Instagram Adds Web Search

Instagram Adds Web Search

Instagram has long been a mobile-centric service, allowing on-the-go users to snap photos of their vacations, brunches, sunsets, and more. But the Facebook-owned service has slowly branched out to the Web, and this week it added the option to search from the desktop.

The photo-sharing service announced via Twitter the new ability to search for people, places, and hashtags online.

The same function is already available to mobile users. Desktop users previously had to use third-party sites like Websta, OnInstagram, Gramfeed, IconoSquare, and FindGram.

Instagram first rolled out Web profiles in 2012, but at the time you could only see your own feed. The following year, it added Instagram feeds to the Web.

That same year, Instagram started supporting Web embeds, allowing people to embed Instagram snapshots on their websites. This, according to TechCrunch, has been particularly successful, resulting in more than 5 billion impressions.

The Web expansion comes about a month after the social network upgraded its iOS and Android apps with a redesigned Explore tab, which now shows a list of trending places and tags, as well as thumbnail photos from around the globe.

All Instagrammers also got the chance to search by location; it's now easier to find your next vacation spot or just scope out your new neighborhood. Also search across all usernames, real names, hashtags, and locations at once within the new "Top" section.

Instagram has been rolling out upgrades throughout the year, including new Vine-like video looping, color tools, and clickable emoji hashtags (except the eggplant). The company also introduced interactive ads, and later expanded its offerings to include "action-oriented" and targeted advertising.