You're preparing your story, the visual is ready, and then you hesitate: will the photo be cropped, or will your video display correctly on your followers' phones? The doubt is classic, and a wrong Instagram story format is often the cause. The answer is direct: create it at 1080 x 1920 px, that is a 9:16 ratio filling the whole screen. In this article, you'll find the zones to keep clear, the durations and weights to respect, then how to schedule your content without errors.
The essentials
- An Instagram story is made at 1080 x 1920 px, a 9:16 ratio: this is the full-screen vertical format.
- Place your text in the central zone of about 1080 x 1420 px: the interface hides a band of about 250 px at the top and bottom.
- A story stays visible for 24 hours, then it is archived. A story added to Highlights stays on your profile.
- A story video can last up to 60 seconds, in MP4 or MOV, and stay under 4 GB.
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Publish your stories without making mistakes
For a reader of this article, Dropapost prepares posts, visuals and short videos from an idea or a photo, and nothing goes out without validation.
- What size for an Instagram story in 2026?
- Where to place text so it stays readable?
- What to do with a 4:5 visual for a story?
- Images or videos: formats, weight and duration to respect
- How long does a story stay online?
- Story, carousel or post: which format to choose?
- Our point of view: prepare your stories in batches, then review them
- How to schedule your posts without missing anything
- Frequently asked questions
What size for an Instagram story in 2026?
An Instagram story is published in 9:16, that is 1080 x 1920 px, and it takes the whole screen. This ratio corresponds to a visual clearly taller than wide, the vertical format you naturally hold with your phone. According to the Instagram image sizes guide from Blog du Modérateur, it is the recommended size for the Instagram story format. Advertising stories follow the same rule, with the same 1080 x 1920 px and a minimum of 600 x 1067 px if you don't have a larger visual.
Export your visual directly at 1080 x 1920 px, without improvised cropping on your phone. An image exported at the right resolution keeps its sharpness, whereas a stretched or cropped image loses precision. Before publishing, check that the ratio is exactly 9:16: otherwise, the app chooses the framing for you, and your subject may end up cut off. To set your routine, see our Instagram planning guide.
Where to place text so it stays readable?
Place text and logos in the central zone of about 1080 x 1420 px, keeping about 250 px free at the top and bottom. On a story at 1080 x 1920 px, these two 250 px bands correspond to what the interface hides, that is 250 + 1420 + 250 = 1920 px.
The top of the screen holds your account name, your profile picture and the progress bars, while the bottom carries the reply bar and the buttons. A logo slipped into the top left corner therefore ends up under your profile picture, whereas a title placed in the middle always stays visible. In practice, keep your message in the center and let the rest of the visual breathe on the edges.
Careful, the guides don't agree on the margins: some give 14% at the top and 35% at the bottom, others 155 px, as Alp2m's guide on story formats points out. So take a margin slightly wider than the smallest value to be safe, and check your rendering on your phone before scheduling.
What to do with a 4:5 visual for a story?
A 4:5 visual placed as is in the center of a story leaves 570 px of height to fill, that is about 285 px empty at the top and 285 px at the bottom. A feed post is made at 1080 x 1350 px, a 4:5 ratio: this is not the format of a story. According to Alp2m's guide on story formats, the story occupies the full screen.
You have two solutions. First, extend the background with your brand colors. Then, crop to portrait format while keeping your subject centered, since the edges get cut. Keep good image quality on export.
Take a shop that publishes a product at 1080 x 1350 px. For the story, it adds a colored band and places the price in the center, outside the hidden zones.
The pitfall: text stuck to the edge of the post disappears in a story. Review each visual in story version before scheduling it.
Images or videos: formats, weight and duration to respect
For an image, stay in PNG or JPG under 30 MB; for a video, go with MP4 or MOV under 4 GB, with a duration not exceeding 60 seconds. An image is a fixed visual, whereas a vertical video unfolds over time: so you monitor its weight and the story duration of your video. According to L'Expert Business, dimension guides retain this maximum duration for a story video.
The table compares the three most common cases.
| Case | Format | Weight | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Image | PNG or JPG | under 30 MB | to publish in a single story |
| 45-second video | MP4 or MOV | under 4 GB | passes without splitting |
| 75-second video | MP4 or MOV | under 4 GB | to split into two stories |
Read the table according to your file: a video that is too long is split, it is not compressed at random. Export it as an mp4 file to keep good compatibility. For good resolution, keep the vertical 9:16 format from export, because that is where quality is decided.
How long does a story stay online?
An Instagram story stays visible for 24 hours in the story feed, then it is archived and only you can see it again. According to Le Ptit Digital, this 24-hour limit applies to all stories, whether photo or video, so the story duration remains the same for all your content. The countdown starts at publication, not at the time you had planned.
In practice, a story published Tuesday at 9 a.m. disappears from the feed Wednesday at 9 a.m. So schedule your announcements keeping this limit in mind, and to maintain a steady rhythm, see our guide to automatically posting on Instagram. Before publishing, check that your visual respects the Instagram story size and crop if needed, since your file must stay in portrait format.
The pitfall is the offer announced in a story: it leaves the feed after a day, even though your audience is still looking for it. For a promotion that lasts, plan a reminder the next day or keep the story in Highlights, with a story link to your offer. This way you avoid republishing everything every day.
Story, carousel or post: which format to choose?
Choose the story for the moment, the carousel to explain, and the highlight story to make it last. The story is used to reach your followers right away, whereas the carousel accepts several files, images or videos, in a single publication. It is therefore ideal for showing a step-by-step process. A creator launching a new product, for example, prepares a 5-file carousel for the feed, then a 9:16 reminder story the same day.
The frequent mistake is reusing a square or portrait visual as is. If your visual is designed at 1080 x 1350 px, adapt it before moving it to a story, otherwise the edges will be cut and your text may disappear. Take the time to extend the background or crop, it only takes a few minutes. To choose the reel format suited to your goal, also read our comparison of video formats.
Our point of view: prepare your stories in batches, then review them
The Instagram story format stays the same, 1080 x 1920 px, from one publication to the next. We believe it should be prepared like a post, not at the last minute from your phone. So group your visuals in batches, one afternoon per week, and review them together. This avoids typos and text cut off by the interface. You save time without sacrificing your brand's voice.
Our position is simple: AI proposes, you validate. A story that went out without review may leave text in the edges hidden by the interface, hence the value of keeping the message in the center. It is not a magic rule, it is a matter of readability.
Your tip of the week: choose three stories, check that the text stays centered and that the file weight is correct, then schedule them.
— Mathieu
How to schedule your posts without missing anything
To schedule your posts without missing anything, prepare them in advance, set their publication time, then review your calendar every week. To go further, read our 3 free methods.
Here is the routine to follow:
- Start your trial: 7 days free, €0 today, cancellable in 1 click. Afterwards, the subscription ranges from €19.99 to €79.99 per month.
- Let Ava prepare your visuals in your brand colors and your texts in your tone: nothing goes out without your validation.
- Schedule your posts, carousels and vertical videos at the best times, then review your calendar every week.
- Connect your accounts through official Meta access and favor a professional account: Dropapost is a verified Meta partner.
- Monitor the first 24 hours after publication to adjust the voice.
If you want this rhythm to run without you, Dropapost takes care of it, and you validate before each publication. Try it today.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a Reel and a Story on Instagram?
The reel format refers to a video published in the feed and in the Reels tab: it stays on your profile and can be discovered by people who don't follow you. A story, on the other hand, disappears from the feed after 24 hours. In practice, the story is used day to day and for conversation, while the Reel is used to be discovered. In other words, choose the format according to what you want to achieve.
Can you schedule an Instagram story?
It depends on the tool you use, since story scheduling is not identical from one tool to another, so check before relying on it. In every case, a story lasts only 24 hours after publication, so time it for your moments of strong presence. For your Instagram posts, Dropapost fills your calendar and publishes at the best times, and nothing goes out without your validation.
Also read
- Why can't you schedule an Instagram post?
- Schedule Instagram stories: auto-publishing 2026
- How much does a community manager cost in 2026 in France
Sources
- Instagram image sizes guide · blogdumoderateur.com
- This 24-hour limit · leptidigital.fr
- Alp2m's guide on story formats · alp2m.fr
- L'Expert Business · lexpertbusiness.com
Written by Mathieu, Dropapost
Written by
AJD Studio
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