Instagram Story Technical Requirements 2026
Instagram stories have specific technical requirements for optimal display. Follow these specifications to ensure your stories look perfect on all devices and avoid quality loss from compression.
📐 Dimensions & Aspect Ratio
🎥 Video Requirements
📄 File Format Requirements
Image Formats
Recommended for photos. Max 30MB. Use RGB color space.
Supported for graphics with transparency. Max 30MB.
Video Formats
Recommended. H.264 codec, AAC audio. Max 4GB.
Supported. H.264 codec preferred. Max 4GB.
⚙️ Technical Specifications
⏱️ Duration Requirements
Photo Stories
Photos display for 5 seconds by default. Viewers can tap to skip or hold to pause. Multiple photos create a slideshow effect.
Video Stories
Videos up to 15 seconds play as single segments. Videos 16-60 seconds automatically split into multiple 15-second segments that play consecutively.
Boomerang & Reels
Boomerangs loop for 3 seconds. Reels can be up to 90 seconds when shared to stories.
Best Practices for Instagram Stories
Keep important content in the center. Avoid placing text or key elements in the top 250px (profile area) or bottom 250px (CTA area).
Keep text and important visuals within the safe zone (1080 x 1420 px centered) to avoid overlap with UI elements.
Always use 9:16 aspect ratio. Other ratios will have black bars or be cropped.
Keep images under 8MB and videos under 1GB for faster uploads and better quality retention.
Export videos at 1080 x 1920, 30fps, H.264 codec, 3500 kbps bitrate for optimal quality.
Quick Reference Chart
| Specification | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 1080 x 1920 pixels |
| Aspect Ratio | 9:16 |
| Video Length | Up to 60 seconds |
| Image Formats | JPG, PNG |
| Video Formats | MP4, MOV |
| Max File Size (Video) | 4 GB |
| Max File Size (Image) | 30 MB |