Instagram vs Hik
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Connect with friends and discover new content through photos, videos, and short-form entertainment. Share your daily moments and life's highlights, or dive into personalized feeds based on your interests.
- Short-form video creation and discovery (Reels)
- Ephemeral content sharing (Stories & Notes)
- Private group chats (Close Friends)
- Personalized content feeds (Explore)
- Customizable posts with templates and filters
- Discover brands and shop products
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Little moments lead to big friendships. Share yours on Instagram. — From Meta Connect with friends, find other fans, and see what people around you are up to and into. Explore your interests and post what's going on, from your daily moments to life's highlights. Share what you’re up to and into: - Turn your life into a movie and discover short, entertaining videos on Instagram with Reels. - Keep up with friends on the fly with Stories and Notes that disappear after 24 hours. - Start group chats and share unfiltered moments with your Close Friends. - Share memories from recent events or trips in Feed. - Customize your posts with exclusive templates, music, stickers and filters. Dive into your interests. - Watch videos from your favorite creators and discover new content that’s personalized to your interests. - Get inspired by photos and videos from new accounts in Explore. - Discover brands and small businesses, and shop products that are relevant to your personal style. Some Instagram features may not be available in your country or region. Terms and Policies: https://help.instagram.com/581066165581870 Consumer Health Privacy Policy: https://privacycenter.instagram.com/policies/health Learn how we're working to help keep our communities safe across Meta technologies at the Instagram Safety Center: https://about.instagram.com/safety
Hik
Access live video streams from your security cameras and DVRs remotely. Review recorded footage and receive instant alerts for motion detection events. Connect to your devices globally with ease.
- Real-time monitoring
- Video playback
- Motion detection alarm notification
- Remote camera access
- Device management
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The Hik-connect app is designed to work with Hikvision series DVRs, NVRs and IP cameras which support Cloud P2P function. It allows you to live view your cameras remotely. All you need to do is creating an account and adding device into the account, then you can enjoy the real-time video from cameras on a global scale. It also allows you to play back recorded video to search every milestone of your life. When motion detection alarm of your device triggered, you can get an instant message notification from Hik-connect app. Key Features： 1. Real-time monitoring 2. Video playback 3. Motion detection alarm notification
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Hik at none against Instagram's 12. Hik also leads on ads (none vs shown). Instagram's advantage is ratings volume (30M vs 172K) and chart position (#2 vs #92). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Instagram sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month. Hik asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Instagram against 4.7 for Hik. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Instagram has 30M ratings behind it against 172K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 31% of Instagram's written reviews are positive against 25% of Hik's.
Instagram ships an update weekly, Hik every 8 days. Both last shipped on October 29, 2026.
| Parameter | Hik | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (30M ratings) | 4.7 (172K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 31.5% of reviews — better | 24.8% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 30M — better | 172K |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 8 days |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #2 — better | #92 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.3 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 641 MB | 599 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Instagram, Inc. | Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co., Ltd. |
Customer experience
Hik
User reviews
What we love
- 💕 Excellent way to connect with friends and family
- 🌍 Ability to discover new content and accounts
- 🎨 Great platform for artists and creators to showcase their work
- 🤝 Helps small businesses promote their products
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent bugs and glitches
- 🤖 Overly aggressive AI moderation leading to unfair account suspensions
- 🔒 Poor customer support and lack of transparency around account issues
- 📊 Declining organic reach and push towards paid advertising
- 🔀 Confusing layout changes that make the app less user-friendly
Hik
From 172K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fast and responsive
- 🔒 Secure and reliable
- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 🤖 Excellent camera quality
- 💡 Useful notification features
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes
- 🔍 Difficult to navigate and find cameras
- 🕰️ Slow playback and video loading
- 🔌 Unstable network connectivity
- 🤯 Confusing and unintuitive updates
Bugs and requests
Reported bugs
4 issues- Unable to post or view videos due to app crashing
- Saved posts and drafts randomly disappearing
- Notifications not working or showing outdated information
- Inability to log in or switch between multiple accounts
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to edit/delete individual photos from a multi-photo post
- Option to view posts in chronological order instead of algorithmic feed
- Better tools for small businesses to manage and grow their presence
- Improved accessibility features for users with disabilities
Hik
Reported bugs
5 issues- Cameras randomly show as offline
- Playback function often fails to load
- Notifications disappear from the app
- App fails to open after recent updates
- Camera settings reset after app updates
Requested features
5 requests- Add support for portrait mode on tablets
- Improve playback controls with fast forward/rewind
- Allow custom naming and organization of cameras
- Provide better notification customization options
- Integrate with smart home automation platforms
In-app purchases
- Meta Verified Standard9 variants$14.991 Month
- Instagram Badge$0.99
- Instagram Badge$4.99
Hik
No in-app purchases
