Instagram Algorithm Explained: How to Increase Your Reach

An important clarification regarding Instagram is that it does not run on a single universal algorithm but rather has multiple algorithms that are each specialised for specific areas of the platform (Feed, Explore, Stories, Reels).

Instagram’s algorithms work similarly to intelligent systems that determine what users will see in their feeds based on how much they hop into the app (likes, messages, recent visits), engage with others and how much time they spend looking for something new (hashtags, topics).

To simply put, Instagram’s purpose is to keep users engaged with the platform by providing them with content that is relevant and interesting to them.

The Instagram algorithm is based on machine learning to understand the social network behaviours and create a similar or personal feed for every user. For example, even if two or more people have subscribed to the same page, their feeds will not be the same; it is based on their personal interactions with their accounts. Here are some of the most common ranking factors of the Instagram algorithm:

Interest Prediction

Instagram predicts the chances someone will be interested in your content prior to seeing it. They do this by analysing the following factors:

• Their past interactions with similar posts
• Pages and creators they engage with regularly
• Topics that they are following
• The visual aspects of the post (i.e., using machine vision)

If your content is a good match for the user’s interests, the algorithm will place your content higher on the user’s feed.

Timeliness

Instagram algorithms still value freshness. New posts are prioritised because the platform wants users to see the latest content, not something published days ago. Posting when your audience is active is crucial.

Relationship Strength

Instagram rewards connections. If a user interacts with a creator’s posts often by liking, commenting, sharing, or sending DMs and mentions, Instagram views that creator as having a “strong” connection with the user, which suggests that they will likely promote that creator’s posts to the user’s feed.

Frequency of App Usage

People who check Instagram multiple times a day have a more “chronological” feed. For individuals who visit Instagram very little, Instagram will show those users what it considers to be “the best content” since their last visit, and they may have to compete against many other creators for the user’s attention.

Following Count

The more accounts a user follows, there are less chances to see all posts on their feed. This is because of the number of the same post engagements, which may be lost amongst all of the creator’s posts and accounts that users follow.

*socialmediatoday.com

Instagram’s algorithm continues to evolve, but its core principles remain focused on user engagement and relevance. Let’s break down how the Instagram algorithm works​ across different sections of the app.

Instagram Feed Algorithm

When prioritising content in the feed, the feed prioritises posts that provide engagement and relevance to users. Thus, allowing users to interact via captions, videos, carousels, etc., creates longer viewing durations, which is also a signal for the algorithm to enhance engagement for future posts.

The algorithm considers factors like:

1. The frequency of user interactions with an account.
2. The time of posting.
3. User affinity to topics.
4. Total accounts that a user follows.
5. Amount of time a user spends on each post.

*socialbu.com

Instagram Stories Algorithm

Stories on Instagram rely mainly on user interaction so that the users’ Stories stay at the top of the users’ feed. Instagram keeps track of the following:

• The Accounts whose users regularly watch the users’ Stories.
• Replying to the users’ Stories.
• Stickers that users have interacted with polls, questions, and sliders.
• How often have viewers watched through each frame of the users’ Stories?

*instagram.com

Instagram Explore Page Algorithm

The Explore page is one of the many ways the Instagram algorithm can help the user discover new content. If you want to make sure your content appears on the Explore page, it is important to make sure that your content continues to be popular among your current followers. Instagram uses several factors when determining the chances of your content appearing on the Explore page, including:

• The number of likes, saves, shares, and the amount of time spent viewing your posts by an audience.
• The relevancy of your posts to the individual’s interests.
• The ability of Instagram’s AI to analyse visual content.
• The hashtags and keywords used in your posts.
• The engagement trends on your posts

*recurpost.com

Instagram Reels Algorithm

Instagram’s Reels algorithm is designed to promote reels to as many users as possible. The episodes that will receive the most promotion on Instagram will be those that:

• Have a longer viewing time.
• Have a high percentage of view replays.
• Receive a lot of saves and share engagement.
• Use trending audio.
• Have unique original content.
• Capture the attention of viewers in the first 1-3 seconds.

*socialpilot.co

Keep the following tips in mind to work with the Instagram algorithm when marketing your business.

1. Build Genuine Relationships to Strengthen Your Ranking

Instagram gives preference to showing users content from those accounts they feel connected to. As such, your priority will be establishing a connection with your followers, as well as increasing your overall reach. When your followers regularly engage with your account, Instagram assumes they have a connection to you and will therefore show them your posts.

Creating user-generated content, sharing mentions and tagging, responding quickly to comments, and using interactive elements on your Stories create relationships. Authentic conversation keeps you in touch with your followers and helps you build engagement levels that improve your ranking in the future.

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2. Focus on Reels to Boost Organic Growth

Reels are still the most powerful method of increasing the account’s reach. Instagram continues to reward short-form video content with the greatest reach, so if you are looking to expand your visibility, consider creating reels.

As with video content, posting high-quality visuals, using strong hooks to attract attention, including clear onscreen text, and utilising trending music will all help increase the performance of your reels. Reels that provide educational, entertaining, or curiosity-inducing content have proven to capture user attention longer, resulting in increased dwell time, which in turn leads to the algorithm rewarding them.

3. Join Conversations on Relevant Accounts to Expand Visibility

Leaving thoughtful, meaningful comments on popular accounts helps you appear in front of new audiences. This isn’t about generic emojis, it’s about adding value.

Engage with influencers, brands, and creators in your niche. When people see your insightful comments, they’re more likely to visit your profile and engage with your content, enhancing your algorithmic performance.

4. Respond Quickly to Comments to Boost Early Engagement

The first hour after posting is extremely important. Instagram evaluates how quickly people interact with your post to decide whether it should be pushed further.

When you reply to a follower’s comment, it creates opportunities for followers to interact with you. These quick interactions or conversations create a spike in the level of activity on your account. This rise sends an immediate signal to Instagram’s algorithm, indicating that your content has value and should be seen by more people.

5. Strengthen Your Instagram SEO to Improve Discoverability

Instagram has become a powerful search engine. Users now search for categories, topics, and keywords, not just hashtags.

Optimising your profile, bio, captions, and alt text with relevant keywords helps Instagram understand who you are and whom to show your content to. Strong Instagram SEO increases visibility across search results, suggested content, and Explore.

6. Reshare Strong Posts to Stories to Extend Their Lifespan

Your audience may not have seen every feed post due to how many people they follow. Sharing your strongest-performing posts in your Stories, it gives users who missed the post a second chance at seeing it.

The reason it works is that your story lives at the top of the app, giving users a greater chance to click on it, hence increasing engagement on that original post and possibly raising it within the overall rankings.

7. Use Carousel Posts to Increase Dwell Time

Carousel Posts allow for multiple slides, which means users swipe through your carousel, and therefore, the total time spent on your post gets noted by the algorithm as a high engagement level.

Best practices include creating educational breakdowns, creating step-by-step content and creating storytelling style posts within the carousel formats. Always remember to end with a call to action, i.e. a reminder to save the post to get more mileage out of the post.

8. Make Stories More Interactive to Strengthen Daily Engagement

Stories offer tools specifically designed to increase engagement, such as polls, quizzes, emojis, question boxes, and more. Every interaction helps to build your relationship with the audience and improves your future ranking.

The more viewers engage with your Stories, the more often your content appears at the top of their feed.

9. Use Instagram Ads When Organic Reach Slows Down

Paid content can give your profile a boost, especially when organic growth becomes stagnant. Even a small budget can help you reach more relevant viewers.

Running ads for high-performing Reels, posts, or offers increases visibility and often triggers more organic reach afterwards.

10. Collaborate With Micro-Influencers for Niche Reach

Micro-influencers continue to perform well in terms of engagement rates. Their followers trust their opinions more than those of macro-influencers, and thus, collaborations with micro-influencers are more effective.

When you partner with content creators who are in your niche, you gain followers who are genuinely interested in what you have to offer. This leads to a higher level of engagement and a better algorithmic performance on social media platforms.

11. Keep Creating While Your Content Is Viral

A viral post is a great chance to expand your business. The algorithm rewards posts that gain a lot of attention with increased exposure for your next posts. So, it will reward you for creating and posting similar content that is likely to gain a lot of attention.

You can do it by creating a related Reel or creating a response video of your followers’ comments on your viral post to help create momentum.

12. Start Your Videos With an Irresistible Hook

The first 3 seconds of your video will determine whether or not someone will continue watching or scroll away. An attention-grabbing hook will increase watch time significantly. Implement it by using an unexpected question, a dramatic image, or a statement that demands attention.

Now you must have understood how the Instagram algorithm works and how you can implement the above-mentioned strategies to maximise your reach. Remember, an algorithm is undoubtedly essential, but your priority should always be creating authentic and valuable content too. For this, you can keep yourself experimenting, analysing results and always refining your approach that meets your goals. 

Also, if you want to understand more about marketing, we would recommend registering for the Professional Certificate Programme in AI-Powered Digital Marketing for Performance and Growth offered by IIM Kozhikode through Jaro Education. These programmes help you to learn about the modern digital ecosystem, including consumer behaviour analysis, predictive analysis, and immersive technologies. Also, there are other certification courses available that can help to hone your marketing skills. 

Visit Jaro Education’s website to explore more about programme highlights and the advantages.