What size is an Instagram post in 2026?
Short answer
Instagram keeps a photo 1080 pixels wide when its shape is between 1.91:1 and 3:4: from 1080 × 566 landscape to 1080 × 1440 portrait, with 1080 × 1080 square and 1080 × 1350 (4:5) in between. Anything outside that range is cropped. Since January 2025 your profile grid shows each post as a 3:4 rectangle, so 3:4 shows whole there. Reels are vertical 9:16.
Photo posts
From the Instagram Help Center, read on 1 October 2026: Instagram uploads a photo at up to 1080 pixels wide. Between 320 and 1080 pixels wide, it keeps the photo’s resolution as long as the shape is between 1.91:1 and 3:4; a narrower photo is enlarged to 320, a wider one reduced to 1080, and any other shape is cropped.
| Shape | Pixels | On the profile grid |
|---|---|---|
| 3:4 portrait | 1080 × 1440 | Shows whole |
| 4:5 portrait | 1080 × 1350 | A thin strip hidden on each side |
| 1:1 square | 1080 × 1080 | An eighth hidden on each side |
| 1.91:1 landscape | 1080 × 566 | Mostly hidden: the grid shows the middle |
The grid has shown posts as 3:4 rectangles since January 2025. For a post that looks right both in the feed and on your profile, 3:4 is the safe choice when you post from the app.
Carousels
A carousel holds up to 20 photos and videos when you post from the app, and every item takes the orientation you choose for the post: square, portrait or landscape (Instagram Help). Make every slide the same size, 1080 × 1350 or 1080 × 1440 for portrait, so nothing is cropped differently. For a panorama across slides, use the free carousel splitter; for a picture across several posts on your grid, the grid maker.
Reels
A Reel can be anything from 1.91:1 to 9:16, at least 720 pixels and 30 frames per second; vertical 9:16, as 1080 × 1920, fills the screen. Instagram recommends a cover of 420 × 654 pixels, which can’t be changed after upload (Instagram Help). Reels can run up to 20 minutes, and those over 3 minutes aren’t recommended to new audiences (Instagram Help).
Posting through an app or a scheduler
Instagram’s API, which scheduling tools use, is narrower than the app: it takes photos from 4:5 to 1.91:1, not 3:4, and up to 10 items in a carousel (Meta for Developers). Use 1080 × 1350 for anything you schedule.
Mellow Hub publishes to Instagram through that API, as feed posts, carousels of up to 10 items, Reels and Stories. It checks the item count and the caption of up to 2,200 characters before anything is sent; Instagram judges the image itself when it fetches it.
Hub is paid: plans start at $19 a month (Solo), after a 7-day trial with a card on file that costs nothing if you cancel before it ends, and a monthly plan's first month is 20% off. Publishing is unlimited on every plan, under a fair-use ceiling that stops automated floods (900 publications a month on Solo). One publication is one post on one account, so a post sent to five networks counts as five. There are no automatic overage charges.
Questions people also ask
What is the best size for an Instagram post in 2026?
1080 × 1440 (3:4) if you post from the Instagram app: it is the tallest shape Instagram keeps without cropping, and your profile grid shows it whole. If you schedule through an app, use 1080 × 1350 (4:5), the tallest Instagram’s API accepts.
Is 1080 × 1350 still the right portrait size?
It still works everywhere, in the app and through the API. The app now also keeps 1080 × 1440, which fills more of the screen and matches the 3:4 profile grid.
Why does Instagram crop my photo on the grid?
Because the profile grid shows every post as a 3:4 rectangle cut from its middle. A square or 4:5 post loses a strip on each side there, though it shows whole when opened.
Can carousel slides have different sizes?
No. Every item in a carousel takes the orientation chosen for the post, so a slide of another shape is cropped to match. Make every slide the same size.
What size is an Instagram Story?
Stories are vertical and fill the screen at 9:16, so 1080 × 1920 is the size to make them. Instagram’s help gives no pixel figure for organic Stories; 1080 × 1920 is the size in Meta’s ad specifications.
Sources
- Instagram Help Center: Image resolution of photos you share on Instagram
- Instagram Help Center: Share a post with multiple photos or videos
- Instagram Help Center: Reel size and aspect ratios
- Instagram Help Center: Record a reel on Instagram
- Meta for Developers: Instagram Graph API, IG User media (updated 28 September 2026)
- Meta Business Help Center: Design requirements for Instagram Stories ads
Other companies’ features change. Every statement about them rests on these pages, as they read on the date above.