“How often should you post on Instagram?” Social media marketers would be millionaires if they got a dollar every time someone asked that.
We understand that desperation. With over 200 million businesses on Instagram, it’s easy to get lost in a sea of images, especially if you don’t post often. Post too much, and your account might fall into the danger of spammy content.
So, what’s the sweet spot to boost your engagement and reach the right audience? The changing Instagram algorithms make it more daunting to answer how much you should post on Instagram.
We’ve conducted deeper research into this question to help you find the Instagram posting frequency. Let’s go!
How Often Should You Post on Instagram?
Based on our research, you should post 3-5 times per week on Instagram.
However, this isn’t an ironclad rule. Your posting frequency depends on several factors: follower count, industry type, and target audience.
Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri says that there is no golden rule for posting on Instagram. You should post as much as you want to, and don’t push yourself into posting.
Obviously, there is a chance that people will unfollow you since some of them might curate their following lists. He adds, “The more you post, the more your followers grow. More people discover you, share your content, and find more of your work.”
We analyzed 4.4 million Instagram posts from 45,700 accounts to discover the posting frequency on Instagram and found that there is no magical number. While some accounts may gain success by posting once a day, others might gain followers by posting less frequently.
Here’s a visual based on our research:
Thus, the key is to share quality content that connects with your followers consistently.
We also researched the insights from the experts and found that:
- Jonathan Aufray from Growth Hackers Agency suggests testing different strategies to find the best fit. He also says, “After many tests, we found that posting daily is best. It keeps the community engaged without overwhelming them.”
- Stephanie Gutierrez of Online Optimism finds it’s best to post three to five times a week on Instagram. She says, “Posting three to five times a week also allows us to plan our content without disrupting the schedule.”
Glossier, a makeup brand, snowballed in popularity within four years of its launch. Their social media marketing strategy is multi-dimensional, but the brand sticks to its regular posting frequency of five posts per week.
A medium playbook on Glossier reflects on the regular posting frequency. The playbook reads, “Glossier publishes three to five in-feed Instagram posts each week. Share posts between 11 AM and 1 PM EST to catch lunch break viewers.” You can also post from 5 PM to 9 PM to engage those browsing in the evening.
Posting often on Instagram boosts your chances of being featured in the Explore section. It also helps you show up at the top of keyword searches by your followers.
Does quality play a role here? The short answer is YES. It’s about maintaining the right balance between quality and quantity. The more relevant you are, the more likely you will connect with your audience.
Adam Mosseri, in another video, suggests maintaining the quality but not at the cost of quantity. He adds, “Prioritize quality over quantity, but in general, the more you post, the more people you’ll reach.”
How Often Should You Post Instagram Stories?
Adam Mosseri recommends posting several Instagram stories per day. But how often you post Instagram stories depends on your follower count and content type.
The more consistently you post on Instagram stories, the more attention you can get. There’s also a reason why you need to post multiple stories in a day.
Stories are limited to your followers and might not match the capacity of the Instagram posts. Even posting once or twice can miss the mark.
That said, you need to post multiple times a day and more consistently if you want to keep your brand in front of your followers. But make sure not to overwhelm. The Instagram algorithm will not like it.
Fabletics, an athletic apparel company with 1.9 million followers, rose to popularity by posting regular stories on Instagram. Based on our research, Fabletics posts 4-5 stories per day, covering a mix of polls, behind-the-scenes content, flash challenges, and workout sessions.
It’s important to steer clear of dull content in your story. Try mixing things up!
Here’s what we suggest:
- Share a snippet of long-form videos and split them into shorter Instagram stories.
- Use BTS (behind-the-scenes) videos to engage with your audience at a personal level.
- Repurpose content from YouTube or TikTok and share it on your stories to earn followers on other social media channels.
- Re-post a long video or an existing reel to your story with the relevant hashtags.
- Ask questions and conduct polls and quizzes to engage with your audience.
How Often Should You Post Instagram Reels?
Reels are the core part of Instagram, with over 140 billion reel plays every day. It can be daunting to engage with your followers if you have a low posting frequency. Thus, most accounts find success in posting one reel per day or, say, 5-7 reels a week.
For example, video creator Jessica Stansberry posted one reel a day for 26 days to experiment with posting frequency. She discovered that each passing day made a difference in her engagement.
She also adds, “When I posted a Reel every single day, the engagement on my posts went up. Using regular posts, I get about 100-200 likes. In the middle of doing a bunch of Reels, my posts got between 300-400 likes and way more reach.”
We’d recommend posting seven or more reels a week. While you can’t create a reel every day, a good practice is to create them in batches and schedule them for the entire week.
Does Posting Frequency on Instagram Matter?
Yes, posting frequency on Instagram plays a cardinal role. You can’t expect to earn followers if you’re infrequent or post once in a blue moon.
Instagram’s new hub for best practices explicitly gathers insights from popular creators on how to succeed on the platform. Most creators emphasize frequently posting on Instagram to earn more followers.
For example, Rachel Friedline, co-founder of Wilderdog, started posting frequently in 2015. She further adds that without consistency, you can’t grow your audience. Along with this, Oyinda also shares the top three tips to stay consistent.
The Instagram algorithm balances quality and quantity. This means you should post regularly and meet viewer expectations. But that shouldn’t come at the cost of burnout.
Adam suggests posting regularly without the burnout. He says, “Posting often generally helps with reach, but it’s important not to burn out. Create a schedule that works for you. Set some patterns to help when you’re stuck on content ideas.”
Are you struggling to keep up with your posting schedule?
Streamline your posting schedule with the SocialPilot Instagram scheduler. It enables you to brainstorm, create, and schedule reels, stories, and Instagram posts ahead of time so you don’t face burnout of last-minute planning and publishing. Pre-set your schedule based on the frequency and improve engagement using relevant hashtags and AI-influenced captions.
How to Identify Good Posting Frequency?
There’s no one-size-fits-all posting frequency on Instagram. Different industries may have different posting frequencies, audience types, and posting times.
To identify a good posting schedule, start by asking a few questions:
- How active are your viewers on Instagram?
- How many followers do you have?
- When is your audience most active?
- What type of content are you posting?
- How often can you post consistently?
When choosing how often to post, consider these factors for your page:
- Your niche: Niches such as wellness, beauty, and stock markets do best with daily updates. However, finance and food can get by with fewer posts.
- Content creation bandwidth: Set a realistic content creation bandwidth you can actually maintain, not just a hypothetical one. Research the industry competitors and keep an eye on their posting bandwidth.
- Industry algorithm trends: Stick to the latest algorithm trends and get specific with your timing. Posting frequently can improve engagement rates. The algorithm prefers posts with higher likes, comments, shares, and views.
- Content variety: Different content types have different posting frequencies. Thus, it is important to figure out the posting schedule for videos, reels, and carousels.
