Instagram Carousel Sizes & Dimensions (2026)

Carousels are the highest-reach format on Instagram, but only if your slides are the right size. Upload the wrong dimensions and Instagram crops or compresses them into mush. Here are the exact sizes to use in 2026.

Best Instagram carousel size

Use portrait 1080 × 1350 px (4:5 aspect ratio). It takes up the most vertical space in the feed, which means more attention and more swipes. Every slide in a carousel must share the same aspect ratio, so pick one and stick to it.

All supported carousel dimensions

• Portrait (recommended): 1080 × 1350 px — 4:5.
• Square: 1080 × 1080 px — 1:1.
• Landscape: 1080 × 566 px — 1.91:1.
• Resolution: keep the width at 1080 px; Instagram compresses anything larger.

Safe zones (don't get cropped)

• Keep important text and faces ~120 px away from every edge.
• Leave room at the bottom for the caption and the dot indicators.
• Design the first slide as a hook — it's the only one most people see before deciding to swipe.

Quick tips for higher reach

• Use 6–10 slides; more swipes = a stronger signal to the algorithm.
• Add a visual 'swipe' cue on slide one (an arrow, a peeking next slide).
• Keep a consistent template across slides so the set reads as one piece.

A carousel maker is coming to PixelDM soon — in the meantime, explore our free social mockup tools.