# Instagram Story size and safe zones

[Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/instagram-story-size)

A story fills the whole phone screen, and Instagram lays its own interface over the top and bottom. Here is the size, the zones to keep clear, and how to design inside them.

## The short version

- The Instagram Story size is 1080×1920 pixels, a 9:16 vertical frame that fills a phone screen.
- Instagram places the profile name and progress bar at the top of a story and the reply field and buttons at the bottom.
- A common working rule, based on Meta's guidance for story ads, is to keep roughly the top and bottom 250 pixels free of text and logos.
- Reels use the same 1080×1920 frame but carry more interface at the bottom and down the right side, so they need wider margins there.
- The same 1080×1920 size works for Facebook, Snapchat and WhatsApp stories, TikTok covers and YouTube Shorts covers.

The **Instagram Story size** is 1080×1920 pixels, a vertical 9:16 frame that fills the phone screen. Instagram lays its own interface over the top and bottom of every story: the profile name and progress bar above, the reply field and buttons below. So design for the whole frame, but keep words and logos in the middle. A widely used rule, based on Meta's guidance for story ads, is to leave roughly the top and bottom 250 pixels free of text.

## Instagram Story dimensions

| Property | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Size | 1080×1920 px |
| Aspect ratio | 9:16 |
| Orientation | Vertical, full screen |
| Same frame as | Reels, Facebook and Snapchat stories, WhatsApp status, TikTok and Shorts covers |
| Colour profile | sRGB |

Design at exactly 1080×1920. A story made in any other shape is scaled or letterboxed to fit.

For still stories, export PNG when the design is mostly text, flat colour or gradients, because Instagram recompresses uploads and those suffer most. Use a high-quality JPEG for photographs. For moving stories, export MP4 video at the same 1080×1920 size, so the app has nothing to rescale.

Because the frame is shared by so many platforms, one well-made vertical design travels a long way. The full list is in [social media image sizes](https://gradiently.design/guide/social-media-image-sizes).

## Instagram Story safe zones

The safe zone is the part of the story that nothing covers on any phone. Phones have different screen shapes, so the interface sits in slightly different places, which is why the margins below are generous.

| Zone | From the top (px) | What sits there | Put here |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Top | 0 to 250 | Progress bar, profile photo, name, close button | Background only |
| Middle | 250 to 1670 | Nothing | Headlines, logo, key details |
| Bottom | 1670 to 1920 | Reply field, share and like buttons | Background only |

The three bands of a story. Treat the top and bottom as bleed: part of the design, but never home to words.

- Story 9:16: 1080 × 1920
- Feed post 4:5: 1080 × 1350
- Square 1:1: 1080 × 1080

A story next to a portrait and a square post, to scale. The story is much taller, which is why feed layouts don't transfer to it by stretching.

## Stories and Reels are not quite the same

Reels use the same 1080×1920 frame, but their interface is heavier. The caption, the audio label and the account name sit along the bottom, and the like, comment and share buttons run down the right side. Keep text further up and further left of the right edge than you would in a story.

### Story

- Profile and progress bar at the top
- Reply field and buttons at the bottom
- Tap to advance, so each frame is seen briefly
- Stickers, links and polls can be added in the app

### Reel

- Caption, audio and account name along the bottom
- Action buttons down the right side
- Plays as a video, often on loop
- The cover is also shown in the profile grid, cropped

## How to design an Instagram Story

1. **One message per frame** A still story is on screen for a few seconds. Say one thing, clearly, and put the next thing on the next frame.
2. **Set the headline in the upper middle** Just below the top safe line is where eyes land first, above any stickers or links you'll add in the app.
3. **Leave room for stickers** If you'll add a link, poll or question sticker, keep an empty area in the lower middle for it.
4. **Make the background do the brand work** Stories are full-bleed, so the background is most of what people see. A consistent colour or material makes every frame recognisably yours.
5. **Check contrast everywhere the words sit** On a gradient or photo, contrast changes across the frame. [Text on a gradient](https://gradiently.design/guide/text-on-gradient) shows how to keep every line readable.

A vertical Instagram Story announcing a new menu, with the words centred and the gradient filling the frame

Words in the middle band, background running full bleed behind the interface.

A vertical story asking What should we bake next, with an empty area below for a poll sticker

A question frame with space left underneath for a poll sticker.

For more formats and ideas, see [Instagram Story ideas](https://gradiently.design/guide/instagram-story-design).

## Motion in stories

Stories are where motion earns its keep. A background that drifts slowly under still words catches the eye without asking for a video shoot. Keep the words still, the motion gentle, and make sure the loop joins without a visible jump. [Animated Instagram posts](https://gradiently.design/guide/animated-social-posts) and [Reels backgrounds](https://gradiently.design/guide/reels-tiktok-backgrounds) go deeper. Gradiently exports any design as a 5 to 30 second seamless loop, which is exactly the right length for a story frame.

> **Preview before posting** Send the story to yourself or post it to Close Friends first. The only way to be sure nothing sits under the interface is to see it with the interface on.

## FAQ

### What size is an Instagram Story?

1080×1920 pixels, a 9:16 vertical frame.

### What is the safe zone for Instagram Stories?

Keep text and logos out of roughly the top and bottom 250 pixels, where the profile name, progress bar, reply field and buttons sit.

### Is the Instagram Reel size the same as a story?

Yes, 1080×1920, but Reels carry more interface along the bottom and down the right side, so keep text further from those edges.

### Can I use the same design for Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat stories?

Yes. They all use a 1080×1920 vertical frame, so one design works across them, as long as words stay in the middle band.

### What happens if my story isn't 9:16?

Instagram scales it to fit and fills the leftover space, usually with a blurred or coloured background, so it looks less deliberate than a full-frame design.