Instagram compresses and lowers the quality of photos and videos uploaded to its platform. This is done to save space on its servers and reduce data usage for users. However, as a creator wanting to showcase your content in the highest quality, this compression can be frustrating. The good news is there are some things you can do to get around Instagram’s compression.
Understanding Instagram Image and Video Compression
When you upload a photo or video to Instagram, the platform will compress and resize it to optimize delivery across different devices and networks. For photos, Instagram scales images down to a width of 1080 pixels. For videos, the maximum resolution is also 1080p.
In addition to resizing, Instagram uses lossy compression algorithms like JPEG and H.264 to reduce file size. This process entails removing some data from your original file to shrink its size. The tradeoff is a decline in overall visual quality and sharpness.
Instagram’s compression and resizing ensures quick loading and smooth playback in the app feed. But for photographers and videographers sharing high-quality portfolio work, it can diminish the viewing experience.
Tips to Reduce Image Compression on Instagram
While you can’t completely avoid compression on Instagram, there are techniques to minimize its impact on your photos:
- Export at the highest resolution – Export your image at a large resolution like 2048 x 2048 pixels before uploading. Instagram will still scale it down but starting big retains more data.
- Save images as lossless PNG – JPEG compression creates image artifacts but PNG files preserve quality. Instagram will still convert to JPEG but some improvement is noticeable.
- Add borders to landscape images – Horizontal images get scaled down more than verticals during upload. Adding black borders helps retain dimensions.
- Upload from desktop rather than mobile – Instagram’s mobile app tends to compress images more than the desktop website upload flow.
- Avoid filters on upload – Instagram filters apply another layer of compression, best to skip them.
Also try to avoid saving your original files as JPEG to begin with. Capture or export in a lossless format like RAW or PNG wherever possible.
Reducing Video Compression on Instagram
Instagram also compresses and processes video uploads to optimize streaming in their app. But similar to images, there are techniques to counteract excessive quality loss:
- Export video at highest resolution – Export your clips at 1080p resolution or above before uploading.
- Use optimal codec like H.264 – Record video using an efficient codec like H.264. Avoid older formats like H.263 which don’t hold up as well to compression.
- Upload from desktop – Just like photos, the desktop upload tool compresses less harshly than Instagram’s mobile app.
- Upload shorter clips – 15-30 seconds videos suffer less compression than longer 1 minute plus clips.
- Avoid extra filtering – As with images, skip Instagram filters and editing to prevent re-compression.
Store your master files in a dedicated video format like MOV or AVI. Avoid starting with a compressed format like MP4. Also shoot at the highest resolution and frame rate your camera allows.
Using Instagram Quality Workarounds
If your goal is to display your best quality content on Instagram, there are some workaround options beyond just uploading to your main feed:
- Post to IGTV – Video uploads to IGTV can be up to 60 minutes long at 1080p. This retains higher quality than feed video.
- Share video as carousels – Adding video slides to carousels keeps the original quality compared to feed posts.
- Link to high resolution files – Use your caption to link out to original high-res images and videos on portfolio sites.
- Share previews to main feed – Post lower resolution previews on the main feed and link to full quality content off Instagram.
While these formats avoid feed compression, you lose some of the main Instagram engagement. But for sharing portfolio-grade creative work, it’s a decent tradeoff.
Optimizing Feeds for Image and Video Quality
In addition to individual post workarounds, you can also optimize your overall Instagram feed for quality:
- Curate for key content – Be selective in what you share to the grid. Showcase only your best visual pieces.
- Find the ideal resolution – 1080p video and 1080px photos hit the Instagram sweet spot between quality and compression.
- Focus feeds on specific media – Maintain dedicated photo-only and video-only Instagram feeds to control quality.
- Leverage Instagram Stories – Use Stories for more casual, compressed content to preserve feed for premium posts.
- Use captions to direct – Add captions pointing followers to fuller quality versions away from the feed posts.
A tightly curated, media split, high resolution feed avoids Instagram’s harsher compression and showcases your work in better quality.
Third-Party Apps for Compression Alternatives
Some third-party apps claim to offer ways to upload higher resolution images and video to Instagram than is natively supported:
- Ingramer – Resizes images to Instagram’s dimensions but promises less compression than the main app.
- Instasize – Also resizes images while retaining more data than default Instagram compression.
- Sendible – Social media manager that advertises uploading videos longer than 60 seconds.
However, Instagram’s terms prohibit apps that claim to circumvent its technical limits. Most will still compress your media, just via alternative methods.
The best way to maximize Instagram quality is follow the approved best practices of resolution, file types, etc outlined above.
Why Instagram Compresses Photos and Videos
It’s easy to get frustrated with Instagram reducing your pristine photo and video quality. But the platform has valid reasons for its compression approach:
- Mobile optimization – Heavily compressed content streams smoothly on smartphones.
- User data limits – Compression reduces cellular and wifi data usage for Instagram’s user base.
- Storage costs – Lower quality files take up less server space and bandwidth for the platform.
- Quick load times – Smaller files ensure the Instagram feed and Stories load almost instantly.
As an app overwhelmingly used on mobile, Instagram applies aggressive yet strategic compression to deliver the smoothest overall user experience.
Is Uncompressed Posting Worth the Tradeoffs?
While you may want pristine quality for your Instagram presence, removing all compression does come with downsides:
- Larger files eat up more of users’ data bandwidth.
- Big file sizes slow down load times and create buffering issues.
- Storage costs for Instagram skyrocket without compression’s space savings.
- Inconsistent quality across devices if files aren’t properly optimized.
There are good reasons Instagram applies blanket compression to content across its platform. The service would become unusable if they allowed completely uncompressed posting.
As a creator, it’s ultimately about finding your optimal tradeoff between quality and practical real-world performance.
The Future of Instagram Image and Video Quality
How Instagram manages compression depends on the future direction of its platform and business model. Some potential paths that could impact quality:
- Higher resolution feeds – A gradual move to 4K feeds would reduce compression impact.
- AI optimization – Using AI to selectively compress parts of an image could improve quality.
- Alternative business models – Removing reliance on ads may allow uncompromised quality.
- Dedicated creator features – Special feeds or profiles could get higher resolutions.
But in the immediate term, Instagram’s aggressive but understandable compression is likely here to stay. As creators, we can only do our best to work within its constraints.