Instagram Threads Communities Launch: 100+ Dedicated Spaces and Group Chat Transform Topic-Based Conversations

Instagram Threads has officially launched Communities feature introducing over 100 dedicated conversation spaces covering basketball, television, K-pop, books, and diverse interests for its 400+ million monthly active users. The community implementation differs significantly from X’s user-created model with Meta maintaining responsibility for community creation while allowing non-members to participate in discussions and community posts appearing across For You and Following feeds. According to comprehensive Threads updates tracking, October 2025 brought additional features including disappearing ghost posts functioning like Snapchat stories, group chat functionality supporting up to 50 users, and enhanced reply hiding capabilities giving original posters greater conversation control.

The Communities feature displays joined communities on user profiles with each space featuring custom Like emojis exclusive to members—basketball communities use basketball emoji while Book Threads users engage with stack-of-books emoji creating unique community identities. Advanced functionality includes profile search enabling users to find specific posts and mentions, automated hashtag hiding from Instagram cross-posts discouraging hashtag usage on platform, and expanded DM capabilities with image sharing, GIF support, and 15-minute message editing windows. Research from social media platform comparisons emphasizes that while X Communities function more like Reddit with user moderation, Threads’ Meta-curated approach with universal discussion access reflects platform’s focus on open conversation rather than exclusive member-only spaces.

Threads Communities platform features include:

• 100+ Meta-created communities covering diverse interests with dedicated spaces for basketball, television, K-pop, books, and specialized topics
• Custom Like emojis unique to each community enabling members to engage with community-specific reactions and identity expressions
• Non-member participation allowing anyone to join community discussions without membership restrictions while members access special privileges
• Profile badges for active community builders recognizing leadership and encouraging quality conversation facilitation within topic spaces
• Group chat functionality supporting up to 50 users with admin controls, message editing, and reporting capabilities for mini-communities

The launch positions Threads in direct competition with X’s Communities while maintaining platform’s characteristic open conversation approach where community posts appear across feeds rather than remaining siloed within exclusive member-only spaces typical of competing implementations.