Instagram carousels are a great way to create engaging content for your business, or to simply share photo dumps of your latest vacation with your friends and family. Here's how you can get started.
How To Create A Basic Carousel Post
You can create carousel slides on both the Instagram app and the desktop site, plus you can schedule carousels just like regular posts within Instagram or the Meta business suite.
On Desktop
Click the plus sign on the bottom left navigation bar.
Click Post.
Drag or select the images you wish to include in your carousel.
You can reorder the images on the bottom right corner before filling in your post information and sharing.
On Mobile
Tap the plus sign on the bottom.
Tap the two overlapping squares above the Recent Images section.
Select the images you wish to include in your slides - your first slide will be the first image you select.
Tap Next and fill in the usual post information.
Tap Share.
Carousel Post Guidelines
If you want to get all the details perfect, there are a few best practices to keep in mind when creating a seamless carousel.
Image Sizes
Square images should be 1080x1080
Portrait images should be 1080x1350
Don't Photo Dump
Unless you're just trying to share personal updates with your followers, overloading a single carousel can result in your followers just scrolling past.
Carousels have a 20 image limit, but try to limit yourself to no more than 7 slides.
Keep Things Logical
Your first slide should include topic information, and your last slide should round things off. You can use the text box to summarize the contents of your IG carousel, but each individual slide should expand on whatever it is you're discussing.
Save the first comment for your hashtags to make the most of caption space!
How To Schedule Instagram Carousels
You can schedule Instagram carousel posts just like regular Instagram posts. To do this, start by creating your Instagram post. Add all the images you'd like to include in the carousel, the caption, hashtag, and location tags.
Scroll down to the bottom of the New Post menu and tap Advanced Settings.
Toggle Schedule This Post to ON. This will automatically bring up a date menu.
Select the date and time you wish to schedule Instagram posts for.
Tap Done.
Return to the main post menu and tap Schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you schedule carousel posts on Instagram?
Yes, you can schedule an Instagram carousel post just like any other post.
How many images can you add to Instagram carousels?
You can add up to 20 carousel slides to a single post on Instagram.
Can you create Instagram carousels from the desktop site?
Yes, desktop users can create carousel posts by clicking Create Post in the bottom left corner of the desktop site and selecting multiple photos from their computer.
Can you make carousel videos on Instagram?
Yes, you can create carousel video posts on both the Instagram app and desktop site.
Does Instagram have carousel templates?
No, currently Instagram doesn't offer pre-built templates but you can use a tool like Canva or Adobe Photoshop to create your own. This is a great way to streamline Instagram content for a social media manager, or save time when creating content for your personal Instagram account.
Will a carousel set the same filter on every image?
No - every single image in a carousel has its own filter settings that can be adjusted before publishing.
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