Tired of Instagram? Try Bereal, a New, “Authentic” Social Media App

Discover how the app works—and why it is the Internet’s latest obsession

As much as we love Instagram, we can’t deny that most of us are obsessed with curating the perfect grid and aesthetic. Keeping that up takes a lot of work, so when we heard about the new social media app Bereal, we knew we needed to find out more.

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Branding itself as the "anti-Instagram", the alternative social media site encourages users to go back to the days when we would share snaps of our lives in real-time—without excessive editing and filtering.

“Bereal won’t make you famous,” the app says. “If you want to be an influencer you can stay on Tiktok and Instagram.”

So how does it work? Users on Bereal join the app and are notified at a random time every day to post a picture. All users are notified at the same time. When you receive the notification, you have exactly two minutes to take a photo. The app has an inbuilt system which allows your camera to take both a selfie and a frontal photo simultaneously.

If you don’t post the picture, the app will not allow you to see your friends’ feeds either. If you post late or try to retake your shot, the app will tell your friends and all posts are up until you get a new notification the next day.

On random days, the app will also come up with unique challenges for users to participate in. It will also allow you to comment and chat with your friends.

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In other words, you no longer get to carefully curate and craft the perfect shot, you don’t get to edit your photos and you certainly don’t get to pick what you’re posting. Everything happens in real-time and you simply have to hope you don’t get a notification while you’re on the toilet or getting dressed.

Beyond this gamified experience which many may find fun and exciting, the app also challenges users to be authentic and to return to the simplicity of sharing what is happening in real-time without the fuss. Essentially, it does away with the illusion of a perfect life.

Although it is trending now, Bereal is not a new app. It was founded in 2020 but only started to gain traction recently when more people started downloading it. It is certainly in line with society’s newfound desire to turn social media into a more authentic space, especially as cases of mental illness soar as a result of lockdowns and the pandemic.

We have no idea if this app will actually become as popular as Instagram and TikTok are, but we are all for trying this new space out and possibly reversing some of the harmful damage social media has inflicted on us as a society.

You can download the app here.

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