Social Inbox
Messenger and Instagram messaging rules
Why a message cannot be sent after 24 hours or 7 days, why one private reply per comment is allowed, and what the inbox shows when Meta blocks a reply.
Meta limits when businesses can message people on Messenger and Instagram. SocialApp checks these rules before sending, so you see the reason instead of a failed message.
The messaging window
- Within 24 hours of the person's last message, you can reply freely.
- From 24 hours to 7 days, a person on your team can still reply. Automations cannot.
- After 7 days, the conversation is closed until the person writes again. The reply box shows "Response time limit exceeded".
Whether replies after 24 hours are possible also depends on Meta granting the app the permission for human replies.
Private replies to comments
You can answer a public comment with one private message, within 7 days of the comment. A second one is refused with "A private message has already been sent". Automations follow the same rule.
Mentions
Meta does not let apps reply to mentions of your account in other people's posts on Facebook and Instagram. The inbox shows them so you know, and says that replying is not possible.
Permissions and reconnects
If a Page loses a permission or its connection, the inbox shows a card with the reason and a reconnect button. Messages arriving while an account is not authorised are not collected; after reconnecting, the regular check fetches what the network still provides.
Limits from the network
When a network limits requests from an account, the inbox says so; try again later.