Instagram Stories are the best thing to come to Instagram since the app was launched way back in time. It is by far the most popular part of the app and is used millions of times a day. However, stories have specific size requirements for images and videos.
Instagram really wants you to enjoy Instagram Stories, so they mandated a specific 1080 x 1920 or 9:16 aspect ratio for both. This is standard HD, flipped sideways to work best with how we use our phones. For images, this isn’t such a big deal because you can just take them in portrait mode and be done with it. Videos require a little more thought and planning.
Required dimensions for images in Instagram Stories
The correct dimensions for images in Instagram stories are 1080px by 1920px, or a 9:16 aspect ratio. If you try to upload a different size image, Instagram will try to resize the image to fit those dimensions. It’s much easier to do it yourself.
You have several options, depending on what apps and devices you use.
Canva is an online tool that can resize images for any purpose. You’ll have to sign up, but you can then upload an image and have it resized for you within the app if you choose the right dimensions. You can set it to best fit the window so it will always look its best.
iPhone users can try Resize for Story, an app that can resize your images or videos for Instagram. The app costs $4.99 but works well. Android users may want to try No Crop & Square for Instagram which does the same thing. This app is free but ad supported. If you don’t like these two, there are plenty to choose from.
Required dimensions for videos in Instagram Stories
The correct dimensions for videos for Instagram stories are also 1080px by 1920px, or a 9:16 aspect ratio. This means trying to avoid shooting in landscape mode and keeping the camera lens in portrait. If you always shoot in portrait mode, you don’t need to resize your video when uploading it to your Story.
If you need to resize you can use a square frame with a border that works well enough. iPhone users can try Afterlight 2 as it is a very good video resizing app. It costs $2.99 but does the job well. Android users can try InShot, a photo and video resizer for Instagram. It’s free and ad-supported, but also includes in-app purchases.
As an aside, videos on IGTV use the same 1080px by 1920px dimensions.
Best sizes for Instagram images
Apart from stories, Instagram works with three main image sizes: square, landscape, and portrait. You can use any of these to frame your picture in the best possible way.
Typically, square images are 600px x 600px or 1080px x 1080px. If you have a good camera, the latter is by far the best. It contains more details and will look much better to the viewer if they have a good phone. However, Instagram has a tendency to reduce them to 600px by 600px, so you might want to try and see what happens.
Landscape images should ideally be 1920px x 1080px. This offers maximum detail and resolution with a slightly larger file size. Instagram will then resize them to 600px x 337px or 1080px x 566px. Either way, you can squeeze in as much detail as possible and Instagram will pick the maximum value it can handle.
Portrait images may be 1080px x 1350px, but will most likely display as 480px x 600px or 960px x 1200px. Again, shooting at 1080 lets you compress as much detail as possible before Instagram replaces them.
If you’re planning a rotating post, you can use these standard image sizes, but each image can be substantially the same size. So they must all be portrait or landscape and all equally 1080px x 1350px or 1920px x 1080px. Otherwise, Instagram will crop others for you to match. It’s the first image that determines the rest, so resize your own images beforehand to make sure you get the effect you’re looking for.
Getting the image size right is a small thing that can have a big impact on how good your Instagram Story or post looks. You may or may not consider it important. Either way, now that you know the optimal image sizes for Instagram, you can prepare your images in advance or let the app handle everything. It’s totally up to you!
Instagram Stories are the best thing to come to Instagram since the app was launched way back in time. It is by far the most popular part of the app and is used millions of times a day. However, stories have specific size requirements for images and videos.
Instagram really wants you to enjoy Instagram Stories, so they mandated a specific 1080 x 1920 or 9:16 aspect ratio for both. This is standard HD, flipped sideways to work best with how we use our phones. For images, this isn’t such a big deal because you can just take them in portrait mode and be done with it. Videos require a little more thought and planning.
Required dimensions for images in Instagram Stories
The correct dimensions for images in Instagram stories are 1080px by 1920px, or a 9:16 aspect ratio. If you try to upload a different size image, Instagram will try to resize the image to fit those dimensions. It’s much easier to do it yourself.
You have several options, depending on what apps and devices you use.
Canva is an online tool that can resize images for any purpose. You’ll have to sign up, but you can then upload an image and have it resized for you within the app if you choose the right dimensions. You can set it to best fit the window so it will always look its best.
iPhone users can try Resize for Story, an app that can resize your images or videos for Instagram. The app costs $4.99 but works well. Android users may want to try No Crop & Square for Instagram which does the same thing. This app is free but ad supported. If you don’t like these two, there are plenty to choose from.
Required dimensions for videos in Instagram Stories
The correct dimensions for videos for Instagram stories are also 1080px by 1920px, or a 9:16 aspect ratio. This means trying to avoid shooting in landscape mode and keeping the camera lens in portrait. If you always shoot in portrait mode, you don’t need to resize your video when uploading it to your Story.
If you need to resize you can use a square frame with a border that works well enough. iPhone users can try Afterlight 2 as it is a very good video resizing app. It costs $2.99 but does the job well. Android users can try InShot, a photo and video resizer for Instagram. It’s free and ad-supported, but also includes in-app purchases.
As an aside, videos on IGTV use the same 1080px by 1920px dimensions.
Best sizes for Instagram images
Apart from stories, Instagram works with three main image sizes: square, landscape, and portrait. You can use any of these to frame your picture in the best possible way.
Typically, square images are 600px x 600px or 1080px x 1080px. If you have a good camera, the latter is by far the best. It contains more details and will look much better to the viewer if they have a good phone. That said, Instagram has a tendency to cut them down to 600px by 600px, so you might want to try and see what happens.
Landscape images should ideally be 1920px x 1080px. This offers maximum detail and resolution with a slightly larger file size. Instagram will then resize them to 600px x 337px or 1080px x 566px. Either way, you can squeeze in as much detail as possible and Instagram will pick the maximum value it can handle.
Portrait images may be 1080px x 1350px, but will most likely display as 480px x 600px or 960px x 1200px. Again, shooting at 1080 lets you compress as much detail as possible before Instagram replaces them.
If you’re planning a rotating post, you can use these standard image sizes, but each image can be substantially the same size. So they must all be portrait or landscape and all equally 1080px x 1350px or 1920px x 1080px. Otherwise, Instagram will crop others for you to match. It’s the first image that determines the rest, so resize your own images beforehand to make sure you get the effect you’re looking for.
Getting the image size right is a small thing that can have a big impact on how good your Instagram Story or post looks. You may or may not consider it important. Either way, now that you know the optimal image sizes for Instagram, you can prepare your images in advance or let the app handle everything. It’s totally up to you!
