Instagram Post, Story, and Reels Sizes for Creators

Key takeaways

• Export feed photos 1080 pixels wide at 3:4 (1080 x 1440). Instagram now keeps any ratio from 1.91:1 to 3:4, and 3:4 is the only one that fills both the feed and the profile grid without a crop.

• The profile grid shows a 3:4 tile. Square and 4:5 posts lose a strip from each side on your grid, so keep faces, products, and text in the center.

• Stories and Reels are 1080 x 1920 (9:16). Reels can be recorded up to 20 minutes long, but Instagram won't recommend Reels over 3 minutes to people who don't follow you.

• Carousels take up to 20 photos and videos, all in one orientation, and videos inside a carousel don't count as Reels.

• Turn on "Upload at highest quality." It's under Menu > Media quality, and it uploads Reels at the best quality Instagram allows, though uploads take longer.

Instagram sizes at a glance

These are the sizes for organic posts. Instagram's own Help Center sets the photo ratio range, carousel limit, and Reels length (read on November 8, 2026). Where Instagram doesn't publish a size, the figure is the one social media guides agree on, and the notes below say so. For paid placements, see our Meta ad specs.

Feed photos

Instagram stores feed photos at up to 1080 pixels wide. Its image resolution page says a photo between 320 and 1080 pixels wide keeps its original resolution as long as the ratio is between 1.91:1 and 3:4. That works out to 1080 x 566 at the widest and 1080 x 1440 at the tallest. A wider file is sized down to 1080, and a narrower one is enlarged to 320.

Anything outside that range won't keep its shape. A 9:16 photo posted to the feed is trimmed to 3:4, and a panorama is trimmed to 1.91:1.

3:4 is the newest option. Instagram's head, Adam Mosseri, announced support for it in May 2025, since it's the ratio most phone cameras shoot by default. Before that, the tallest feed photo was 4:5. Square and 4:5 still work, but 3:4 gives you the most screen space in the feed.

Two export habits are worth breaking. Files wider than 1080 pixels don't look sharper, because Instagram sizes them down anyway. And Meta's developer specs say images in other color profiles are converted to sRGB, so export in sRGB to keep colors from shifting.

The 3:4 profile grid

In January 2025, Instagram switched the profile grid from square tiles to tall rectangles. Instagram didn't publish the new ratio, but social media guides agree it's 3:4, and a 1080 x 1440 post fills the tile exactly.

The grid crops everything else to fit. A 4:5 post loses about 34 pixels from each side, a square post loses about 135 pixels from each side, and a landscape post shows only its middle. Taller formats, such as a 9:16 Reel cover, lose their top and bottom instead.

Tapping a post still opens it at its full ratio. The crop only affects how your profile looks, but that's often the first thing a new visitor sees.

• Keep titles, faces, and products in the center 3:4 area of every post.

• Check the first slide of every carousel and every Reel cover, since those are what the grid shows.

• Grid "puzzles" and three-post banners designed for square tiles no longer line up.

Carousels

A carousel holds up to 20 photos and videos in one post. That's double the old limit of 10, which Instagram raised in August 2024.

Every slide shares one orientation. Instagram's help page says the orientation you choose (square, portrait, or landscape) applies to all of them, so a 3:4 first slide followed by square slides means the square ones get cropped or padded. Export the whole set at one ratio and you won't get surprises.

A few other rules apply.

• You can add one caption for the post or a separate caption for each slide.

• Video slides in a carousel don't count as Reels and won't appear in the Reels tab.

• After you post, you can reorder or remove slides and edit captions, but you can't add new ones.

Stories

Stories are 1080 x 1920 (9:16). A video of up to 60 seconds shows as one clip, and longer videos are split into several clips. Stories disappear after 24 hours unless you add them to a Highlight.

Instagram doesn't publish a safe zone for organic Stories. Social media guides agree on keeping the top 250 pixels clear for your profile name and progress bar, and they split on the bottom, recommending 250 to 340 pixels for the reply bar. If you're also running the Story as an ad, Meta's ad safe zone is larger at the bottom (35% of the frame), and our Meta ad specs guide covers it.

Reels

Export Reels at 1080 x 1920 (9:16). Instagram accepts any ratio from 1.91:1 to 9:16, and its Reels size page sets a minimum of 30 fps and 720 pixels. Don't export at 24 fps.

You can record Reels up to 20 minutes long in the app. Instagram raised the limit from 90 seconds to 3 minutes in January 2025, then to 20 minutes later that year. The catch is reach. Instagram says Reels over 3 minutes won't be recommended to new audiences, so a long Reel mostly reaches people who already follow you.

Instagram publishes encoding specs only for posting through its API, and those are the closest thing to an official target: MP4 or MOV, H.264 or HEVC, 23 to 60 fps, up to 25 Mbps, and up to 300 MB. Instagram's Edits app team recommends exporting at 2K, HDR, and 60 fps, and says Instagram will favor playback up to those settings.

Before you upload, open Menu > Media quality and turn on "Upload at highest quality." Uploads take longer, but Reels go up at the best quality Instagram allows.

Reel covers

Make the cover 1080 x 1920 so it's the same size as the video. Instagram's help page gives a smaller recommendation of 420 x 654 (a 1:1.55 ratio), but a full-size cover matches the video frame, so one export covers both.

The cover's shown three ways. The Reels tab shows the full 9:16 frame, your profile grid shows a 3:4 crop, and social media guides report that the home feed shows a 4:5 crop. Put the title in the middle of the frame, not near the top or bottom edge.

Video in the feed

There's no separate feed video format. Since July 2022, new video posts shorter than 15 minutes are shared as Reels, so the Reels specs apply. The only exception is video inside a carousel.

Profile photos and Highlight covers

Instagram doesn't publish a profile photo size. Social media guides agree it's stored at 320 x 320 and shown as a circle, so upload a square image of at least that size with the face or logo centered.

Highlight covers have no published size either. They show as a small circle, so a simple icon or a centered crop of a Story frame reads best.

AI labels on Instagram

Instagram asks creators to label realistic AI content when they post. Its AI labels page says you must label photorealistic video or realistic-sounding audio that was made or changed with AI, such as a Reel with a realistic AI voiceover, using the "Add AI label" toggle. Labeling AI images isn't required, but Instagram adds an "AI content" label on its own when it detects AI signals, including from third-party tools. Content that was only edited with AI shows the details in the post's menu instead.

Instagram has also started adding a "Captured with a camera" label to photos and videos it can verify came straight from a camera. It says the label doesn't affect reach.

Common mistakes

1. Exporting feed photos at 4:5 out of habit. 3:4 at 1080 x 1440 now fills the feed and the grid tile.

2. Putting text near the sides of square and 4:5 posts. The 3:4 grid trims the sides.

3. Exporting photos wider than 1080 pixels. Instagram sizes them down.

4. Exporting Reels at 24 fps. Instagram's minimum is 30.

5. Placing captions and calls to action at the very bottom of Stories and Reels, where the reply bar and buttons cover them.

6. Mixing orientations in a carousel. The post uses one ratio for every slide.

7. Posting long Reels to grow reach. Reels over 3 minutes aren't recommended to new audiences.

Frequently asked questions

What size is an Instagram post in 2026?

1080 pixels wide, at any ratio from 1.91:1 (1080 x 566) to 3:4 (1080 x 1440). 1080 x 1440 is the tallest size Instagram keeps, and it fills the 3:4 profile grid tile. Square (1080 x 1080) and 4:5 (1080 x 1350) still work.

Why does Instagram crop my photos?

There are two reasons. Photos outside the 1.91:1 to 3:4 range are cropped to fit it, and the profile grid shows every post as a 3:4 tile, so square, 4:5, and landscape posts lose their sides there.

How long can an Instagram Reel be?

Up to 20 minutes recorded in the app. Instagram says Reels over 3 minutes won't be recommended to new audiences, so keep a Reel under 3 minutes if you want to reach people who don't follow you yet.

How many photos can you post in an Instagram carousel?

Up to 20 photos and videos in one post, all in the same orientation.

What is the safe zone for Instagram Stories and Reels?

Instagram doesn't publish one for organic posts. On a 1080 x 1920 frame, keep the top 250 pixels and the bottom 250 to 340 pixels clear of text and logos. For ads, Meta's safe zone keeps the top 14%, bottom 35%, and 6% on each side clear.

How do I upload to Instagram without losing quality?

Export photos 1080 pixels wide in sRGB and Reels at 1080 x 1920 or higher at 30 or 60 fps. Then turn on "Upload at highest quality" under Menu > Media quality before you post.