How Long Can Instagram Stories Be in 2024?

Let’s face it, millions, or maybe billions, are in love with Instagram.

It’s a fantastic place to connect with your audience and build communities.

I’m always on the hunt for ideas and patterns that will help me create and editing video content for social media that grabs attention and boosts engagement.

I like experimenting with creative content, video length, posting schedules, and more.

One burning question I decided to tackle today: how long can Instagram Stories be in 2024?

Let me be frank with you, Instagram Stories that are too short are like Lays Chips (much criticized air-to-chip ratio).

They contain very little information. On the flip side, people may lose interest in long Instagram Stories.

Today’s mission: to find the sweet spot to maximize the reach of your message.

Stick around; you’ll learn a lot to up your Instagram marketing game.

Instagram Stories: An Overview

It was somewhere, I think, during the start of autumn in 2016 that Instagram added the Instagram Story feature to the app.

Although Instagram was widely criticized for pinching this feature from Snapchat, the move proved to be a masterstroke.

Instagram Stories became an instant hit among its users.

This feature allowed social media app users to share images, ads, videos, and other content that would disappear in 24 hours.

In the initial stage, some experts, shaking their heads, opined, “This will never work!”

They felt the temporary nature of the content would deter users and creators from adopting Instagram Stories.

Here is the juicy part: the fact that Stories disappear after 24 hours increased views, sharing, and overall engagement with the account.

Since then, Instagram Stories have become very popular. The following stats speak for themselves:

• At least 500 million users interact with Instagram Stories every day, and 70% of users watch Stories daily.
• At least 40% of Instagram users post Stories every day.
• Instagram Stories have a completion rate of 86%.
• Instagram Story is a powerful marketing tool. According to a survey, 44% of businesses use Instagram Stories to promote a product or service.
• 58% of users became interested in a product or service, and 50% visited the product or service page after watching Stories.
• Every month, around 4 million businesses use Instagram Story ads.
• In the case of Instagram Stories, people value authenticity over the budget of the video content. Mobile-recorded Instagram Story videos outperformed studio-shot advertisements by 63%.

With so much riding on the success of Instagram Stories, it’s no wonder businesses, marketers, and content creators want to know the optimal Instagram Stories length.

How Long Can Instagram Stories Be?

Every content creator grapples with the question, ‘How long should the video be?’

Understanding the time constraints of Instagram Stories helps content creators craft impactful scripts that are both effective and engaging.

Here are the crucial facts about Instagram Stories that you should know:

The Maximum Length of Instagram Stories (after 2022)

In 2022, Instagram found a sweet spot between the two by increasing the maximum length of an Instagram Story video from 15 seconds to 60 seconds.

The new 60-second rule includes the best of both worlds. You can be more liberal with the amount of information you share in your videos.

This rule gives you the creative freedom to explore more content types such as mini-tutorials, customer reviews, testimonials, and more.

The increase in Instagram Stories length enables continuity and an uninterrupted flow of information without needing to break a clip into multiple videos of 15 seconds each.

Super-short clips are attention-grabbing and the most snackable content on Instagram, while relatively longer videos give creators the freedom to use storytelling to convey useful information to the audience.

The Maximum Length of Instagram Stories (before 2022)

For six years, content creators had to keep their Instagram Story videos under 15 seconds per clip.

They also doubled up as masters of chopping, slicing long videos into 15-second clips and sharing them one after the other.

Any video longer than 15 seconds, uploaded intentionally or unintentionally, was automatically chopped into 15-second segments.

The first four segments (amounting to 60 seconds) were published.

Instagram isn’t the only social media platform to cap its video length. It’s helpful to know the maximum lengths for other platforms too:

Snapchat Stories: 60 seconds

Facebook Stories: 20 seconds

WhatsApp Status: 30 seconds

As you can see, Instagram Stories’ video length now matches Snapchat and is quite higher than Facebook and WhatsApp.

This gives Instagram content creators more flexibility and serves as an incentive to create more videos for the platform.

Instagram Stories need not be videos alone. Images are quite popular too.

Instagram Story images will appear for 7 seconds. You can stitch multiple images to create a visual flow within the Instagram Story.

While discussing the length of videos for Instagram Stories, let’s take a detour to talk about the best aspect ratio for videos. The aspect ratio is important because the video must fit the screen.

Instagram content with its edges cut off receives fewer viewers and less engagement.

Furthermore, the right aspect ratio will give a professional touch to your videos.

The ideal aspect ratio to adopt while creating videos for Instagram Stories is 9:16; the first number is the width and the second is the height of the image/video.

Instagram Stories are designed for quick interaction.

The visual content you upload as Instagram Stories disappears after 24 hours. To access it after 24 hours, you can save the Story as a highlight.

Instagram Stories vs. Other Video Types on the Platform

From humble beginnings as a photo-only platform, Instagram has come a long way to become a behemoth of videos.

This has helped Instagram boost its user base and engagement.

Let’s take a look at popular features that can host videos on Instagram.

Instagram Stories: Short Videos Known for Their 24-Hour Disappearing Act

Instagram Stories revolutionized the way users interact with content. This feature drastically improves live interaction.

Images and videos posted as Stories stay for only 24 hours.

In addition to images and videos, you can also add questions, polls, and quizzes in Stories.

The Stories feature is ideal for posting the latest news and announcements, short-term discounts, casual content, and quizzes and polls.

Instagram Reels: TikTok Clone but with a Better Security Policy

Seeing the crazy popularity of TikTok, Instagram introduced Reels and even offered it a dedicated explore page to increase its reach beyond the followers.

Reels are meant for casual, fun, entertaining, and engaging video content.

Users can add short-form videos up to 90 seconds and include text, graphics, special effects, and music using Instagram Reels editing apps.

Instagram Live Videos: Basically, Your Very Own Reality TV

People are growing fond of live videos because real-time content is perceived to be more authentic and interactive.

We have already seen widespread use of Live Videos by brands to connect with followers, prospective customers, and existing customers.

Instagram Live Videos, which can be up to 4 hours long, are a great way to host events, conduct Q&A sessions, build community, and share live tutorials.

One big advantage of Live Videos is that interaction with viewers is quick and genuine.

Viewers respond to the live content using live chat, comments, and likes.

Instagram Video Ads: The Price You Pay for Using the App for Free

Instagram hosts millions of businesses and gives them a fertile platform to promote their products and services.

Businesses can use Instagram video ads to reach their audiences through Stories, feed videos, and Reels.

The platform provides necessary filters to identify target audiences based on interests, location, and other demographic factors.

Instagram Video: For Individuals with an Attention Span Longer Than a Goldfish

In 2022, Instagram Video replaced IGTV as the main platform for long-form video content.

You can upload videos of any length up to 60 minutes.

Use this feature to share vlogs, long tutorials, interviews, or any type of long-form video content.

Instagram will automatically generate a preview clip for videos that are longer than 60 seconds.

How to Post an Instagram Story Video?

Instagram practically begs users to share multiple Stories daily, which is why they have made posting as easy as possible.

Here is a crash course on how to create, optimize, and post Instagram Stories online.

Step 1: Record or Upload Your Story

You can film a video from the app or upload a video already on your phone.

Either way, the video should be less than 60 seconds.

Start by clicking the (+) button at the top of the home screen or choose the Story option from the menu at the bottom of the screen.

You can begin filming by pressing the record button at the center.

You’ll see a progress bar at the top indicating the length of the recording.

Once you reach the 60-second mark, the camera will slice the clip and remove the extra footage.

Alternatively, to upload a clip from your phone gallery, select the option on the left side of the record button.

Step 2: Spice Up the Story to Make It More Engaging

Once the video is ready, make a few changes to make the content more fun.

You can add stickers to the video.

For example, to promote an upcoming event, use a location sticker to reach a wider audience.

Your Story will appear in search results for the tagged location.

Captions can make your Story video accessible to viewers who don’t switch on the audio.

To automatically transcribe the video, click the Captions sticker. You can also add subtitles manually.

Add interactive elements to the video.

Some of the most popular interactive elements include

• Countdown (to create urgency)
• Quiz (ask questions about products, services, brands, or any subject),
• Poll (invite viewers’ opinions to make them feel valued)
• Shoutouts (use the mention sticker to tag other users in your Story).

Step 3: Unleash Your Story upon the World

Once you’ve optimized the video by adding text, stickers, audio, and graphic elements, it’s time to publish your creation.

If you’re also connected to your Facebook account, post this Story on Facebook as well.

Additionally, you can share the video with friends, special followers, influencers, etc., to expand the Story’s reach.

From ‘Meh’ to ‘OMG’ Stories in 6 Easy Steps

I don’t believe in the motto, ‘a work begun is half done.’

To succeed on Instagram, half-effort isn’t enough. You need to aim for the winner’s trophy, not just the participation medal.

It isn’t enough to create Story videos; you need to make them informative, effective, and impactful. Here are 6 simple tips you can implement now to reap rich rewards.

1. Let me start with a tried and tested idea that always works: grab viewers’ attention in the first few seconds of the video. Use fantastic visuals, start with a question, promise a solution, or announce a discount to hook the audience right from the start.
2. Dazzle the audience with interactive elements. You can make Stories more fun using emoji sliders, quizzes, polls, and questions.
3. Make your short-form videos more engaging through storytelling. Use text, transitions, captions, and images to create a compelling story that’ll leave viewers hungry for more.
4. Instagram Stories must be visually appealing. Viewers don’t expect Hollywood-budget productions, but create the best quality visuals that your phone and budget allow. You’ll be doing yourself and the audience a disservice by posting blurry, poor-quality visuals online.
5. One Instagram Story a day won’t get you anywhere. For optimal account growth, Neil Patel suggests posting 4 to 7 times a day, as mentioned in his recent post on X (formerly Twitter). The more you post, the more people will see your content, leading to greater engagement. If you want Stories to appear at different times, you can use a scheduling tool.
6. Share only your best content. Make creative use of the tools and functions offered by Instagram. For example, use location stickers to tag a store or include a question box. Use captions to make Stories more accessible and add background music to make them more enjoyable.

Instagram Story Length: Frequently Asked Questions

(a) What happens if the video is longer than 60 seconds?

Just when you plan to make a video that’s less than 60 seconds, you’ll exceed the mark.

Luckily for you, Instagram automatically segments the extra footage into 15-second clips.

You can append the extra clips to your Story so they play consecutively.

However, if the video is several minutes long, you can post it as an Instagram Video, which has an upper limit of 60 minutes.

There is no rule saying Instagram Stories must be 60 seconds long.

Stories can be less than 60 seconds. In fact, shorter and more concise videos perform well on the platform.

(b) How do I know the length of the Instagram Story before I post it?

If you’re recording the video from the Instagram app, check the progress bar at the top of the screen.

You can see the time elapsed in the 60-second progress bar.

Once the progress bar crosses 60 seconds, automatic segmentation takes over.

As mentioned above, the app will segment the extra footage into 15-second clips and attach them to your Story.

Bear in mind, that Instagram will not notify you before splitting the video after the 60-second mark.

(c) What if I want a longer, continuous Story video?

I have a clever workaround if you want to use a longer video on Instagram Story.

Record multiple Story videos (each 60 seconds in length) and post them one after the other.

The videos will play continuously, giving the viewer the illusion of watching one long video.

Final Thoughts

Alright, folks! It’s time to wrap it up. We have solved an important mystery today.

With the knowledge of the optimal Instagram Stories length, it’ll be a breeze for you to captivate the audience and make them watch the video from start to finish.

Plus, don’t forget to make the content informative, engaging, and visually appealing.

This, my friends, is the magic formula to make your content go viral on Instagram.

Time to put these ideas into action and watch your Instagram engagement soar.