How to Post a Carousel on Instagram (2026)

Post a carousel from the Instagram app

1. 1Tap the + icon and choose Post.
2. 2Tap the stacked-squares icon (Select multiple) above your gallery.
3. 3Pick your photos and videos in the order you want them to appear. Each one shows a number in the corner.
4. 4Tap Next. A filter applies to every slide at once; tap a single slide to edit it on its own.
5. 5Write your caption, add a location, tags or music if you like, then tap Share.

Why your slides get cropped

The first slide sets the shape of the whole carousel. If it's vertical, every slide after it gets cropped to the same ratio. The safest move is to make all your slides the same size from the start.

The size that takes up the most room in the feed is 4:5, or 1080 × 1350 pixels. You'll find the rest in our Instagram post sizes guide.

Get people to the last slide

• The first slide is the only one people see in the feed, so it decides whether they swipe. Say what the post is about in one line.
• Keep one idea per slide, with text big enough to read on a phone.
• Give people a reason to swipe: numbered steps, a before and after, a list.
• Use the last slide to ask for something: save the post, visit the profile, leave a comment.

What you can change after posting

Tap ... on the post and choose Edit to change the caption, tags and location. To remove a slide, swipe to it and tap the trash icon in the corner.

Schedule a carousel ahead of time

In the app, a carousel schedules like any other post: open Advanced settings and turn on Schedule this post. The full steps are in our guide on how to schedule Instagram posts.

Scheduling tools can add up to 10 slides to an Instagram carousel. In IZY Social you drag slides to reorder them, and the first image becomes the cover. If your slides have different shapes, you get a warning before the post goes out.