Instagram carousel size: the dimensions and settings that look right
The first picture decides the shape of every picture after it. Get that one right and the rest follows.
An Instagram carousel is up to 20 photos or videos in one post, swiped sideways. It is the format that keeps people longest on a single post, and it is also the one most often posted at the wrong size.
The size
- 4:5, 1080 by 1350. The tallest shape the feed shows, so it takes the most room on a phone.
- Square, 1080 by 1080, is fine but gives up height.
- Landscape, 1.91:1 at most, shows small and is rarely worth it.
The first image sets the shape
Every slide in a carousel shows at the shape of the first. If the first is 4:5 and the third is square, the third is cropped or padded to 4:5. Export every slide at the same size, from the same template, and nothing is cut where you did not expect.
The profile grid
Your profile grid now shows posts as tall rectangles, cropped from the centre of the first slide. Keep the important part of the cover in the middle, and check it on your profile after posting. Instagram lets you adjust the grid crop after the post is up.
Mixing photos and video
A carousel can mix both. A video slide plays when someone reaches it, which makes it a good second or last slide; as the first, it competes with the swipe.
Scheduling a carousel
Listo posts Instagram carousels of up to 20 images, in the order you give them, with your caption checked before it goes out. From an agent: Post the six ceramics images as an Instagram carousel on Sunday at 10:00, in this order.
