Instagram post, story and reel sizes, and how to make any photo fit

As of November 2026, Instagram keeps feed photos at 1080 pixels wide and anywhere from 1.91:1 (wide) to 3:4 (tall), which at 1080 wide means a height from 566 to 1440 pixels. Stories and reels are vertical 9:16. To make one photo fit several of these at once, open the social media image resizer, tick the Instagram sizes you need, choose Fill, Fit or Crop for each, and press Download all.

Instagram sizes at a glance

Sources: Instagram's help pages on photo resolution and on reel sizes, and Meta's ads guide for the 1440 × 2560 story size. Instagram changes these from time to time; earlier versions of the same help page gave 4:5 as the tallest feed shape.

Photos wider than 1080 pixels are scaled down to 1080; photos narrower than 320 are enlarged to 320. A photo outside 1.91:1 to 3:4 is cropped to fit when you post it, which is how heads and feet get cut off.

Steps: one photo, every Instagram size

1. Open the social media image resizer and choose a photo (JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF, BMP or AVIF). It starts with four sizes already made, including Square post and Story or reel.
2. In Sizes, tap Portrait post to add it, and tap any size you do not need to remove it.
3. Under Framing for every size, pick one:
   • Fill covers the frame and trims the middle evenly. Right for most photos.
   • Fit shows the whole photo with a coloured band where it does not fill the frame. Choose White, Black or your own colour under Background for Fit.
   • Crop lets you drag the photo inside each frame, or use the arrow keys, to keep a face in view.
4. Change one preview on its own with the Fill / Fit / Crop switch under it.
5. Under Save as, keep JPG for photos, or choose PNG or WebP.
6. Press Download all to save every size in one zip, or the download button on a single preview.

The tallest post: 3:4 at 1080 × 1440

A 3:4 post fills the most screen in the feed. Tick Tall post in the resizer, or in crop image tap Instagram, then Tall post, and turn on Export at exact size for a 1080 × 1440 file.

For a 4:5 post with the box already set up, the Instagram crop page opens with Portrait post chosen and Export at exact size on.

Stories and reels: leave room for the buttons

Instagram puts your name at the top and reply and share controls at the bottom of a story. Meta's ads guide suggests keeping roughly the top 14%, the bottom 35% and 6% on each side free of text and logos. Keep faces and words in the middle band.

Fit with a black or matching background is a quick way to post a landscape photo as a story without cutting it.

The reel cover

Instagram's help page recommends a 420 × 654 cover image and notes the cover cannot be changed once the reel is posted. To make one: open resize image, choose Pixels, enter 420 × 654, and set When the shape differs to Crop to fill.

Fixing common problems

• The photo looks soft. It was enlarged. A preview the resizer had to enlarge says so under it. Start from the original photo, not a screenshot or a version saved from a chat app.
• Instagram cropped my post anyway. Its shape was outside 1.91:1 to 3:4. Use one of the sizes above.
• The upload takes ages. A 1080-wide JPG is usually well under 1 MB. If yours is not, compress it by quality.

Questions

Which post size takes up the most room in the feed?

1080 × 1440 (3:4), then 1080 × 1350 (4:5). Both take up more of the screen than a 1080 × 1080 square.

Can I post a whole landscape photo without cropping?

Yes, up to 1.91:1. For a wider panorama, use Fit on a square or portrait size, which adds bands above and below instead of cutting.

Is my photo uploaded to resize it?

No. Every size is made in your browser and the photo stays on your device. Saving also drops hidden details such as the GPS location.

Is this tool connected to Instagram?

No. It makes the files; you post them from the Instagram app. It is not made by or affiliated with Instagram.