Facebook Stories Vs. Snapchat Stories

Tuesday morning, Facebook started rolling out its latest update, Stories, which bears a striking resemblance to the stories features of Instagram and Snapchat. As Facebook owns Instagram, no one is batting an eye there; but how similar is it to Snapchat? What are the differences between Facebook Stories and Snapchat Stories?

The two operate roughly the same, with the most noticeable difference being that with Facebook Stories, you swipe up and down instead of left and right to access and use the filters. In the coming months, Facebook also plans on allowing people to make their own frames and effects, allowing for an even more personalized experience. However, all in all, Facebook and Snapchat Stories seem to work in basically the same way, and the update is essentially a repeat of the feature on Instagram.

Have no fears about the Facebook you know and love going away, however, because it most definitely isn't turning into Snapchat. Stories is simply one element of Facebook introduced in a social media market that is increasingly favoring pictures and videos over wordy posts that you have to read. Don't worry — you can still post lengthy statuses pondering the meaning of life and fight with people about politics.

Instagram and Snapchat draw the younger crowds of social media users, while Facebook has largely lost their attention. But with this new feature, more people have an excuse to share more on FB, welcoming in a breed of users who typically reserves pictures of their coffee and dogs for Insta and Snapchat.

Facebook already found (even more) massive success when they introduced Stories to Instagram. In just five short months, Instagram Stories skyrocketed to 150 million daily users. Could the same feature brings similar progress to Facebook? It's very likely. And while Snapchat may have pioneered it, Facebook is still one of the most visited websites in the world. Users won't necessarily care that it's a bit of a copycat.