Instagram carousel size
The Instagram carousel size is 1080x1350 pixels, a ratio of 4:5. Check every slide in the browser: one odd shape sets the crop for the whole carousel.
Every Instagram carousel size
| Where it is used | Pixels | Ratio | What the number is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait carousel | 1080x1350 | 4:5 | Takes the most screen, and the usual choice for a carousel meant to be read. |
| Square carousel | 1080x1080 | 1:1 | The safest shape, because the profile grid crops to it anyway. |
| Landscape carousel | 1080x566 | 1.91:1 | Rarely worth it: the shortest of the three on a phone. |
Check an image you already have
Choose a file and this says whether it fits, and what gets cropped if it does not.
Resize it to these pixelsEvery Instagram carousel size, in pixels
A carousel is the one Instagram format where the shape is decided once for the whole set: the first slide fixes the ratio and every slide behind it is made to match, whatever it happened to be.
- Portrait carousel: 1080x1350px, a ratio of 4:5. Takes the most screen, and the usual choice for a carousel meant to be read.
- Square carousel: 1080x1080px, a ratio of 1:1. The safest shape, because the profile grid crops to it anyway.
- Landscape carousel: 1080x566px, a ratio of 1.91:1. Rarely worth it: the shortest of the three on a phone.
- Export every slide at the same size before you upload. A mixed batch is cropped to the first slide and the trim lands wherever it lands.
- A carousel holds up to twenty slides, and the row of dots is the only clue a viewer gets about how long it runs.
- The first slide is what the feed shows and what the profile grid crops to a square, so it is doing two jobs the others are not.
- Swipes stop the moment a slide is not worth the next one, which is why the tall shape and a legible opening line matter more here than anywhere else.
Check a file you already have against the Instagram carousel size
The useful check for a carousel is not one file but the set: every slide has to be the same shape, and the quickest way to find the odd one out is to measure them against the same target in turn.
- Pick the target first. This page carries 3 Instagram carousel sizes, and a verdict only means something against one of them.
- Choose your image. It is opened by this browser tab and measured on a canvas, so the file never leaves the machine you are sitting at and there is no queue or upload to wait for.
- Read the result: an exact match at 1080x1350, the same 4:5 shape at a different scale, or a crop with the axis that loses pixels named.
- If it is wrong, open the Instagram resizer linked underneath. It exports to these exact numbers instead of leaving the decision to the platform.
- Run each slide through one after another. Any slide reporting a crop is one that will be trimmed to match the first, because the set is normalised to whatever you put at the front.
What Instagram does when the shape is wrong
Instagram never tells you a carousel is inconsistent. It takes the first slide ratio, applies it to the rest and crops from the middle, so a mixed set publishes quietly with its later slides trimmed.
- A portrait first slide followed by square ones means every square slide loses its left and right edges.
- A square first slide followed by portrait ones means the later slides lose their top and bottom, which is where headings usually sit.
- Slides exported from a presentation are landscape by default, so a deck dropped straight into a carousel is the most expensive version of this mistake.
What makes a carousel worth swiping
Consistent shapes stop a set looking broken, and after that the format has to earn each swipe. A carousel is the one Instagram post people read rather than glance at, which sets a higher bar for what goes on the slides.
- One idea per slide, with the next idea visible enough to be a reason to swipe.
- Keep type well inside the frame. A word touching the edge looks cropped even when nothing was cropped.
- The last slide is where the swipe ends and the only reliable place for the ask, since the caption sits collapsed under the post.
The rest of the job
You just fixed one post. Now do the month.
The instagram carousel size solves one piece of one post. OctoSpark plans, writes and schedules the whole calendar across every network you use, publishes it for you, and reports what actually performed.
- One calendar for every network
- Schedule once, publish everywhere
- Drafts written in your own voice
- See what actually performed
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Related free tools
- Instagram image resizerResize any image to the exact dimensions Instagram expects: square post 1080x1080, plus every other Instagram size. Runs in your browser, nothing uploaded.
- Instagram post sizeThe Instagram post size is 1080x1080 pixels, a ratio of 1:1. Check a file against it in your browser and see which edges the square feed crop would eat.
- Instagram reel sizeThe Instagram reel size is 1080x1920 pixels, a ratio of 9:16. Check yours in the browser, including how much of the frame the caption and buttons sit over.
Frequently asked questions
How this tool works, what it cannot do, and what happens to what you put into it.
What is the Instagram carousel size?
1080x1350 pixels, a ratio of 4:5. Square at 1080x1080 and landscape at 1080x566 are accepted too, but whichever you choose for the first slide is applied to the entire set.What if my image is not 1080x1350?
The first slide sets the shape and the others are cropped from the middle to match it. Nothing warns you, which is why a set exported at mixed sizes is the usual reason a carousel arrives with its headings sliced off.Is my image uploaded when I check it?
No. The file is opened by your own browser, measured, and forgotten when you close the tab. It is never sent to us, so there is nothing on our side to keep, leak or delete.Can an Instagram carousel mix portrait and square slides?
No. Instagram applies the first slide ratio to the whole carousel and crops the rest to match, taking the trim from the middle outwards. If a set has to mix shapes, pad the odd ones onto a background at the chosen size before uploading so you control what that padding looks like.Is my data private?
Yes. This tool does its work in your browser, so whatever you type, paste or upload stays on your device. Nothing is sent to our servers, which is also why it keeps working if you go offline after the page has loaded.Is this really free?
Yes. Every tool here is free with no account, no credit card and no usage cap. They exist so that the people who need our scheduling product find us, which only works if the tools are genuinely useful on their own.Do I need an account?
No. Open the page and use it. An account is only for OctoSpark itself, where you plan, schedule and publish a whole calendar rather than fixing one post at a time.Can I use the output commercially?
Yes. Anything you produce here is yours, including for client and commercial work. We claim no rights over it and we do not watermark it.