Instagram is hoping to lure content creators and influencers with a new ultra-tall 9:16 photo size for Instagram posts that takes after the size and aspect ratio that Instagram Reels, Stories and TikTok posts use.
The new Instagram post ratio was previously announced, but just put into effect. Tests are just beginning to roll out, so look for 9:16 images in your feed or even under your capabilities when you post.
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For this of you that are confused right now on the Instagram post ratio, thinking “isn’t the 9:16 format already in use in Instagram Stories?” Yes it is, but it’s not offered in the Instagram image posts option. This new 9:16 addition is to Instagram posts.
Also, this doesn’t mean that the ONLY size from here forward is 9:16. This is likely to be an additional size & aspect ratio in addition to every image size & ratio Instagram already offers.
Currently the largest image size aspect ratio you can use on Instagram is 4:5. 9:16 images are taller and take up more on your phone’s screen, and also provide more area for content.
It’s not clear yet whether the 9:16 posts will allow for slideshow capabilities, but’s a super-reasonable guess that 9:16 slideshows will happen. 9:16 is a post format, and posts have a slideshow capability, so it’s seems likely that 9:16 images will have that.
It would be weird to offer it as a post format AND make it the only post format that didn’t include slideshows.
OK here’s why we should all be excited about 9:16 Instagram posts … you’ve probably seen TikTok videos or Instagram Reels where people are pointing out bullet points and phrases … now we can do that with images.
We will be able to move seamlessly move between tall videos and 9:16 images. This is way more versatile and dynamic and will have a lot of fun, new ways to innovate for creators.
It’ll be interesting to see how it affects everyone’s Instagram grid … will the 9:16 images be centered in the same square thumbnail format or be repurposed into an Instagram Reels-type grid with horizontal portrait format. Tell me what you think it will be in the comments.
So you’re probably thinking … “great, this is going to be a big new thing on Instagram and prioritized by Instagram algorithms in the feed. So what Instagarm post size should I use for the 9:16 Instagram aspect ratio?”
Here’s a few size suggestions to get you started:
Width: 1080
Height: 1920
Width: 1280
Height: 2275
Since 9:16 is already the same aspect ratio that Instagram reels use, this creates a nice symmetry to dual purpose your content. You can screen shot images from an Instagram Reel and use it in an Instagram posts. Twice the content, half the work.
The same strategy for reels applies to Instagram Stories, think of ways you can create images in the 9:16 ratio that can be used in both Stories and posts.
At the time of publishing, this does not appear as an option in Instagram Creator Studio.
INSTAGRAM
It’s a new way to broaden the Instagram appeal in an age of wavering engagement on the platform. “You can have tall videos, but you cannot have tall photos on Instagram,” said Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri in a recent Ask Me Anything. “So we thought maybe we should make sure that we treat both equally.”
The recent Instagram redesign “showed that Instagram’s overhauled design was so disliked by some people that they began using the app less frequently,” according to The Verge.
Here are the other Instagram updates that are soon to be rolling out:
- The full-screen feed design has been turned off based on feedback from users
- They’ve dialed back new content recommendations in the feed with less new content and filled more of profiles you know and like
- In the “Following” vs “Favorites” option for your feed, the “Following option is a chronological feed
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