ManyChat Tutorial: Build Your First Instagram Bot

To build your first Instagram chatbot in Manychat, create a Manychat account, connect a Professional (Business or Creator) Instagram account, then build one simple automation: a trigger (a keyword someone sends you), a message that delivers what they asked for, and a button or link. Start with a single keyword-and-freebie flow, test it from a second account, and only then add more steps. This guide walks you through that process in the order you will actually do it.

What you need before you start

Gather these three things first and the setup takes far less time:

A Professional Instagram account. Manychat’s own getting-started guide says you need a Business or Creator account to connect. A personal profile will not work, so switch it in Instagram’s settings first.
A Manychat account. You can start on the free plan just by opening an account.
One simple offer. A PDF, a short guide, a discount code or a link to a course. Pick one. Your first bot should do one job well.

If you do not have an offer yet, our guide to lead magnets that build your email list will help you choose something worth giving away.

Step 1: Connect your Instagram account to Manychat

Connecting Instagram is what lets Manychat automate your DM and comment replies and manage conversations in one place. The basic path looks like this:

Create your Manychat account (or log in if you already have one).
Open Settings and choose Instagram from the Channels menu.
Click Connect and grant the permissions Manychat asks for, so it can access your Instagram media and chats.

Manychat’s guide notes there are a few ways to connect depending on whether you are brand new, already have a Manychat profile, or already have an account. It also says agencies, or anyone running into problems, can connect through Meta Business Suite. Manychat walks you through the connection on screen, and its current help pages are the place to check if the flow has changed.

One setting worth changing early

One Manychat tutorial recommends opening Settings and setting Live Chat Behavior to “Conversation should be opened explicitly,” so your automations handle every conversation until your team steps in. It is a small tweak, but worth considering before you go live.

Step 2: Understand the builder before you build

Go to Automations → My Automations → + New Automation. You can start from scratch or pick a ready-made template. Templates are a quick way to see how an automation is structured; building from scratch teaches you the foundations. For your first one, either works. If you take a template, read every block before you publish it.

You will also choose between two editors:

Editor	Best for	What it looks like
Basic Builder	Quick, linear automations with few steps	A simple step-by-step message editor
Flow Builder	Multi-step automations with branching	A visual drag-and-drop canvas showing the whole journey

You can switch between the two views at any time, so start simple and move to Flow Builder when you need it.

The four blocks you will use most

Message block: sends text, images, buttons or links.
Action block: applies tags, updates fields or triggers other automations.
Condition block: sends people down different paths based on their behavior.
Smart Delay: pauses the automation for minutes, hours or days before the next step.

Step 3: Build a keyword-to-DM automation

This is the classic first chatbot: someone messages a keyword and gets your freebie automatically. Say you promote free courses and ask followers to DM the word “Freebie.” Here is how to set it up:

In the Automation tab, create a new automation and choose a template or Start from Scratch.
Click the first widget and add a New Trigger. Select Instagram Message as the trigger type.
Enter the keywords that should start the flow. Add a few variations, such as “Free” and “Freebie,” so people who phrase it slightly differently still get a reply.
Add a Message block with a friendly line and your link or a button pointing to the resource.
Optionally add an Action block to tag the contact, so you know who asked for what.
Publish the automation.

A welcome-message automation is another good first project: greet new Instagram contacts, tag them and share your first call to action.

Step 4: Add a comment trigger

Many creators pair the DM keyword with a comment trigger so a post or reel can say, “Comment GUIDE and I will send it to you.” One walkthrough builds an automation with two triggers: a comment containing the keyword on any post or reel, and a DM containing the same keyword. In that example, the DM offers the freebie, collects a first name and email using Data Collection, then sends the guide with a button.

The exact screens for setting up a comment trigger can change, so follow Manychat’s current on-screen options and help pages. The idea is the same as Step 3: pick the trigger, enter your keyword, and add a message that reaches the person in their DMs. Using the same keyword in your post and your trigger keeps things simple for the people commenting.

Step 5: Test before you tell anyone

Do this before you announce anything:

Use a second Instagram account to send your keyword and, if you set one up, comment on a post.
Check that the reply arrives, the button opens the right link, and the tag is applied.
Try a typo or a different capitalization to see how forgiving your keywords are.
Read the message as a stranger would. Does it say clearly what they are getting?

Manychat pricing: what is free and what is not

Prices and limits change, so confirm everything on Manychat’s current pricing page before you subscribe. Here is what one 2026 tutorial reported:

Free plan: up to 25 active contacts per month on any 2 channels. Good for testing, but it does not include Data Collection or integrations.
Essential plan (from $17/month): unlimited automations, Data Collection and 250 contacts on any 2 channels.
Pro plan (from $39/month): 2,500 contacts, Manychat AI, WhatsApp and the direct integrations, including Mailchimp.

The practical takeaway: you can build and test a keyword-to-DM bot for free, but collecting emails inside the chat and sending them to an email tool needs a paid plan. Once your list starts growing, our email marketing first 30 days guide shows what to do with it.

Why bother? The case for DM automation

One creator who uses Manychat cites a Manychat partner program statistic that link-in-bio clicks average around 1%, while links sent in DMs get about 46%. That is a vendor-sourced figure, so treat it as a reason to test rather than a promise of results. The underlying logic is sound, though: a link that arrives in a conversation someone just started is easier to act on than one hidden in a bio. Automation also means you are not copy-pasting the same link all day. If you are mapping out how this fits into a bigger plan, see how to build a sales funnel that converts.

Next steps once your first bot works

Send broadcasts. As your subscriber list grows, use the Broadcasting tab to write a message and send it to your audience. You can choose between subscription, promotional and follow-up broadcast types, set targeting conditions, and send now or schedule for later.
Add Smart Delays. Follow up a day later with a related resource.
Add conditions. Send different replies to different people.
Learn the full process. Our Build Custom Chatbots Without Coding with ManyChat course goes step by step through building a chatbot, from account setup to broadcasting.

Frequently asked questions

How do I use Manychat for beginners?

Connect a Professional Instagram account, then build one small automation: a keyword trigger, a message with your link, and a tag. Use Basic Builder if you want something simple, or Flow Builder if you like seeing the whole journey on a canvas. Test it from another account before you promote it.

How do I set up Manychat on Instagram?

Create a Manychat account, go to Settings, choose Instagram under Channels, click Connect and grant the permissions requested. Your Instagram account must be a Business or Creator account. If you hit problems, Manychat suggests connecting through Meta Business Suite.

Is Manychat free to use?

There is a free plan, reported at up to 25 active contacts per month on any 2 channels, which is enough to build and test your first automation. Features like Data Collection and direct integrations sit on paid plans. Check Manychat’s official pricing page for current prices and limits.

How do I create a comment-to-DM automation in Manychat?

Build an automation that starts when someone comments your keyword on a post or reel, then sends them a DM with your link or button. One tutorial pairs this with a second trigger for people who DM the same keyword directly, so the flow works either way. Because the exact screens can change, follow Manychat’s current on-screen options and help pages.

How do I connect a Facebook Page to Manychat?

The sources behind this guide cover connecting through your Instagram account in Settings, and mention Meta Business Suite as an alternative for agencies or when you run into issues. They do not detail a Facebook Page step, so check Manychat’s current help pages for the latest instructions.

Is Manychat hard to learn?

The basics are approachable. The four main blocks (message, action, condition and smart delay) cover most first automations, and templates show you how finished flows are put together. The harder part is planning a good offer and a clear message, not the clicking.

Sources

Want to go beyond a single flow? The Build Custom Chatbots Without Coding with ManyChat course takes you from setup to broadcasting in short, practical lessons, and you can try it with the 7-day free trial. If you are still working out where chatbots fit in your wider plan, start with our roadmap for learning digital marketing online.