Instagram post formats for restaurants: posts, Stories, Reels and Live
Instagram has four main formats: posts, Stories, Reels and Live. Each one does a different job for your restaurant. Here is what each is for, the sizes to use, and how to get it right.
Instagram post sizes at a glance
Instagram shows your profile grid as tall 3:4 rectangles. A tall post fills more of the screen in the feed than a square one, so most restaurants post portrait.
| Format | Shape | Size in pixels |
|---|---|---|
| Portrait post | 4:5 | 1080 × 1350 |
| Tall portrait post | 3:4 | 1080 × 1440 |
| Square post | 1:1 | 1080 × 1080 |
| Landscape post | 1.91:1 | 1080 × 566 |
| Story or Reel | 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 |
Keep the main subject and any text in the middle of the frame. The grid and the feed can crop the edges.
1. Posts
A post is a photo or a video that stays on your profile. A carousel is one post with several photos or videos that people swipe through. You can write a caption of up to 2,200 characters.
What posts are best for
Posts show what makes your restaurant different: your signature items, your room, your story. They are what a new visitor sees first on your profile, so they decide whether that person follows you and orders.
How to get posts right
- Use sharp, well-lit photos. Natural light near a window beats a dark dining room.
- Keep one look across your grid: the same light, the same colours, the same style of shot. People should know it is you before they read your name.
- Put the important words in the first line of the caption. Instagram hides the rest behind “more”.
- Use a few specific hashtags, such as your item, your area and your city. A long list of general tags adds little.
- Tag your location on every post. People looking at places near them can find you.
- Turn on tagging so customers can tag your account. Their photos collect on your profile, and you can share the best ones with their permission.
2. Stories
A Story is a photo or a short video that disappears after 24 hours. Stories show at the top of your followers’ app, inside a ring around your profile picture. Because they do not stay, they can be more casual than posts.
What Stories are best for
Behind the scenes, today’s special, a new item, a sold-out notice, a busy night. Stories are also the easiest place to send people to order: add a link sticker that opens your menu.
How to get Stories right
- Make each Story frame clear at a glance. People tap through fast.
- Use polls, quizzes and question stickers to ask what customers think. Ask which item to bring back, or which new item to try next.
- Share Stories where customers tag you. It thanks them and shows real people enjoying your food.
- Save your best Stories as Highlights on your profile. Use them for the questions people ask most: branches, menu, hours, delivery areas.
3. Reels
A Reel is a vertical video of up to three minutes. Reels stay on your profile, and Instagram shows them to people who do not follow you yet. That makes Reels the best format for reaching new customers.
What Reels are best for
An item being made, a day in the kitchen, a new menu item, a quick tip, or how to order from you. Short and simple works.
How to get Reels right
- Show the food in the first second. People decide fast whether to keep watching.
- Add captions. Many people watch with the sound off. Check the automatic captions before you post.
- Choose a cover that looks good when the grid crops it to 3:4.
- Join a trend only when it fits your brand. Ask yourself: does this sound like us, and do our customers care?
4. Live
Live lets you stream video to your followers in real time. They get a notification when you start, and they can comment and ask questions while you talk. You can invite guests to join your Live.
What Live is best for
A cooking class with your chef, a launch, an event, or a question-and-answer session about your restaurant.
How to get Live right
- Plan what you will cover, and keep to it.
- Announce the Live a few days before, so people can set a reminder.
- Be yourself. Live is where people meet the team behind the food.
- Make it a series, like a monthly cooking class, so people come back.
- Greet viewers by name and answer their questions, whether ten people join or a thousand.
Putting it together
Use posts to show who you are, Stories for what is happening today, Reels to reach new people, and Live to talk to your regulars. Then make ordering one tap away: put your own ordering link in your bio and in your Stories. A website of your own keeps those orders, and those customers, with you.