The Instagram algorithm isn’t a mystery; it’s your competitive advantage.

Understanding how Instagram ranks content transforms your brand’s organic reach. Instagram remains the dominant engagement platform, with 84% of social users maintaining a profile and 69% reporting they see the most engaging brand content there. This is higher than any other platform.

The opportunity is massive. Your success depends on strategic execution.

This guide breaks down Instagram’s algorithm mechanics, 2025 updates and proven strategies for measurable business impact.

What is the Instagram algorithm?

The Instagram algorithm is a collection of machine learning systems that determine which content appears in users’ feeds by analyzing engagement patterns, relationships, and content preferences.

Instagram operates multiple algorithms, not one universal system. Each section prioritizes different signals:

  • Feed Algorithm: Prioritizes content from close connections based on past interactions
  • Reels Algorithm: Focuses on entertainment value and discovery
  • Stories Algorithm: Emphasizes recency and relationship strength
  • Explore Algorithm: Surfaces new content based on interests and similar user behavior
A green and teal graphic that reads what is the Instagram algorithm? The answer below the question reads, the Instagram algorithm is the set of processes Instagram uses to understand what users like. The platform uses this information to show people more of what they enjoy by predicting what content someone will find interesting and engaging.

How does the Instagram algorithm work in 2025?

Instagram’s algorithms use different ranking signals depending on the section. Each algorithm weighs factors differently to match user expectations.

The signals include information about the post itself, the person who posted it, and the user viewing content. These signals are weighted differently across Feed, Reels, Stories and Explore to optimize for what users want in each context.

Instagram’s goal is maximizing user satisfaction by delivering relevant, engaging content. Let’s break down how each section works.

Instagram algorithm updates for 2025

Instagram’s algorithms continue to evolve. While core ranking factors remain consistent, strategic shifts directly impact how brands approach content strategy in 2025.

Here are the biggest changes shaping performance this year:

Video content drives superior engagement

Instagram Reels consistently outperform other content formats in reach and engagement. According to Sprout Social’s 2025 Content Benchmarks Report, Reels achieve a 2.46% engagement rate compared to Instagram’s overall 2% average.

Smart brands prioritize video formats because:

  • Algorithm preference: Instagram actively promotes video content in feeds
  • User behavior: 66% of consumers find short-form video the most engaging content type
  • Reach: Video formats access larger audience pools than static posts

This shift reflects user preferences, not platform manipulation. Instagram delivers what audiences demand.

Static images remain relevant

While single image posts declined by seven percentage points from 2023, Instagram has rebalanced its approach. Photos still reach audiences effectively when part of a diversified content strategy.

The key is variety. Brands that mix Reels, carousel posts, Stories, and static images maintain consistent visibility while avoiding content fatigue.

Suggested content continues to expand

Instagram surfaces more “suggested” posts from accounts you don’t follow in your Feed. This trend accelerates as the platform blends discovery into the main Feed experience.

Your content now reaches people who’ve never heard of your brand when it resonates strongly enough to trigger recommendation systems.

Feed options expand choice

Instagram now offers three Feed experiences:

  • Chronological (the “Following” Feed), where you see content in order of recency. You won’t see any suggested posts from accounts you do not follow in this Feed.
  • Algorithmic (the “Home” Feed), which is based more heavily on the Feed algorithm we discussed. You’ll see a mix of suggested posts and posts from accounts you follow—but not necessarily in order of recency.
  • Favorites, where you’ll see content from a specific list of accounts you’ve chosen. Content from these accounts will also appear higher in the algorithmic “Home” Feed.
The dropdown on Instagram's title in the app where you can select viewing the default algorithmic feed, or a following feed or favorites feed to choose how you experience the Instagram feed.

You don’t control which feed your followers use. But the algorithmic “Home” feed remains default. There are specific strategies to perform well within it.

How the Instagram Reels algorithm works

It’s no secret that Instagram Reels dominate the reach game. Instagram famously went all-in on this format when it launched, and the investment has paid off for brands willing to commit to video.

Reels prioritize entertaining, funny and inspiring videos. For example, this Reel by Figo achieved over 3 million views—while entertaining, it clearly communicates what their business offers.

A Reel on Figo Pet's Instagram channel that shows someone sitting at their desk with their computer in the background and text on the screen that reads \

Instagram Reels algorithm ranking factors determine distribution and reach:

  • Engagement velocity: Likes, comments, shares, and saves within the first hour of posting
  • Completion rate: How many users watch your entire Reel determines its promotion
  • Audio trends: Using popular or trending audio increases discovery potential
  • Content quality: High-resolution video without watermarks performs better
  • User relationships: Previous interactions with your account boost visibility
  • Account authority: Established accounts with consistent engagement patterns gain advantage

What to avoid in your Reels

You lose algorithmic favor with these mistakes:

How the Instagram Feed and Instagram Story algorithm works

As Instagram stated, “Feed and Stories are places where people want to see content from their friends, family and those they are closest to.”

The default Home feed is still algorithmic. Understanding how it works helps you pull ahead of the competition.

Here are the top signals the Instagram Story algorithm and the Feed algorithm use to predict what a user is most interested in:

  1. The content itself: How popular is it? How many likes and comments does it have? When was it posted? If it’s a video, how long is it? Is it tagged with a location and if so, which one?
  2. Who posted it: How many times has a user engaged with content from the person who posted the content in previous weeks? How interesting do they find the person who posted?
  3. User activity: How many posts has a user liked and what were they about?
  4. Interaction history: How interested is a user in content posted from a particular account? How often do they comment on those posts?

Pro tip: Engagement matters—the more likely Instagram thinks a user is to engage with a post, the higher that post will be ranked.

The five engagements Instagram uses most to rank posts in the Feed are: how likely someone is to spend time on a post, comment, like, reshare or tap the profile picture.

What to avoid in your Feed posts and Stories

  • Posting too often. Instagram tries to avoid showing too many posts from one person to users in a row.
  • Violating Instagram‘s community guidelines: This is something you should avoid with all posts.
  • Posting misinformation. Do this too many times, and Instagram will make all of your content, not just the one post, harder to find.

How the Instagram Explore page algorithm works

If you’ve ever liked dance videos only to find your Explore page full of dance content, you understand how Explore works.

Explore decides what to show you by analyzing your past engagements and what accounts with similar interests engage with. This supports Instagram in surfacing new posts and accounts you’ll enjoy.

Here are the top signals the Instagram Explore page uses:

  1. The content itself: How popular is a post? How quickly is it receiving likes, comments, shares and saves?
  2. Interaction history: If you have engaged with anyone who shows up in your Explore page, they will show up again.
  3. User activity (generally and in Explore): What kinds of posts do you like, save or comment on? And how have you historically engaged with the Explore page?
  4. Info about the account that posted: How popular has their content been recently?

What to avoid to show up in Explore

Ensure your posts don’t violate Instagram’s Community Guidelines. Avoid showing potentially sensitive content.

Violating these guidelines prevents your content from being shared in Explore.

5 strategies for using the Instagram algorithm to your advantage in 2025

If you can’t beat it, use it. Design a content strategy that gives the Instagram algorithm exactly what it wants.

When Instagram engagement drops, it isn’t always the algorithm alone. These strategies support you in future-proofing and preparing for Instagram algorithm updates with outstanding content and deeper platform understanding.

Here are five strategies to conquer the Instagram algorithm in 2025.

1. Post content consistently—with a focus on video

The Feed algorithm won’t show too many posts from one account in a row. But it heavily weights how often people have engaged with an account in recent weeks—post too infrequently, you slip under the radar.

The key is consistency.

In terms of how often to post, start with one to two times per day. Then test if posting more or less works better for you.

A pink graphic titled "how often should you post on Instagram," and a stat that reads one to two times per day.

Experiment to find the right content mix. Carousels encourage people to linger longer and engage.

Reels remain your superpower for reach, achieving 2.46% engagement according to Sprout Social’s 2025 Content Benchmarks Report. Static photos continue to hold value in the Feed. Stories support your visibility all day without over-posting.

Don’t abandon video. According to consumer research, 66% think short-form video is the most engaging content type. Continue using Reels to meet audience preferences.

A data chart that reads the most engaging types of in-feed social content. It demonstrates that short-form video, images and live video are the most popular.

Pro tip: Repost Reels to your Story to maximize views. Story views count toward your total Reels views.

How to do it:

Maintain consistency with strategic publishing tools that eliminate manual posting.

Sprout Social’s Publishing Suite includes:

  • Content calendar: Visual planning across all Instagram formats
  • Reels scheduling: Pre-upload video content with captions up to 13 months in advance
  • Optimal Send Times: AI-powered posting recommendations that identify your top seven ideal publishing times daily
  • Asset Library: Centralized storage for approved content
Sprout Social's new post compose feed. In this window, a short form vertical video has been added as an asset and a caption has been added. This clean display demonstrates how you can schedule Instagram Reels, Stories and content in Sprout Social.

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2. Craft compelling captions with keywords and hashtags

Don’t wait for the algorithm to serve your content to new followers—use keywords to bring your content to them.

Keywords are now searchable on Instagram, which makes your content easier for future audience members to find.

How to do it:

Craft Instagram copy with an SEO twist. Include relevant keywords in these areas to make yourself more discoverable:

  • Captions: Your captions should be compelling as it is. Add natural keywords and terms that will support searchers in finding your post.
  • Alt text: Alt text is a given for social media accessibility. Add relevant keywords to make your content more likely to appear in Explore.
  • Hashtags: Remember, Instagram hashtags are searchable, too.
  • Your bio: Your handle helps people find your brand. But your Instagram bio supports people in finding your account when they search by industry or when they don’t know your handle. Notice that Figo uses “FigoPet” as their handle. But their name, Figo Pet Insurance, includes “pet insurance” as a keyword.

3. Spark conversation and engagement

Engagement is critical on Instagram. From likes and comments to overall post popularity, engagement makes or breaks your content’s ranking.

While engagement may seem difficult to crack, there are proven ways to encourage it.

How to do it:

Here are creative ways to spark conversations and encourage engagement:

  • Ask your audience questions: Create a post or caption that encourages audience members to comment with their takes. For example: What are your goals for the year? What do you want to see from us more? What are your biggest questions about…?
  • Post trivia: Use your caption or post to quiz your audience and encourage them to comment with their guesses.
  • “Tag a friend:” Use your caption to encourage fans to tag a friend that the post reminds them of.
  • Use Story stickers: Encouraging engagement in your Story wins you points with the algorithm. Use stickers to encourage people to tap through, test their knowledge with a quiz, comment with questions or react.
  • React with an emoji: Ritz recently created a viral trend doing this on Twitter.

reply with a 🫴 and i’ll hand u a cracker

— RITZ Crackers (@Ritzcrackers) March 6, 2023

4. Post when your followers are active

Timing matters in every feed. The importance of timing in the chronological feed is obvious.

But in the Home feed, posting when followers are active racks up early engagements. This signals to the algorithm that your content is popular.

Post when your audience is already scrolling and most likely to see your new content.

How to do it:

Instagram’s native analytics provide data on when your followers are active. Simply open the app > go to your profile > tap “professional dashboard” > tap “See all” next to Account insights > tap “total followers” > scroll down to “Most Active Times”.

A bar graph that you can find in Instagram Insights that displays your audience's most active times on each day of the week to better understand when you should post.

Level up by scheduling posts at optimal times automatically.

With Sprout Social, schedule posts at the best times for your audience. Use Sprout Social’sOptimal Send Times when scheduling Instagram content to identify the top seven ideal publishing times for your posts, every day.

A post being scheduled in Sprout Social's post compose window. The Optimal Send Times dropdown has been pulled up and displays the top seven best times to post on your channels to ensure your audience is active.

5. Lead with your audience

To truly make the algorithm work in your favor, create content that inspires your audience to engage. At the end of the day, your content is for your audience.

Design it with them in mind.

How to do it:

Your audience tells you what topics, content types and posts they like. To uncover those answers, dig into your data.

Instagram’s native analytics provide a basic overview of your audience and top posts from the past 90 days. But to understand what your audience likes, you need to go further.

Sprout Social’s Post Performance Report tells you which posts your audience prefers without limiting insights to 90 days. Dig into the content that works and sort by the metrics that matter most to you.

Sprout Social's Post Performance Report, which shows your top performing content across all of your social channels, individually or all together.

Measuring your Instagram algorithm performance

Understanding the Instagram algorithm is one thing. Proving your strategy works is another.

You won’t demonstrate business impact without the right data. Vanity metrics like likes and views don’t tell the full story, and they won’t convince your executive team that your Instagram strategy deserves more resources.

To secure buy-in and justify your team’s efforts, connect Instagram performance to tangible business results. This means going beyond surface-level numbers to measure what drives real outcomes.

Track performance with comprehensive analytics that reveal true business impact:

  • Unlimited historical data: Access performance trends beyond Instagram’s 90-day limit
  • Custom metrics filtering: Focus on conversions, clicks, and business-relevant KPIs
  • Cross-channel reporting: Compare Instagram performance against other social platforms
  • Executive-ready dashboards: Present data that demonstrates ROI to leadership

Sprout Social’s Post Performance Report transforms raw data into strategic insights that drive budget approval and resource allocation.

The brands winning on Instagram aren’t just creating great content. They’re measuring what works, optimizing based on data, and proving ROI with clarity.

Harness the Instagram algorithm to drive business impact

The Instagram algorithm will always evolve. The tactics that work today won’t necessarily work tomorrow.

But here’s what won’t change: Instagram rewards brands that create content people genuinely want to engage with. The algorithm is designed to surface posts that drive authentic interactions, spark conversations, and keep users on the platform.

Your job isn’t to outsmart the algorithm. It’s to understand what your audience values and consistently deliver content that meets those expectations.

The brands that succeed on Instagram in 2025 will be those that stay organized, maintain consistency, and continuously optimize based on performance data. If you’re ready to take your Instagram strategy to the next level, check out our guide on how to create a social media calendar to keep yourself organized and your content consistent.

Ready to transform your Instagram strategy from guesswork to data-driven results? Start your free Sprout Social trial and discover why leading brands trust our platform to maximize their social media ROI.

Instagram algorithm FAQs

What is the 5 3 1 rule on Instagram?

The 5-3-1 rule suggests daily engagement with five small accounts, three medium accounts, and one large account in your niche to increase brand visibility. This community engagement strategy supports building relationships that increase your content’s discoverability.

How often does the Instagram algorithm change?

Instagram’s algorithm updates continuously through small adjustments, with major changes announced periodically. Focus on creating engaging content and building authentic relationships rather than chasing algorithm changes.

Do business accounts perform differently in the algorithm?

No. Instagram confirms that your account type, whether it’s a business, creator, or personal profile, doesn’t receive preferential treatment in the algorithm. Your content’s performance depends entirely on quality and engagement, not your profile category.

Can you reset your Instagram algorithm?

You don’t ‘reset’ the algorithm, but you do retrain it over time. By actively engaging with content you want to see more of and using the “Not Interested” feature on irrelevant suggestions, you’ll gradually reshape what Instagram shows you.

How do you measure Instagram algorithm success beyond vanity metrics?

True algorithm success is measured by business impact, not just likes and comments. Track metrics like profile visits, website clicks from your bio, link clicks in Stories, saves (which indicate high-value content), shares (which extend your reach) and conversion rates from Instagram traffic. Use a comprehensive analytics platform to connect these data points over time and demonstrate ROI.