Comment & DM Automation for Instagram & TikTok

How Instagram comment-to-DM works, and Meta's rules

Comment-to-DM is built on a Meta feature called private replies. When someone comments on your post or Reel, Meta notifies ChattyFlow within seconds. If the comment matches one of your automations, ChattyFlow sends the commenter a private message that is tied to their comment.

Meta sets strict limits on these messages, and ChattyFlow applies them in code rather than leaving them to you:

• One private reply per comment. A business can send the commenter a single message about each comment, not a series.
• Within 7 days. That private reply must be sent within 7 days of the comment. After that, Meta refuses it.
• 24 hours after they answer. Once the person replies, you can keep the conversation going for 24 hours from their last message, and each new message from them restarts the clock.
• Human agents. Meta's messaging policy has a separate human agent tag that lets a person on your team, not an automation, answer for up to 7 days.

Keyword triggers or any comment

A keyword trigger fires only when your word appears as a whole word. Matching ignores upper and lower case and works in any script, so "INFO" matches "info please" but not "information", and an Arabic keyword such as "سعر" is not set off by a longer word that merely contains it. You can list several keywords in one automation, separated by commas ("price, prix, سعر"), and an emoji such as 🔥 works as a keyword too.

"Any comment" turns the automation into a catch-all for a single post: every comment on it triggers the automation, whatever the text. It needs a specific post and works with a single branch. Use it for giveaways and launches where you want to answer everyone, and keep keywords for posts that also get ordinary comments you would rather not answer by DM.

• A trigger word can belong to only one automation at a time; ChattyFlow warns you when a word is already in use.
• Every couple of days, ChattyFlow reads the comments on your automations and flags words that many people type but that match none of your keywords, usually a misspelling of your trigger. Add the suggestion in one tap.

Rotating public replies

Alongside the DM, you can post a public reply under the comment, such as "Sent! Check your DMs". Write several variants, one per line. ChattyFlow picks one at random and avoids posting the same line twice in a row, so your comment section doesn't fill up with identical replies.

Each comment gets at most one public reply, and each person gets one public reply per automation on a post, even if they comment ten times. If the DM cannot go out right away, for example because the account has reached a sending limit, the public reply is held back with it and both go out later, so nobody is told to check a DM that hasn't arrived.

Follow-to-Unlock (Instagram only)

Follow-to-Unlock asks for a follow before sending the link, code or file. When someone comments, ChattyFlow asks Instagram whether that person already follows you. Followers get the content straight away. Everyone else receives a message asking them to follow, with a button; once they have followed and tapped it, ChattyFlow checks again and sends the content, or repeats the request if they still don't follow.

The follow request is the one private reply Meta allows for that comment. The button tap counts as the person answering, which opens the 24-hour window for the content that follows. Follow-to-Unlock is available on Instagram only, and it is included in the free plan.

Say it plainly in your caption, for example "Follow us and comment GUIDE to get it", so people know what they are agreeing to.

Examples by business type

The same pattern fits most businesses: one clear word in the caption, one useful thing in the DM.

What about TikTok?

TikTok works differently, and the limits come from TikTok, not from ChattyFlow. Public replies to comments work in every country. A comment can trigger a DM only for accounts in Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia. DM automation of any kind is not available in the United States, the EEA, Switzerland or the UK.

On TikTok, ChattyFlow picks up new comments with a check that runs every minute, and public replies wait a short, human-like 10 to 30 seconds, so a TikTok reply lands within a few minutes. The TikTok DM automation page has the full country table.

Troubleshooting: a comment got no DM

• The account isn't a professional account. Instagram's API works only with Business and Creator accounts; switch in Instagram's settings, then reconnect.
• The word didn't match. Keywords match whole words, so "INFOS" doesn't trigger "INFO". In Arabic, add the forms people actually type: "السعر" and "سعر" are different words to a whole-word match. Or accept the suggestion ChattyFlow shows on the automation card.
• The comment is more than 7 days old. Meta no longer allows a private reply to it.
• The person already got it. ChattyFlow sends one DM per person per automation on a post, and Meta allows one private reply per comment.
• Sending was paused. ChattyFlow paces messages and keeps each account under hourly and daily limits. If Meta pushes back, for example with a rate limit or a temporary block on links, sends are parked and replayed once the account has cooled down.
• The connection expired. If Instagram invalidates the login, reconnect the account in ChattyFlow.
• The person can't receive your messages, for example because they blocked your account. Then nothing can be sent to them.

Reply in seconds

Meta notifies ChattyFlow the moment a comment lands, so the Instagram DM goes out within seconds, 24/7. TikTok replies land within a few minutes.

Public + private

Add an optional public reply under the comment, rotated between your variants. On TikTok, public replies work in every country; comment-to-DM only in Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia.

Precise targeting

Whole-word matching in Arabic, French and English prevents wrong triggers. Several keywords per automation, or any comment on one post.

Is this allowed by Instagram and TikTok?

Yes. On Instagram, ChattyFlow uses Meta's official Instagram API and its private replies feature, which exists so a business can answer a comment in DM. On TikTok it uses the TikTok API for Business and the TikTok Business Messaging API, within TikTok's country limits. No scraping, no fake accounts.

Does TikTok support comment-to-DM automation?

Only in Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia, the three countries where TikTok has opened its comment-to-DM bridge. TikTok DM automation is not available at all in the United States, the EEA, Switzerland or the UK. In every country ChattyFlow can reply publicly to TikTok comments, and outside those blocked countries it can auto-reply to people who message you first.

What happens outside Meta's messaging window?

Meta allows one private reply per comment, within 7 days of the comment. After the person answers, you can keep messaging for 24 hours from their last message. If Meta refuses a DM, for example because the comment is too old, ChattyFlow posts a short public reply under the comment inviting the person to message you.

How many automations can I run?

As many as you need: the number of automations isn't capped on any plan, the free plan included. Paid plans add the AI Lead Engine, the AI Messenger, Booking and a monthly lead allowance. Meta's own rate limits still apply, and ChattyFlow paces sends to stay under them.

Can I send buttons and templates, not just text?

Yes, on Instagram: text, quick-reply buttons and link or action buttons (Meta's generic template, up to three buttons), plus multi-step flows with delays and questions in the DM Flow Builder and Conditional Logic. If Meta rejects a button message, ChattyFlow resends it as plain text with the link.

Does it work for Reels?

Yes. Comments on Reels trigger automations the same way as comments on feed posts.