Instagram carousel size, limit and format (2026)

A carousel is an Instagram post with several photos or videos that people swipe through. The rules for it sit on three different pages: Instagram's Help Center for the app, Meta's developer documentation for scheduling apps, and Meta Business Suite's help. This page puts the numbers in one place, as checked in October 2026, and explains the part that trips people up: what happens when your slides aren't all the same shape.

Instagram carousel size and limits at a glance

The middle column is what the Instagram app accepts. The right column is what Instagram's API accepts, and every scheduling app, Unisenda included, has to follow it.

How many photos can an Instagram carousel have?

Up to 20. Instagram's Help Center says you can share up to 20 photos and videos as a single post, and Meta's developer documentation sets the same limit for apps. Older guides still say 10, so if you see a smaller number, it's out of date.

Two other places have different limits:

• Meta Business Suite on a computer takes up to ten photos in a post to Instagram.
• The Instagram app's own scheduler handles carousels too. Instagram says a public account can schedule up to 25 posts a day, up to 30 days ahead.

A carousel counts as one post. Likes and comments go on the whole post, not on single slides, and the feed shows your first slide with a row of dots under it. That first slide is the one most people see, so lead with your strongest.

Instagram carousel dimensions and aspect ratio

Instagram doesn't name one carousel size, but its rules point to one that works everywhere: 1,080 pixels wide at 4:5, which is 1,080 × 1,350.

Instagram says it keeps a photo at its original resolution when the width is between 320 and 1,080 pixels and the shape is between 1.91:1 and 3:4. Wider photos are sized down to 1,080 pixels, narrower ones are enlarged to 320, and shapes outside the range are cropped. Here is what that means at 1,080 pixels wide:

That's why 4:5 is a safe default: it's the tallest shape that works both ways. A phone screenshot or a 9:16 story-shaped image is taller than any of these, so crop it yourself first. For the shapes of other networks, see social media image sizes.

To cut one wide picture into 4:5 slides that line up when people swipe, use the free carousel splitter. To crop a single photo to 4:5, use the free image resizer.

What happens when slides have different shapes

Instagram doesn't let a carousel mix shapes.

• In the app, the help page says the orientation you choose (square, portrait or landscape) affects all of the photos and videos in your post, and you can't pick a different one for each. To change how each slide is cropped, you drag it within the frame.
• Through a scheduling app, Meta's documentation says all carousel images are cropped based on the first image, with 1:1 as the default. So put a photo with the shape you want first, and keep the rest the same shape so nothing gets cut off in a way you didn't plan.

Either way, keep faces and text away from the edges of each slide, since the edges are what a crop removes.

Videos and music in an Instagram carousel

Instagram's app lets you mix photos and videos in one carousel, up to 20 slides in total. Three things are worth knowing:

• Videos in carousels are not Reels. They don't show in the Reels tab or get Reels features, and Meta's developer docs say a Reel can't be added to a carousel.
• We couldn't find a length limit for video slides on Instagram's help pages, so we don't give one. Reels do have their own limits, covered in our Reels size and length guide.
• Posts with several videos may take longer to upload, so use a reliable connection.

Music works for photo carousels, with limits. In the Instagram app on a phone, after you choose your photos and filters, tap Add music. You can pick a suggested song under For you, browse, or search, then choose the part of the song you want. Instagram's help page says music can't be added to carousels that include videos, and that the feature isn't available on computers. Meta's developer documentation lists a song option for Reels only, so scheduling apps can't add music to a carousel.

What you can change after posting

Instagram's help says that after you share a carousel you can reorder the slides, remove photos or videos, edit the caption or captions, and edit the location and tagged accounts. Tap the three-dot menu on the carousel, tap Edit, then press and hold to reorder, and tap Done to save.

You can't add new slides after sharing. To add a slide, you'd have to delete the post and publish it again.

How to post a carousel in the Instagram app

On a phone, following Instagram's Help Center:

1. Tap Create at the top, or swipe right anywhere in Feed, then tap Post and Select multiple.
2. Pick up to 20 photos and videos. Tap one to adjust how it fits the frame. The shape you choose applies to all of them.
3. Tap Next, then pick a filter for every slide or tap a slide to edit it on its own.
4. Press and hold a slide, then drag it to change the order. To remove one, drag it to the remove icon.
5. Choose Single caption or Multiple captions. Add a location, and tag people in each photo.
6. Tap Share.

On a computer, click Create, then Post and Select from computer, and choose the icon that lets you select several files. A computer post has one caption and one location for the whole carousel. Want it to go out later? Instagram's own scheduler works for carousels, but it doesn't support collaborative posts, and our guide to scheduling Instagram posts compares all your options.

How to schedule a carousel with Unisenda

Unisenda posts carousels of up to 20 photos to Instagram Business and Creator accounts. Photos only: mixed photo and video carousels aren't supported, and songs can be added to Reels but not to carousels, so use the Instagram app if you want music on a carousel.

1. Connect your Instagram account in Connections. You approve access on Facebook's own screen; Unisenda never asks for your password.
2. Click Create post and select your Instagram account. Add up to 20 photos from your computer or the Media library, and drag them into order. The first one is the cover.
3. Write your caption under All networks, or open the Instagram tab to give Instagram its own. The counter shows how much of Instagram's 2,200 characters you've used.
4. Check the format in the Instagram tab and the preview. Unisenda flags a photo shape Instagram won't take, anything outside 4:5 to 1.91:1, and you pick one shape for the post that applies to every photo. Use Edit to move each photo's crop.
5. To tag people or add a Collab, open People and Collab in the Instagram tab. Tap a spot on a photo to tag someone there, or invite up to 3 collaborators. If Instagram refuses a tag or an invite, the post still goes out without it, and the delivery details say so.
6. Click Schedule for, pick the date and time to the minute, and click Schedule.

Upload JPG, PNG or WebP photos of up to 20 MB. Unisenda sends Instagram a JPEG that fits its 8 MB limit, and a JPEG original goes out untouched when it already fits. iPhone HEIC photos need to be exported as JPEG first, and GIFs can't be published. Scheduled posts go out from Unisenda's servers, so your computer can be off, and each result links to the live post.

You can try writing and scheduling a post in the demo, where nothing is ever published. Every plan starts with a 7-day free trial. You can also check a photo against each network's rules with our free size checker.