The New Instagram Dimensions (2025): Complete Size Guide for Posts, Reels, Stories, and Ads

Use this guide as a practical, vertical-first reference for Instagram in 2025. It focuses on aspect ratios, safe zones, and export presets so your photos and videos look crisp across Feed, Reels, Stories, and ads. Bookmark it as a workflow companion to keep your creative consistent and platform-ready.

The New Instagram Dimensions (2025): Complete Size Guide for Posts, Reels, Stories, and Ads

If you’re hunting for the new instagram dimensions in 2025, here’s the good news: the core aspect ratios haven’t dramatically changed. What is new is clarity—how to design vertical-first creatives that survive UI overlays, compress well, and look sharp across placements, including ads. This guide distills what still works, what to watch for, and how to export assets that stay crisp.

What’s actually new in 2025 (and what hasn’t changed)

• Stable aspect ratios:
• Feed photo/video: Square 1:1, Portrait 4:5, Landscape 1.91:1
• Reels/Stories: 9:16 vertical
• Carousels: One ratio per carousel; mixed ratios get cropped to the first slide
• Vertical-first still wins:
• 4:5 portrait still performs best in the feed because it takes more vertical real estate without getting cropped.
• 9:16 is dominant for Reels/Stories and increasingly for ads.
• “New” in practice:
• UI overlays continue to evolve subtly; the safe-zone advice below (percent-based + pixel guidance) keeps your text and faces clear across devices.
• Compression behavior remains similar: 1080 px wide is the working standard for sharpness; larger uploads are downscaled.

Quick reference: core dimensions and aspect ratios

Use these as your baseline upload targets. Dimensions below assume 1080 px width, which remains the most reliable Instagram render size.

Tip: You can upload larger than 1080 px width; Instagram typically downsamples. For consistent sharpness, build to the sizes above and use sRGB.

Reels and Stories design safe zones

Vertical content is immersive—but Instagram overlays UI elements. Keep faces, text, and logos clear by using conservative safe zones.

• Safe margins for 1080 × 1920 canvases (9:16):
• Top safe margin: ~250 px (≈13%)
• Bottom safe margin: ~250 px (≈13%)
• Side margins: ~60–90 px each side (≈3–5%)
• Why conservative margins?
• Device aspect ratios and UI can vary. Percent-based margins are more robust than fixed pixels.
• Center framing tips:
• Place key subjects in the central vertical band, not hugging the bottom.
• Align captions/subtitles within the central 80% width to prevent truncation by rounded device corners.

Reel cover images

• Design your cover at 1080 × 1920 (9:16).
• Keep the focal point centered so it survives multiple crops:
• Grid crop: centered 1080 × 1080 (1:1)
• Feed preview crop: centered 1080 × 1350 (4:5)
• Include a small, high-contrast title within the center 1:1 area; avoid the top/bottom 250 px zones.

Feed videos and carousels

• Why 4:5 portrait wins
• More vertical screen real estate = more attention. It fills the feed better than square and landscape without being cropped.
• Choosing aspect ratio for watch time
• Portrait (4:5) drives higher immersion for mobile users scrolling the feed.
• Landscape works when the footage demands it (cinematic, wide scenes), but expect smaller on-screen size.
• Mixed media behavior
• Carousels force one aspect ratio. If slides vary, Instagram crops non-matching slides to the first slide’s ratio.
• Best practice: Pre-crop all 10 slides to a single ratio (1:1 or 4:5) before upload.
• Consistency rules for 10-slide carousels
• Use a repeating layout grid and typography scale.
• Add slide numbers (“1/10”) in a consistent corner inside safe zones.
• Maintain a shared color system and thumbnail cover that reads in square.

Export settings that stay crisp after Instagram compression

Color and format

• Color space: sRGB IEC61966-2.1, embedded profile.
• Photos:
• JPEG for most photography; export at quality 76–85.
• PNG for flat graphics/line art or if you see banding in gradients.
• Videos:
• Container: MP4 (.mp4)
• Video codec: H.264 (High profile, Level 4.1 or 4.2)
• Audio codec: AAC-LC, 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz, 128–192 kbps stereo

Dimensions and bitrate

• Photos:
• 1080-wide masters (see table above) to minimize platform resampling.
• Video bitrates (targets, not hard rules):
• 1080 × 1920 (9:16): 8–12 Mbps
• 1080 × 1350 (4:5): 6–10 Mbps
• 1080 × 1080 (1:1): 6–10 Mbps
• Frame rate: Keep native (typically 23.976, 24, 25, or 30 fps); avoid unnecessary frame interpolation.

FFmpeg examples

Export a 9:16 Reel from a 4K vertical source:

ffmpeg -i input.mov -vf "scale=1080:1920:force_original_aspect_ratio=decrease,pad=1080:1920:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2,format=yuv420p" \
 -c:v libx264 -profile:v high -level 4.1 -pix_fmt yuv420p -r 30 -b:v 10M -maxrate 12M -bufsize 20M \
 -c:a aac -b:a 160k -ar 48000 -movflags +faststart reel_1080x1920.mp4

Export a 4:5 feed video:

ffmpeg -i input.mov -vf "scale=1080:1350:force_original_aspect_ratio=decrease,pad=1080:1350:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2,format=yuv420p" \
 -c:v libx264 -profile:v high -level 4.1 -r 30 -b:v 8M -maxrate 10M -bufsize 16M \
 -c:a aac -b:a 160k -ar 48000 -movflags +faststart feed_1080x1350.mp4

HandBrakeCLI preset idea (CRF-based instead of fixed bitrate):

HandBrakeCLI -i input.mov -o reel_1080x1920.mp4 \
 --width 1080 --height 1920 --crop 0:0:0:0 --aencoder ca_aac \
 -e x264 -q 20 --encoder-profile high --encoder-level 4.1 --vfr \
 --ab 160 --mixdown stereo --audio-copy-mask none

Design once, publish everywhere

• Start with a 9:16 master (1080 × 1920) for video and design.
• Derive variants:
• Reel/Story: Use as-is; ensure safe zones.
• Feed portrait: Recompose to 1080 × 1350 (4:5) by cropping the 9:16 vertically.
• Square: Center-crop to 1080 × 1080, verifying titles and faces stay intact.
• Cross-platform mapping:
• TikTok and YouTube Shorts also use 9:16, so your master travels well.
• Avoid edge traps:
• Keep essential elements within the central 80–86% of the canvas both horizontally and vertically to account for platform chrome and devices with rounded corners or notches.

Accessibility and readability

• Minimum text sizes on a 1080-wide artboard:
• Titles: 64–80 px
• Body: 42–56 px
• Captions/subtitles: 40–48 px
• Contrast:
• Aim for WCAG-ish contrast (4.5:1 for smaller text). Use solid backgrounds, shadows, or semi-opaque overlays behind text on video.
• Subtitles:
• Burn in concise, high-contrast captions for Reels; many users watch muted.
• Add proper punctuation and line breaks; limit to 32–40 characters per line.
• Alt text:
• Add descriptive alt text for images to support screen readers and improve discoverability.

Ads versus organic

Ad placements introduce extra UI, especially CTA buttons. Leave additional breathing room.

Do’s and don’ts

• Do design vertical-first; validate in all placements.
• Do keep CTAs clear of bottom overlays.
• Don’t pack frames with text; prioritize motion and clear hierarchy.
• Don’t depend on tiny UI elements; assume handheld viewing at arm’s length.

Troubleshooting and pro tips

Prevent blurry uploads

• Export at the recommended dimensions in sRGB.
• Avoid repeated re-compression; export once at final dimensions.
• On iOS, disable “Reduce File Size” toggles in third-party apps that may over-compress.

Avoid unintended crops

• For carousels, standardize all slides to one ratio pre-upload.
• For Reel covers, preview square and 4:5 crops before publishing.

Handle HEIC/Live Photos

• Convert HEIC to JPEG (sRGB) for consistent color and compatibility.
• Export Live Photos as video clips or still frames; don’t rely on auto-conversion.

HDR to SDR

• Many phones capture HDR (Display P3). Convert to SDR sRGB to avoid dull or shifted colors after upload.

The DPI myth

• DPI/PPI metadata is irrelevant for screen. Pixels rule. A 1080 × 1350 image is the same visual size in-app regardless of whether it’s tagged 72 or 300 DPI.

Upscale vs downscale

• Downscale large originals to target sizes using high-quality resampling (Lanczos/bicubic).
• Upscaling small assets rarely adds detail; if needed to reach 1080 width, use a high-quality algorithm and add mild sharpening afterward.

File hygiene checklist

• Embed sRGB profile
• Consistent naming (include ratio in filename: post_4x5.jpg)
• Version control your templates and export presets

A practical workflow you can reuse

1. Master files

• Create Figma/Photoshop templates for 1:1, 4:5, and 9:16 with safe-zone overlays (13% top/bottom, 3–5% sides).

1. Design

• Compose in 9:16 first; ensure center-weighted typography and subject.

1. Derive crops

• Duplicate and crop to 4:5 for feed; adjust background elements if needed.
• Create a square variant for grid-first campaigns.

1. Export

• Photos: JPEG Q80, sRGB, sharpen for screen.
• Video: H.264 MP4, target bitrates above; faststart enabled.

1. QA

• Mock in-device previews; verify overlays, captions, and legibility.

1. Publish

• Add alt text, subtitles, and a clean cover image with center-safe focal point.

Final take

In 2025, the “new instagram dimensions” are mostly a reaffirmation: 4:5 dominates the feed, 9:16 rules Reels/Stories, and square remains a dependable baseline. The winners are teams that design vertical-first, respect safe zones, export in sRGB at 1080 width, and keep typography readable. Use the tables and presets above to lock your pipeline—and ship assets that look great everywhere Instagram puts them.