The majority of social media sites out there have character limits.
The good news is that Instagram has a far greater character limit on its post than other social media networks, like Twitter. In this article, we’re going to talk about Instagram’s character limits, what we think is the best length for those captions, and how you can make the most of them.
What is the Instagram Character Limit?
With Instagram’s captions, you’ve got a character limit of 2,200.
This is pretty generous, especially when compared with other sites out there.
Of course, it’s going to be difficult for anyone out there to read a caption that is this long, which is why most people decide to go for a shorter caption length.
According to a study, the ideal caption length of Instagram is 125 characters or less, so that it can easily be read and absorbed by someone who is scrolling through their Instagram feed.
If it starts to get longer than this, people will need to select ‘see more’, and unless they’re prepared to stop scrolling to do so, they aren’t going to be interested.
The bottom line: keep those captions short and sweet.
Instagram is a visual platform, but despite this those captions are just as important as the image that you upload.
So, while the character limit is long, if you make sure to keep it nice and short, this is going to result in more engagement on your posts.
The more engagement you get on an image, the more Instagram is going to promote your content to more users.
Hashtag Limit
The hashtag limit on Instagram is slightly different to the character limit in the captions. In fact, you’re only meant to put 30 hashtags on each post, and even this amount is too much for most.
Back in the day, it used to be all about seeing who could add the most hashtags, but things have changed.
Now, it’s all down to quality, not quantity, and making sure that you use a lot fewer hashtags that really count.
Instead of finding 30 generic tags for your posts that are relevant to your niche, you need to cut that number down, and focus on specific hashtags that are hyper-relevant.
Experts say that the ideal number of hashtags per post is 11.
The Best App to Help You with Character Limit
As you already know, there is an app for everything these days, and when thinking about Instagram’s character limit, it’s no different.
There is an app called Preview that can help you organize and plan your feed, write your captions, and even help you choose the right tags for your posts.
Lengthening Your Character Limit
If you are in the mood to write an essay under one of your posts, and you don’t think that Instagram’s character limit is going to be enough, then there is a way around this.
All you have to do is write the caption like normal underneath your post, and then when you post your content, continue the caption in the comments sections.
Just make sure that you let your followers know you are continuing things in the comments, otherwise they might be left wondering why you suddenly ended your caption.
If you’ve got plenty to say and you want to be able to share it on Insta, then there are a couple of other ways around the character limit.
You can always write your thoughts down on a blog post, then copy the URL of the post and include it in your bio.
You can create an image with a plain background saying that you’ve got something more to say, and they can find the link to it in your bio.
How to Use Instagram’s Character Limit to Your Advantage
Some people might think about Instagram’s character limit and feel, well, limited.
However, now that you know that shorter captions are just as effective, you don’t need to feel this way.
We recommend that if you want to engage with your followers on a deeper level, ask them a question. This way, they can continue the conversation with you by answering your question in the comments section.
The Best Instagram Captions
Celebrities like Ariana Grande know that if they ask their followers a question in the caption, they are going to get a lot of comments on that post.
When she doesn’t ask her followers questions, she gets a lot less comments on her posts.
Just remember that Instagram only shows the first two lines of a caption when you are scrolling through your feed, so make them count. Include the question here, so that people can see it immediately.
You can also do a mini caption before a long caption, which is what people are going to see first when they scroll.
Linh has done this here where she has included a small caption for those who are just scrolling quickly, and a longer one for those that want to click on ‘see more’.
Instagram Character Limit for Bio
Of course, there is a character limit for your Instagram bio as well. Your bio has to have a limit so that when people visit your profile, they can see your stats, username, and the first few photos of your feed all at once.
So, with this in mind, the character limit for your Instagram bio is 150.
This is enough to provide new people visiting your profile for the first time with the information that they need.
Your bio should include your age, location, name, links, and what your profile is about. If you’ve got any characters left, you can also put a short quote, or even some emojis.
Instagram Character Limit for Username
There is also a character limit for Instagram usernames. You can’t choose a name that is longer than 30 characters.
Naturally, this makes sense, and you should be able to come up with something that fits the bill.
Make sure that your username is relevant to your profile, and its content. It’s going to be how people identify you, so make it special, unique and original.
Conclusion
Now that you know how the different Instagram character limits you’ve got to work with, you will be writing the best captions before you know it.
Just remember the tips that we’ve talked about today, and you will see your audience grow in no time!
