Instagram Is Adding The Feature We've Waited For

One of the first questions every new Instagram user asks, once they've selfie-d and filtered everything in sight, is can you link accounts on Instagram. Until recently, the answer has been rather mixed — technically, you can have as many accounts as you want, but you have to log out and back in to switch between them. It's not the most inconvenient thing in the world, of course; that title is reserved for getting your period unexpectedly. While wearing white pants. Onstage in a musical.

But I digress. Until recently, users with multiple accounts were stuck memorizing all their different usernames and passwords, something we can all agree is The Worst. According to Tech Crunch, however, Instagram has finally heard our pleas and bequeathed its users with the greatest holiday gift of the year: The ability to toggle between accounts without having to log out, so switching between your personal account and your cat's Instagram has never been easier. Earlier this week, the app rolled out beta testing for Android users, who immediately took to the Internet to report their joyful tidings. Although Instagram reportedly declined to comment on the news, Tech Crunch and the tech blog Android Police have independently taken their own screenshots of the new option, so the reports appear legitimate.

So how do you switch between accounts? According to Tech Crunch, just scroll down to the bottom of your Settings page and press the "Add Account" option, below "Clear Search History." Once you authenticate the linked account, an option to switch accounts appears on the top left screen of your profile page. Again, this won't work unless you're one of the select few Android beta testers, but hopefully the feature will be available for everyone soon. Preferably, like, tomorrow, if we're being honest.

Like Snapchat and other successful social media apps, Instagram changes with its ever-mutable user base. Linked accounts are just the latest in a series of changes the app has made this year, including improvements to direct messages, a variety of new editing tools, and the ability to hashtag emojis (#bless). The most notable, however, was Instagram's decision to move away from the square format and allow users to post landscape and portrait photos in addition to the iconic square frame — which, like switching between accounts, was largely prompted by user requests. Basically, Instagram is like the cool art teacher who actually listens to their students' feedback, and I am so here for it.

Now can we hurry up and roll the new feature out to iPhones already? My cat's Instagram has been feeling abandoned lately because I'm too lazy to switch over from my personal account, and what my cat wants, my cat gets.

Images: Pedro Ribelro Simoes/Flickr, Giphy (2)