| Post | Rules |
|---|---|
| Photo | Between 4:5 (portrait) and 1.91:1 (wide). A photo outside that shape is blocked: crop it first. |
| Carousel | 2 to 10 photos. Same shape rule for each photo. |
| Reel (a single video) | Best at 9:16. Instagram wants 3 seconds to 15 minutes; Postalu warns outside that. Choose a cover frame or upload a cover image. |
| Story | One photo or video. Video up to 60 seconds (longer is blocked). 9:16 recommended. No caption or comments. Visible for 24 hours. |
1. Instagram extras panel
- Alt text (single photos): up to 1,000 characters, for screen readers.
- Reel cover (videos): pick a frame or upload an image. See Video thumbnails, Reel covers and alt text.
2. Good to know
- Caption up to 2,200 characters; first comment up to 2,200, posted right after the post.
- Stories have no permanent web address, so History shows them without a View on Instagram link, and they cannot take comments.
- Instagram needs a moment to process a video; the progress screen says so. A processing failure reads Instagram failed to process the uploaded video. Check video format/dimensions.
- Hashtags go in the caption.
Read next
- Connect Instagram Requirements, steps and limits for connecting an Instagram professional account.
- Video thumbnails, Reel covers and photo alt text Choose a YouTube thumbnail, an Instagram Reel cover frame or image, and add alt text to Instagram photos.
- Photo and video requirements, and why a file is blocked or warned about Accepted formats, the 500 MB limit, the length and shape checks, and every message you can see.
