Meta launches Facebook Plus and Instagram Plus subscriptions at $3.99/month

Meta announced that the Facebook Plus and Instagram Plus plans are now available to users on both iOS and Android. The two subscriptions cost $3.99 per month each and sit alongside the previously announced WhatsApp Plus offering. Below is a practical look at what the new tiers bring, how they affect developers, and what steps are needed to support them in your mobile codebase.

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Platform update

• Pricing: $3.99 / month per app.
• Availability: Rolling global rollout; the option appears inside the native Facebook and Instagram apps once the feature flag is enabled for a region.
• Supported SDKs:
  • iOS: Requires Meta’s Facebook SDK 17.2 or later and Instagram Graph API v15. Both SDKs now expose a SubscriptionManager class that handles purchase flow and entitlement checks.
  • Android: Requires Facebook Android SDK 17.2 and Instagram Android SDK 15.0. The new MetaSubscriptionClient integrates with Google Play Billing (v7) and the Amazon Appstore.
• OS requirements: iOS 15.0+ / Android 8.0+ (API 26) because the billing libraries depend on newer background‑task APIs.

What the features mean for developers

1. New analytics endpoints

Both subscriptions unlock aggregate story‑rewatch counts and viewer‑search APIs. These are delivered through the Graph API under the /insights edge. For iOS, the SDK now includes a StoryInsightsFetcher that returns a JSON payload with rewatch_total and viewer_list fields. Android developers will use MetaStoryInsights in a similar fashion.

Implementation tip: Cache the insights data locally for 24 hours to avoid hitting rate limits. The SDKs enforce a default limit of 500 calls per hour per app token.

2. Unlimited audience lists

The “Close Friends” list is now superseded by unlimited custom audience lists for Stories. The SDK exposes a CustomAudienceManager that lets you create, edit, and delete lists via the /audiences endpoint. This change means you can build richer sharing experiences directly into your app, for example a “VIP Story” button that automatically selects a premium audience.

3. Story extensions and spotlighting

Subscribers can extend a Story beyond the standard 24‑hour window and spotlight a Story once per week. The API call is a simple POST to /stories/{id}/extend with a duration parameter (max 72 hours). For spotlighting, use /stories/{id}/spotlight which returns a token you can display in a custom UI.

4. Custom UI assets

Premium users receive custom app icons, customizable fonts for bios, and Super Heart animated reactions. The SDK now provides a PremiumAssetsProvider that downloads the appropriate icon packs and font files from Meta’s CDN. Make sure to bundle the fallback assets for non‑subscribers to avoid UI glitches.

5. Billing integration

Both platforms rely on the native billing services:

• iOS: StoreKit 2 (available from iOS 15). The SDK wraps the Product.Subscription flow and handles receipt validation on Meta’s backend.
• Android: Google Play Billing Library v7. The MetaSubscriptionClient abstracts the purchase, renewal, and cancellation callbacks.

Caution: Subscriptions are non‑transferable across platforms. A user who purchases on iOS must manage the subscription through the App Store; the same applies to Android users via Google Play.

Migration checklist for existing apps

1. Update SDKs – bump to Facebook SDK 17.2 / Instagram SDK 15.0 or later.
2. Add entitlement checks – call SubscriptionManager.isUserSubscribed(appId) at app launch to toggle premium UI elements.
3. Integrate new API calls – replace any custom story‑rewatch logic with the official /insights endpoints.
4. Test billing flows – use Apple’s sandbox environment and Google Play’s internal test tracks to verify purchase, renewal, and cancellation handling.
5. Handle regional rollout – feature‑flag the subscription UI until the server returns available: true for the user’s locale.
6. Update privacy policy – disclose the collection of usage analytics tied to the premium features.

What to watch next

Meta has said “more fun features” will be added over time. Expect future SDK releases to expose additional premium endpoints, such as priority support tickets and early access to new AR filters. Keeping your dependencies up‑to‑date will be essential to surface those benefits to your users without friction.

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For a full list of the current premium features, see the official Meta subscription documentation.