HOW TO GROW

Connect with the audience that moves you forward

Find more people who love what you create and want to help you reach your goals — whatever they may be.

GROW WITH REELS

Did you know that Reels makes up over 50% of all time spent on Instagram? Your next idea—big or small—could be the one that reaches millions.

Reach more people

What helps your reach

Want more eyes on your reels? Make sure you’re following these best practices:

  • Focus on authentic interactions. One of the most important ways to increase your reach is through engagement from your audience.
  • Consider video quality. Make sure your reel is well-lit, has a minimum resolution of 720p, and a minimum frame rate of 30 frames per second.
  • Explore trending audio. We consider the popularity of trends on Reels, including music and sounds, to determine how to rank and recommend content to new audiences.
  • Like or reply to comments on your reels within the first couple days to generate more engagement.
  • Study your insights. Check out your Account Insights and Content Insights to understand who views your content and what they enjoy.
Uncover factors that limit reach

What hurts your reach

Certain things can limit your reach or prevent your content from being recommended entirely. Things to avoid:

  • Sharing non-recommendable content. Be sure your content doesn’t go against our Recommendation Guidelines, including engagement bait.
  • Posting reels with watermarks. Having third-party watermarks on your reels may prevent them from being recommended to new audiences.
  • Taking credit for content that isn’t yours. Don’t publish copies of reels or posts. Once detected, it will prevent your content from being recommended.
  • Creating reels that are too long. Reels over 3 minutes won’t be recommended to new audiences.
a creator wearing a hat

How to make engaging reels

Engaging content is more likely to get recommended. Here are a few tips:

  • More relatable = more sharable. If people see your content and think “that’s literally me,” they’re more likely to like it or pass it along.
  • Create content that starts a conversation. Invite your audience to engage with you or each other by posing questions or asking for their ideas.
  • Make every second count. It’s important to hook your audience within the first 3 seconds of a reel, then find creative ways to keep their attention until the end.
  • Optimize for sound off. Use text and closed captioning whenever possible.
EXPAND YOUR REACH

Each part of the Instagram app uses its own algorithm. Learn how it works to help your content get discovered.

How Instagram recommends content to people

We use signals to predict which reels people might like. Signals include user activity like watch time, retention, shares, likes, and comments. We also use audience-matching techniques to compare people with similar interests, because what one person is engaging with can help us learn what someone else might be into.

When you post a reel on Instagram, it’s shown to both followers and non-followers. Among non-followers, your reel is initially shown to a small audience of people we think will enjoy it. The best-performing reels are then shown to a slightly wider audience, then the best of those are shown to an even wider group, and so on. This process is designed to level the playing field by distributing content based on its engagement, not just the creator’s follower count.

Dive into recommendations

How Instagram ranks different surfaces

Instagram doesn’t have a singular algorithm that oversees what people do and don’t see on the app. There are different recommendation systems for each part of Instagram such as Feed, Stories, Explore, Reels, Search and more.

We want to make the most of people’s time, and believe that using technology to personalize everyone’s experience is the best way to do that.

Understand ranking images