If you intend to run advertising campaigns on Instagram, you must know the correct ad sizes and specifications. You compete with others for your Instagram advertising spot, and you want your ad to stand out from the crowd – for the right reasons, not because it looks terrible. But there is a wide range of different types of Instagram ads, and they all have different recommended sizes.
We have gathered the different types of Instagram ads and have listed the correct sizes. That way, you can always ensure that your ads will be fit for purpose and unlikely to be rejected by Instagram for technical reasons.
What Are the Correct Instagram Ad Sizes?
Free Social Media Image Resizer Tool
Try out the FREE Social Media Image Resizer Tool to resize your images to the correct sizes and formats for Instagram Ads.
Instagram is Part of the Facebook Family of Apps
Facebook purchased Instagram for $1 billion in 2012. Since then, Instagram has become an integral part of Facebook’s growth. That $1 billion figure was considered by some to be ridiculously high at the time – Instagram only had 13 employees. But considering that some analysts now value Instagram as being worth more than $1.6 billion, Facebook probably now considers it a bargain buy.
It took a while for Facebook to integrate Instagram into its internal systems. But now, both apps share much in common, along with other Facebook apps like WhatsApp.
In particular, Facebook and Instagram share a single advertising network. This means that when you make ads for the network, and when you get to the part of the ad creation process that asks you where you want your ads to appear, you can select from a range of places, including both the Instagram main feed and Instagram Stories.
Although Facebook and Instagram advertising can be quite complicated, the ad creation process comes down to six essential steps:
- Select your audience
- Decide where to run your ad
- Set your budget
- Pick a format
- Place your order
- Measure and manage your ad
Step 4 is a critical stage. You might begin your ad creation with a good idea of how you want your ad to look. Otherwise, you will have to make some decisions about how precisely you want your ads to look. One thing is clear, however. No matter what ad sizes and formats you opt for, you will want your ads to look at their best. You don't want to use images that are the wrong shape or resolution or have to be unceremoniously manipulated by Facebook/Instagram to fit into your allocated space.
Although there are quite a few ad types available for both Facebook and Instagram, not every Facebook ad format is suitable for Instagram.
Instagram Single Image Ads
Instagram image ads are the bread and butter of Instagram advertising. An Instagram single image takes up the full screen of an Instagram user, so you don’t have to compete with everybody else’s status taking the attention – until the user scrolls onto the next post, anyway.
Although Instagram started with just square images, you can now make ads with both vertical and horizontal pictures as well.
You will have to consider which image format best suits your picture. Landscape images are wider than square or vertical pictures and can be ideal for a horizontal image like, as the name suggests, a landscape. Square pictures are narrower than landscape ones, but they take up more vertical space, making them ideal for many portraits. You just need to ensure that the square format doesn’t crop your images too severely.
Obviously, the vertical image format is excellent for displaying portrait photos. They can take up quite a lot of real estate on a phone, making your ad almost look full-screen.
You can also buy ads to go on Instagram Explore. The image specs for these are the same as for ads in the Instagram feed.
Specs
- File type: .jpg or .png
- Maximum file size: 30MB
- Image size: Instagram recommends you upload the highest-resolution image available that meets ratio requirements (i.e., horizontal, square, or vertical). No minimum resolution
- Minimum image width: 500 pixels
- Minimum aspect ratio: 400x500
- Maximum aspect ratio: 191x100
- Aspect ratio tolerance: 0.01
- Text limit: Two rows of text will be displayed
Instagram Video Ads
Video ads are becoming more popular on Instagram as phones improve in capacity, and internet speeds grow. As with still images, you can create a landscape, square, or vertical videos. Again, it is advisable to select the format that best suits the topic of your video. Although you may not be particularly familiar with vertical videos, they are becoming more popular, with most people using their phones to view their Instagram videos. They are the standard format for Instagram's IGTV.
You can also buy ads to go on Instagram Explore. The video specs for these are the same as for ads in the Instagram feed.
Specs
- Video formats: .mp4 or .mov – recommended, many more acceptable
- Recommended resolution: Upload the highest-resolution video available that meets file size and ratio limits
- Source ratio: 1.91:1 to 4:5 (horizontal 16:9, square 1:1, vertical 4:5)
- Minimum video dimension: 500 pixels
- Maximum video file size: 30MB
- Video Captions: optional
- Video Ratio: 400x500, max. 191x100
- Video Duration: 1 to 120 seconds
- Text limit: Two rows of text will be displayed
- Video thumbnail images that consist of more than 20% text may experience reduced delivery
Instagram Carousel Ads
Carousel ads allow you to use up to ten images or videos in your ad. These can be particularly useful when you are trying to advertise more than one product, or if you want to include photos of your product from different angles. Each card can have its own link.
The easiest way to spot a Carousel Ad is that you will see a series of small dots under the visible image. This indicates that there are further images for you to see.
Source: instagram.com
Specs
- Number of cards: 2 (minimum) to 10 (maximum)
- File type: jpg or png (image) or .mp4 or .mov (video – recommended, many more acceptable)
- Maximum video file size: 4GB
- Video Duration: 60 seconds maximum
- Recommended image resolution: at least 1080 x 1080
- Carousel Ratio: 1:1
- Text limit: Two rows of text will be displayed
- Headline: One row of text will display
- Images that consist of more than 20% text may experience reduced delivery
Instagram Stories Carousel Ads
Instagram now offers two types of carousel ads within stories. Native Stories Carousel automatically displays up to 3 cards with full-screen creative and can only be bought as a standalone Instagram Stories placement. Expandable Stories Carousel displays 1, 2, or 3 cards automatically but gives people the option to tap "Keep Watching" to see the remaining cards for a total of 10 cards.
Source: instagram.com
Specs – Native Stories Carousel
- Minimum number of cards: 2
- Maximum number of cards: 3
- Ratio: 9:16
- Recommended resolution: 1080x1920
- Maximum video duration in seconds for carousel videos: 15
Specs – Expandable Stories Carousel
- Maximum number of cards: 10
- Ratio: same as the news feed
- Images that consist of more than 20% text may experience reduced delivery
- Maximum video duration in seconds for prompted carousel videos: 60
Instagram Slideshow Ads
You can create a Slideshow Ad that uses a selection of images and/or videos, overlaid by a musical soundtrack. Make sure that if you use music in your ad, you have all the legal rights necessary to use a song in the ad, either by licensing the song or owning the legal rights to the song. You use up to 10 images to make a looping video.
Specs
- File type: jpg or png for images; wav, mp3, m4a, flac and ogc for sound files
- Minimum Image Width: 600 x 600 pixels, max. 1080 x 1080 – any images or videos you use that aren’t square will be cropped to meet that format
- Text limit: Two rows of text will be displayed
- Image Duration: up to 50 seconds / image
Instagram Stories Image Ads
Instagram Stories is rapidly becoming the star of Instagram, so it was inevitable that Instagram would eventually approve ads for that format. Perhaps the greatest advantage of Instagram Stories ads is that you can use may of the same feature available to normal Instagram Stories, including stickers, GIFS, and filters. You also have the huge benefit of including a clickable swipe-up link in your ad.
These appear as full-screen vertical ads between Instagram user Stories. Photo stories are visible for five seconds or until the user swipes out of the story.
Instagram recommends that you leave roughly 14% (250 pixels) of the top and bottom of the image free from text and logos to avoid covering these key elements with the profile icon or call to action.
Source: instagram.com
Specs
- Use: jpg, png
- Maximum file size: 30MB
- Recommend image size: 1080 x 1920 pixels
- Images that consist of more than 20% text may experience reduced delivery
Instagram Stories Video Ads
Instagram Stories Video Ads include all of the benefits of Instagram Stories Image Ads, combined with the attention-grabbing of video ads. You can also include sound in these ads, as studies show that many people watch these ads with the sound turned on. Full-screen vertical ads appear between the stories of Instagram users, and people can take action to watch up to 120 seconds.
As with image ads on Instagram Stories, Instagram recommends that you leave roughly 14% (250 pixels) of the top and bottom of the image free from text and logos to avoid covering these key elements with the profile icon or call to action.
Source: business.instagram.com
Specs
- Use: mp4, mov
- Maximum file size: 4 GB
- Recommend image size: 1080 x 1920 pixels
- Resolution: 720p
- Source ration: 1.91:1 to 4:5 (horizontal 16:9, square 1:1, vertical 4:5)
- Video length: 15 seconds
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Instagram ads be 16:9?
Instagram ads should have an aspect ratio between 9:16 to 16:9. All file formats used for Instagram ads should be JPG or PNG. All image files used for Instagram ads should be maximum 30 MB.
Does Instagram have the 20% rule?
Instagram and Facebook adhere to the 20% text rule. That means that Facebook or Instagram will reject your ad - or significantly reduce the reach - if you have text on more than 20% of your image. On Instagram, the 20% rule is even stricter. It’s important to remember that ads should not look like actual ads.
What are the image sizes for Instagram?
Images uploaded to Instagram should be 1080 pixels wide by 566 pixels to 1350 pixels high. The maximum resolution that Instagram supports for images is 1080 pixels wide. Instagram ads can also feature images that are not just square. You can post landscape images in a 1.91 to 1 aspect ratio, the same size as a Facebook link preview image.
What are the requirements for Instagram ads?
The technical requirements for Instagram ads include:
-JPG or PNG file types
-A maximum file size of 30 MB
-Maximum image width of 600 pixels
-An image ratio of 4:5 minimum, or 16:9 maximum
-60 seconds maximum of video length
How many frames is an Instagram ad?
An Instagram ad should be 15 seconds. You cannot string together three 15-second videos to make a longer, 45-second video.
