs under: at most one automatic reply per comment, and your own account never triggers an automation. How automations work lists them all.

Frequently asked questions

Can I reply publicly to comments on my Instagram Live?

Not through a tool built on Meta’s official API. Meta does not accept public replies to Live comments through it. Reply by DM instead, or answer on camera.

Can I send a DM to everyone who commented on my Live?

You can send one private DM per commenter, during the broadcast. Every comment is its own chance, so an automation with a keyword reaches the people who asked for something. Sending to everyone who commented, with no keyword, is allowed by the same rule, but it messages people who did not ask, and Instagram says it limits messages people may not want. Is Instagram comment automation safe? covers that.

Do Live comments count toward my plan?

An automatic DM from a rule counts like any automated reply. Conversations answered by automations count toward the monthly conversation quota, and replies you type yourself do not. See what counts as a conversation.

Can I hide a comment on a Live?

No. VivaDialog’s Hide comment action skips Live comments.

Does it work on Facebook Live?

The Live trigger is for Instagram. Comments on your Facebook Page’s posts are handled as normal Page comments.

VivaDialog is in early access right now, and participants get the Growth plan free for 30 days. The pricing page has the details.