Instagram image sizes for product photos (2026): posts, Reels, Stories

For product photos, the safest Instagram image size is 1080 x 1350 pixels (a 4:5 portrait) for feed posts and carousels, and 1080 x 1920 pixels (9:16) for Reels and Stories. Instagram's Help Center keeps photos at their original resolution up to 1080 pixels wide when the shape falls between 1.91:1 and 3:4. Scheduling tools publish through a narrower route, and 4:5 is the shape that passes both.

What size should an Instagram feed photo be?

Upload feed photos 1080 pixels wide, with a height between 566 and 1440 pixels. That is the range Instagram documents: the Help Center article on image resolution says photos are uploaded at the best quality possible up to a width of 1080 pixels. A photo between 320 and 1080 pixels wide keeps its original resolution when its aspect ratio is between 1.91:1 and 3:4. If you send a smaller photo, Instagram enlarges it to 320 pixels wide. If you send a larger one, it is sized down to 1080.

If the shape falls outside the supported range, Instagram crops the photo to fit. That is the main way a product ends up with its edges cut off, so choose the shape before you export.

Square, portrait and landscape all sit inside the range:

• Square, 1080 x 1080 (1:1). Sits inside both documented ranges and suits a single product on a plain background.
• Portrait, 1080 x 1350 (4:5). Taller than a square, so the product fills more of the frame, and it also sits inside both documented ranges.
• Landscape, 1080 x 566 (1.91:1). The widest shape Instagram supports. It leaves the least room for a tall product.

Instagram's page lists only the outer limits. These three sizes are easy-to-remember choices inside them.

Should you use square, 4:5 or the newer 3:4?

Use 4:5 as your default. It is documented for both the Instagram app and the publishing route that scheduling tools use, while 3:4 is documented for the app only.

Instagram announced 3:4 photo support in May 2025. Its head, Adam Mosseri, wrote that 3:4 images now appear exactly as shot. That matches the Help Center range above, where 3:4 (1080 x 1440) is the tallest allowed shape. In January 2025 he had also said Instagram launched a taller grid on the profile, so the thumbnails on your profile are now rectangles that lean tall instead of squares.

Here is where the sources differ. The developer documentation for publishing through Meta's API says an image must be within a 4:5 to 1.91:1 range. A 3:4 photo is taller than 4:5, so it sits outside that documented range. A photo that posts fine from your phone may therefore be refused or cropped when a tool tries to publish it. If you schedule posts, 4:5 avoids the question.

I could not find an Instagram page that states the exact crop of the profile grid thumbnails. Before you redesign a whole catalog around the grid, post one test image and look at how your own profile shows it.

What size should carousel images be?

Use one shape for every slide, and make it 4:5 (1080 x 1350) unless you have a reason not to. Instagram's help article on multi-photo posts says a post can hold up to 20 photos and videos, and that the orientation you pick (square, portrait or landscape) applies to all of them. You cannot give each slide its own orientation.

The publishing documentation adds a detail that matters if you schedule. When you publish a carousel through the API, all images are cropped to the aspect ratio of the first image, and the default is 1:1. In practice, export every slide at the same size, and put the slide with the right shape first.

Because every slide shares one frame, a tall bottle and a wide tray cannot sit in different shapes. Leave space around the product on each slide so the shape you chose does not clip it.

What size are Reels and Stories, and where should text go?

Make Reels and Stories 9:16, which is 1080 x 1920 pixels. Meta's media reference recommends 9:16 for both and says that choice avoids cropping or blank space. Its Reels video limits allow up to 1920 pixels of width and a very wide range of ratios, so 9:16 is a recommendation and not a hard rule.

Keep text and logos away from the edges. Instagram does not publish a safe zone for ordinary Stories, but Meta does for Stories ads. Its Stories ad guide suggests leaving roughly 14% of the top, 35% of the bottom and 6% of each side free of text, logos and key elements. On a 1080 x 1920 canvas that is about 269 pixels at the top, 672 at the bottom and 65 on each side. The guide is written for ads, so treat it as a cautious margin for organic Stories rather than a rule.

Reel covers have their own rule. The Reel cover image should be 9:16, and if it is another shape, Meta takes the middle-most 9:16 rectangle. If you also share the Reel to your feed, the feed cover uses the middle-most square. Put the product in the center of the cover so every one of those crops still shows it.

What size should an Instagram profile picture be?

Instagram does not publish a required pixel size for profile pictures. Its help article on changing your profile picture explains how to upload one and says it is public, but it gives no dimensions.

Upload a square image with your logo or product centered and a margin around it, then check how it looks on your profile. Profile pictures are shown small, so a simple mark reads better than a detailed photo. The square shape is general practice and not an Instagram requirement.

Which file format and file size does Instagram accept?

For publishing through a tool, use JPEG in the sRGB color space and keep each image under 8 MB. Meta's media reference lists JPEG as the image format, 8 MB as the maximum file size, a width from 320 to 1440 pixels and sRGB as the color space, with other color spaces converted. The content publishing guide states that JPEG is the only image format supported.

Posting by hand is more forgiving. Instagram's help article on posting a photo lists jpg, png and heic/heif as supported formats when you upload from a computer. So a PNG that works in the app may still be refused when a scheduler sends it, and JPEG is the format Meta documents.

Two sets of limits to keep apart:

	Instagram app (Help Center)	Publishing API (Meta developer docs)
Formats	jpg, png, heic/heif	JPEG only
Width	Up to 1080 px	320 to 1440 px
Aspect ratio	1.91:1 to 3:4	4:5 to 1.91:1
File size	Not stated	8 MB

How do you export product photos from your store without cropping them?

Start from the largest original you have, then add canvas instead of cutting the product. For most catalog photos, the cleanest route is to place the picture on a 1080 x 1350 canvas and extend the background rather than crop into it.

Shopify's product media help page says images can be up to 5000 x 5000 pixels, that a square 2048 x 2048 image usually displays best in a store, and that PNG is the best format for most product images. Those settings suit your website, not Instagram. A catalog image therefore needs a second export for social.

A routine that works:

1. Pick the original file, not the thumbnail the store shows.
2. Make a 4:5 canvas, 1080 x 1350 pixels. For a product on a white background, extend the white to fill the extra height.
3. Center the product and leave a visible margin on all four sides, so no tool or grid crop touches it.
4. Export as JPEG in sRGB, and check the file is under 8 MB.
5. Name the file with the product and the size, such as linen-throw-4x5.jpg, so you can find it later.
6. Repeat with a 9:16 canvas for Stories, adding a plain or branded background above and below.

Do not scale a small photo up to reach 1080 pixels. Enlarging adds no detail, and a soft image looks worse than a smaller, sharp one. If the original is narrower than 1080 pixels, send it at its real size as long as it stays inside the shape limits.

Which product photos work best: white background or lifestyle?

Test both. I did not find a Meta or Instagram source that says one style performs better, so any claim that white backgrounds or lifestyle shots always win would be a guess.

A practical way to test is to post the same product both ways in separate posts, in the same week and at similar times, and compare saves, comments and clicks in your own account. Keep the sizes identical so shape does not change the result. A plain background shows the product clearly and is easy to reuse across channels. A lifestyle shot shows scale and use, and it often leaves less room around the item, so check the margins.

Whichever style you choose, keep the product large enough to read on a phone screen, and keep any words on the image short and away from the edges.

What should you check before you publish?

Run the same short check on every post, because a crop or a rejected file is easiest to fix before it is scheduled.

1. The image is JPEG in sRGB and under 8 MB.
2. The width is between 320 and 1440 pixels, and 1080 is the standard.
3. The shape is between 4:5 and 1.91:1 for feed posts, with 4:5 as the default.
4. Every carousel slide has the same shape, and the first slide is the one you want.
5. Stories and Reels are 9:16, with text and the product clear of the top and bottom margins.
6. The product sits near the center with a margin on all sides.
7. The Reel cover reads clearly when cropped to its middle.

In Creavily, you can attach the finished files from the media library when you write the post in Create, then check the preview before you confirm. The confirmation dialog appears before anything is saved or scheduled, so the preview is your last look at the image and caption. Resize and crop in your editing tool first, so the file in the library is already the shape you want. The publishing workflow page shows the whole path from draft to delivery. If you are still setting up scheduling, the guide on how to schedule Instagram posts covers the steps, and finding scheduled Instagram posts covers where they appear afterwards.

Key takeaways

• Export feed photos and carousel slides at 1080 x 1350 pixels (4:5), because it is accepted by the Instagram app and by the publishing route.
• Instagram's app accepts photos from 1.91:1 to 3:4, while Meta's publishing documentation lists 4:5 to 1.91:1, so a 3:4 photo may not publish through a tool.
• Use JPEG in sRGB under 8 MB for any post you schedule, even though the app accepts png and heic as well.
• Keep Stories and Reels at 9:16 and place text well inside the top and bottom margins that Meta suggests for Story ads.
• Make a separate social export for each product photo instead of reusing the store image, and test white-background and lifestyle shots yourself.

FAQ

What size are Instagram photos?

Instagram photos can be up to 1080 pixels wide, with a shape between 1.91:1 and 3:4. That means a height of 566 to 1440 pixels at full width. For everyday posts, 1080 x 1350 (4:5) is the size that also works with scheduling tools.

What is the Instagram post photo size for a square image?

A square post is 1080 x 1080 pixels (1:1). It sits inside the supported range for both the app and the publishing route, so it posts without cropping. Use it when the product is centered and fairly compact.

What is the Instagram Story photo size?

Make Story photos 9:16, typically 1080 x 1920 pixels. Meta recommends 9:16 to avoid cropping or blank space. Keep text and logos clear of about 14% at the top and 35% at the bottom, which is Meta's guidance for Story ads.

What size should an Instagram display picture be?

Instagram does not publish a required size. Upload a square image with your logo or product centered and a margin around it, then check how it looks on your profile. Profile pictures are displayed small, so keep the design simple.

Why does Instagram crop my product photo?

Instagram crops photos that fall outside its supported shape, and carousels take the shape of the first slide when published through the API. Export at 4:5 with a margin around the product, and keep every carousel slide the same size, to avoid surprises.

Can I post PNG or WebP product photos?

The Instagram app accepts jpg, png and heic/heif when you upload from a computer, but the publishing documentation lists JPEG as the only supported image format. I found no Instagram page that lists WebP, so convert store images to JPEG first.