BeReal — A Social Media App For The Real You

BeReal, which stands for Be Real, is a pretty new kid on the social media block, and it’s quickly gaining huge popularity among Gen Z.

Think about it: what would happen if you could be your real self online and be respected for it? This is the philosophy that powers this new social media app BeReal — which, according to our research, has seen downloads grow by at least 320% this year.

This app is aimed at social media users interested in sharing authentic moments from their day without using any filters. The concept is simple: take an honest, unfiltered picture of yourself once a day and then post it online for your friends to see. BeReal seeks to make social media fit into our life, not the other way around.

Although this app was started by two French Entrepreneurs Alexis Barreyat and Kévin Perreau in 2020, it started to pick up in 2022, and 65% of its lifetime downloads happened in the first quarter of 2022.

BeReal is all about the idea that it’s better to be real than to be “fake.” Why? Because when we’re real and encourage others to share their true selves with us, we engage with them on a deeper level. We feel closer, more connected.

You deserve these moments of authenticity. The chance to hear real stories from real people—to hear what makes them laugh, what makes them angry. To hear about their hopes and dreams, their fears and anxieties. We want you to be able to tell your story in the same unvarnished way—and we know that’s why people are flocking to BeReal in droves.

Contents show

What is BeReal app, and how does it work?

Social media is supposed to be fun, but it seems to cause more stress than anything else. Whether it’s Instagram or Tiktok, instead of showing our authentic selves, we’re all trying to be someone else. We spend hours editing photos and use tons of filters to get the most likes, comments, and shares on these apps. And as a result, there’s a lot of pressure to live up to fictional versions of ourselves.

With BeReal, you get to share the real side of yourself on a regular basis with people who matter most to you. Instead of hiding behind a filtered profile or being a fictional version of yourself, with this app, there’s no right or wrong way to express yourself.

So, here’s how it works. You get a notification at a random time each day, giving you two minutes to take a photo of whatever you’re doing at that moment. Your friends will also get notified that you are about to post within 2 minutes. The post will be a two-image collage that is taken simultaneously from the front and back cameras on your phone, and there are no filters on the app that you can use.

Your photos don’t have to be anything spectacular. They must be taken from wherever you are — at the grocery store, on a walk, or lying in bed watching TV on your phone. Overall, it’s an anti-social network that doesn’t require you to choose photos from your albums or scour through your boring past, so you can focus on the present instead.

If you miss the time window for posting, you can still post later in the day. However, if you post late, a tiny note appears at the top right of your post saying that it was posted late. You’ll need to post your own Bereal for the day before you can see other people’s daily posts. Also, you can comment and react to photos, but you can’t leave likes.

User Tutorial: How to use BeReal

Here is a step-by-step guide on how to get started with the BeReal app and use it:

Download the app: BeReal app is available for both android as well as ios. So, you can go to the apple store or google play and download the app. The app is rated 12+, and parental guidance is recommended.
Registering on the app: To register, you need to put in your full name and your birth date. It then asks for phone number verification via OTP. After doing that, you need to create a username.
Add contacts and find friends: The app will then show a popup asking to access your contacts so that it can find your friends. You are also allowed to share your photos with complete strangers too. Before you post, you can set your preference to share that post with friends or publicly for everyone to see.
You are all set to share your BeReals: After doing the above steps, you are now ready to share your photos. Each day at a random time, you’ll receive a notification that it is time to share your BeReal for the day, and you’ll have to capture and share what you are doing at that moment within 2 min time window after the notification. The moment you take a photo from the back camera, the selfie is automatically taken too. So, you’ll have to share a two-image collage.
You can also delete your BeReal: After you’ve posted the photo, you can click on the three dots icon “⋮” in the corner and it’ll give you an option to delete it. The app doesn’t encourage that, though, and will ask some questions as to why you are deleting it.
Discover Public Content: You can access the public content under the discovery tab. There are no likes and dislikes buttons on the app, but you can engage with other users’ content with “RealMojis,” which are basically variations of your selfies. Also, you can only see other users’ content only after you’ve posted your BeReal for the day.

Reasons why BeReal is getting so popular

We get it—you’re still probably thinking, “Why would I want to use an app like this when I could just post a picture on Instagram?”

Well, we can think of 7 good reasons:

So often, the social media game is all about comparison. With BeReal, the playing field is somewhat leveled as everyone gets the same two minutes every day to post unfiltered moments from their daily lives. BeReal is a platform for people all over the world to post small, beautiful bits of their lives. It’s intended to give you a snapshot into the life of someone who is like you — not a celebrity, but just another person trying to make a name for themselves.
BeReal is social media that doesn’t feel like work. In fact, it doesn’t feel like anything at all. You don’t have to worry about the perfect angle for your photo, the perfect filter, the perfect emoji to use with your caption. You just post and go on with your life.
Since BeReal users can post only once a day, it’s less addictive than other social media apps. It’s also much more convenient than other social media apps. Because BeReal is based on a 2-minute window, it’s super easy to make time for—you can post a BeReal while you’re waiting in line at the coffee shop, or sitting in your car while you wait to pick up your kids. You don’t have to schedule a photoshoot and hire a photographer (or be one yourself). You can just snap a photo with your phone and post it!
BeReal does not have any filters like Instagram. It has no likes or dislikes mechanism. And there are no fake followers here, unlike on Twitter or Facebook.
People are excited about alternative social media apps and BeReal is the first and only app of its kind. It’s already collected $36mn in the initial 3 rounds of funding.
It might help bring back some humanity to social media. When other users react to your photo, they’re engaging with you in a way that feels more meaningful than just clicking a heart or like button because they think it’s expected of them as a friend or follower. We’re getting back to responding to things because we mean it, not because it’s what we’re supposed to do when we see something in our feed.
Expressing yourself is good for your mental health. Social media can be isolating if all it does is remind us of how happy everyone else seems to be. But giving yourself an outlet for vulnerability and honesty can actually help counteract that feeling of isolation. You can feel good about being yourself on BeReal. No one is expecting anything polished or professional from you on this app.

Reasons why BeReal could be just a fad

The BeReal app is about to shake up your Instagram game. We know that your Insta feed is usually filled with glossy, edited photos of your friends’ best moments—but what about the real life stuff? You know, the weird little moments that happen every day and make life so much sweeter?

That’s where BeReal comes in. On this app, you post a picture—called a “BeReal”—within a random 2-minute window each day from wherever you are, doing whatever you’re doing. It’s like an Instagram Story but without all the editing tools. So it can be a pic of you in your pajamas trying to fix the sink or it can be one of you at your company holiday party surrounded by co-workers—it doesn’t matter because that’s what makes it fun!

It’s an interesting concept, but could it actually work? Could this be the next big thing in social media? Or will we forget about it by the time Instagram adds its thousandth filter?

Let’s talk about five reasons why BeReal could just be another fad:

Most people find the real world pretty boring. Human beings are always looking for something that can keep them entertained, interested, and excited for more. And therefore, there is a chance that BeReal can just fade away in front of the glamorous world of Instagram.
There are no filters. Unlike Instagram or Snapchat, BeReal offers no filters to make your photos look more professional or stylized. If you want people to think your life is cool enough without any kind of artifice, then fine—but what if you’re posting from your bedroom at 2am because you can’t sleep? Do you really want everyone to see how messy it is?
From the outset, you’ll notice there’s no clear indication of how this app will make its money. The only way they would be able to make the most money would be to go down the Instagram or Snapchat route, which is against their values.
It’s not about quality. BeReal is about authenticity, not about making every picture look perfect. So there are a lot of blurry pictures of selfies that people post while they’re driving and pictures of people’s feet or the tops of their heads.
Waiting for your 2-minute window to open in order to post something might feel like waiting for an egg timer to go off—and that could get tedious pretty fast.
It’s less about that perfect shot and more about capturing the moment—and some people might not be ready for that kind of authenticity just yet.
Apps like Instagram and Tiktok will probably steal its key feature anyway if it keeps enjoying explosive growth.

Who owns BeReal?

BeReal was founded by 2 French entrepreneurs Alexis Barreyat and Kévin Perreau in Jan 2020. Alexis Barreyat is the CEO of BeReal.

FAQ

Who can see my BeReal?

Your BeReal is private by default and only visible by your contacts. However, it is possible to make your BeReal public for all to see in the Discovery timeline if you’d like. For that, you just need to select the discovery timeline option before you send your BeReal. If you change your mind after posting in the discovery timeline and want to make it private, you can do that with ease. Just click on the three dots icon, and it’ll give you an option for that.

Can I Screenshot BeReal?

Yes, you can take a screenshot of anyone’s BeReal. This means that anyone should refrain from sending or posting any personal or confidential material.

Can you delete a BeReal post?

If for any reason you don’t want to keep your BeReal, don’t worry – it’s easy to delete it. Click the three dots on the top right of your BeReal post; there, you’ll be given the option to delete the post entirely. But note that you can only delete one BeReal once a day.

Is BeReal always at the same time?

No, BeReal will notify you once a day at a random time that you have two minutes to post what you are doing at that moment.

Conclusion

And that’s BeReal!

Thanks for reading along! We hope you enjoy the overview of this app and find it a useful way to connect with your friends and family. Every day, there are more people using BeReal, and every day, there are more stories to tell. If you’re interested in trying it out, don’t forget to visit their website and download the app for iPhone or Android today!

And if you’re a social media user who is looking for an authentic, reliable way to share the stories of your life with those around you, we think this is the app for you. We look forward to seeing what kind of story you’ll create next!

Remember: it’s not about being polished and perfect. It’s about being real.

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