What is the best image format for Instagram?

The best image format for Instagram is the one that works best for you. If you’re looking for a general guideline, however, stick with jpeg files that are at least 300 pixels wide by 200 pixels tall and have minimal compression.

Instagram doesn’t have an optimal or recommended image file format.

Instagram doesn’t have an optimal or recommended image file format. Instagram does recommend a size for your images, though:

  • Photos should be 1080 x 1080 pixels square, or approximately 962 x 962 pixels (it can be slightly bigger than that).
  • Videos should be 1920 x 1080 pixels, or 1280 x 720 pixels (not widescreen).

You should create a custom image that’s at least 300 pixels wide by 200 pixels tall.

You should create a custom image that’s at least 300 pixels wide by 200 pixels tall.

These dimensions will allow your Instagram images to best fit the feed, while allowing you some room for cropping or stretching later on. If you want to use one of our template sizes, we recommend starting with the Small Square option (300×300) as your initial image size and then adding text or other elements after you’ve uploaded it in Canva.

Many people choose to upload a jpeg file for Instagram.

Many people choose to upload a jpeg file for Instagram.

JPEG (or JPG) is the most common file format for photos, and it’s an excellent choice for that purpose—but it can also be used for other kinds of images, including illustrations and logos. The key thing about jpegs is that they’re a lossy compression technique: this means that you’re losing quality when you save them as jpegs, so if you want your image to look really good on Instagram where there are compression limits, then consider saving it in another format like png first before uploading it onto your phone or computer and then resaving it as a jpeg later on.

You can also upload a png or gif image which are the same file types as jpeg.

You can also upload a PNG or animated GIF image. These are essentially the same file type as JPEG, only without the compression. This means that PNGs are lossless, meaning there is no loss in quality when you save them (unlike JPGs). Animated GIFs can be used to create small animations and looping animations, but they aren’t ideal for use on Instagram because they don’t work well on mobile devices.

The size of your image should be between 100kb and 1mb.

The size of your image should be between 100kb and 1mb.

  • Too small: Your image will be uploaded but it may not show up well on the feed, or might appear pixelated.
  • Too large: Your image will probably upload fine, but takes longer than necessary to do so because of its size—and a slow upload time can hurt your follower count! Plus, if their feed is full of giant images that take ages to load, they might start to ignore them as they scroll past.
  • Ideal: 300px x 200px (300p x 200p)
  • Acceptable: 300p x 300p

Avoid using a web-optimized .gif file.

You’ll want to avoid using a web-optimized .gif file, which is the most common type of file you’ll find online.

GIFs are compressed and take up less space than their original image format, but they’re not recommended for Instagram because they don’t support looping animations or transparency. Gifs also can’t be used in a grid layout on Instagram’s feed—they’ll get cropped automatically by the platform.

Conclusion

So, what should you do? The best thing to do is use a program like Photoshop or Gimp to create an image that is 300 pixels wide by 200 pixels tall. Then upload your image using one of these formats: jpeg, png or gif. If you need help creating an image for Instagram be sure to check out our article on how to create a social media cover photo! jpeg to jpg 200kb jpg Click to know more.