Documentation Index
Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.ayrshare.com/docs/llms.txt
Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
If you have issues connecting Instagram, please see the troubleshooting
guide.
If your media is hosted on a server or CDN you control, make sure Meta’s publishing
crawler can fetch it. See Meta Media Crawler Blocked
if you see Ayrshare error code 440 (“social network could not download media from this URL”) or error code 138 with “Restricted by robots.txt” in the details.
- Business or Creator Instagram Account connected with a Facebook Page - see here.
- Only 50 Instagram posts are allowed over a 24 hour period. See below for
usedQuota - The
posttext may contain up to 5 hashtags (e.g. #wildtimes) and 3 username mentions (e.g. @natgeo). - @mention Instagram users will receive a notification.
- Maximum 2,200 post characters.
- Multi-image/videos posts are supported and sent as a carousel. You may send up to 10 videos and images.
- Instagram does not support deletes via an API. Deletes must occur manually using the Instagram app.
- If your Reel video doesn’t end in a known video extension such as mp4, please use the
isVideoparameter. See the /post endpoint for details. - Instagram also supports sending media without post text. If you do not want post text included
send an empty String
post: "". - See Instagram Media Guidelines and Instagram Authorization for more information.
Posting to Instagram
JSON for a basic post with an image and hashtags to Instagram:Instagram Post
The aspect ratio of images & videos and the duration of video are very important to successfully post to Instagram. If they do not meet the requirements, the post will be rejected.Please see the Instagram section of Image and Video Guidelines.
Instagram Business or Creator Account
Your Instagram account must be a Business or Creator Account and connected with a Facebook Page. The set up is free and easy. See here for detailed instructions:Instagram Linking
Carousel of Images and Videos
You can post multiple images or Reel videos to Instagram as a carousel; up to a combined total of 10 images or videos may be used in a carousel. Just add your additional images or videos to themediaUrls array, and the carousel will automatically be created.
Instagram Carousel Post
Video URLs must end in a known extension such as
mp4. The isVideo parameter is not supported
for Instagram carousels.Instagram Reels
In Instagram a video post is called a Reel. You can post a video to Instagram Reels API with the following optionalinstagramOptions options.
Instagram Reels Options
- Please see the Reels API video requirements for details on the video requirements.
shareReelsFeed: Boolean set totrueto indicate that the Reel can appear in both the Feed and Reels tabs orfalseto indicate the Reel can only appear in the Reels tab. This value is a hint to Instagram where you would like the Reel to appear, but neither value determines whether the Reel actually appears in the Reels or Feed tab because the Reel may not meet eligibility requirements or may not be selected by Instagram’s algorithm.audioName: String name of the audio music of your Reels media. You can only rename once, either while creating a reel or after from the audio page. For example,"The Weeknd - Blinding Lights".thumbNail: String URL of the Reel cover image (thumbnail). Please see here for details on thumbNail.thumbNailOffset: Integer offset in milliseconds of the thumbnail frame. Please see here for details on thumbNailOffset.
Trial Reels
A trial reel is a Reel that is published only to non-followers when it is first posted, allowing you to test how a Reel performs with a fresh audience before it reaches your existing followers. SettrialParams.graduationStrategy in instagramOptions to publish a Reel as a trial.
Instagram Trial Reel
graduationStrategy controls how a trial reel later “graduates” — i.e. becomes visible to your followers as well. It is required when trialParams is provided and must be one of:
“MANUAL”— the post stays a trial reel until you manually graduate it from inside the Instagram app.“SS_PERFORMANCE”— Meta auto-graduates the Reel based on early performance against non-followers.
Graduation itself (promoting a published trial reel to followers) is not currently exposed by
Meta’s API and must be performed manually in the Instagram app. Ayrshare will add a graduation
endpoint once Meta exposes one.
Trial reel restrictions
The trial reel request is rejected at the Ayrshare edge — before any Meta call — when any of these conditions are not met:- Exactly one media URL ending in
.mp4or.mov(case-insensitive). Carousels are not supported. instagramOptions.storiesmust not betrue. Stories cannot be trial reels.graduationStrategymust be present and exactly“MANUAL”or“SS_PERFORMANCE”(case-sensitive).
447, 448, 449) for the full payloads.
Instagram Stories
You can post a single image or video as an Instagram Story with the followinginstagramOptions. Instagram stories disappear after 24 hours.
Stories Post
- Instagram Stories do not support post text - any text provided in the
postfield, including mentions, will be ignored. - Stories expire after 24 hours.
- Instagram currently only supports Story publishing on Instagram Business Accounts and not Creator Accounts.
- Instagram Stories do not support collaborators.
- Publishing stickers (i.e., link, poll, location) is not supported by Instagram.
Reels Thumbnails
You may select a frame the Reel as the thumbnail image or your own cover image (thumbnail) from an external URL.Instagram Thumbnail
0, which is the first frame of the Reel.
If you specify both a thumbnail URL and a thumbnail offset, the thumbnail offset will be ignored.
The Reel thumbnail must follow the Reels thumbnail requirements.
Signed URLs with redirects are not guaranteed to be compatible with cover URLs.
We recommend a non-signed URL or use the /media endpoint.
Alternative Text
Add Instagram alternative text, also known as alt text, to an image. Instagram alt text is an accessibility feature used for additional user info and screen readers.- Alt text supports up to 1,000 characters per image.
- Instagram does not support alt text for Reels or Stories.
altText in the instagramOptions object.
Instagram Alt Text
mediaUrls array.
The alt text will be applied to each image in order.
User Tags & Locations
The Instagram user will be notified when you use their username in a post. Please be cautious to
not spam users or post with their username repeatedly. If you do, Instagram could suspend or
deactivate your account.
instagramOptions parameter.
Location
A location is specified by alocationId, which is a Facebook Page ID or Facebook Page name. For example, Facebook page Id of the Guggenheim Museum is 7640348500 or Facebook page name "@guggenheimmuseum". Pages must be associated with a physical location.
Instagram Location
locationId (Page Id) with the brand endpoint. Please note that the Page must have a location listed or the locationId will return an error.
Not supported on images or videos in carousels.
User Tags
Instagram tags allow you to tag other Instagram users in your post. Users are specified by auserTags containing an Array of objects with an Instagram username and x/y coordinates (image only). User tags can be added for single images or Reels, but not regular videos, multiple images, or Stories.
- Usernames must be public Instagram accounts. Do not include the @ of the user handle.
xandyvalues must befloatnumbers that originate from the top-left of the image, with a range of0.0–1.0. Single images. Do not include with Reels or an error will occur.
Instagram User Tags
Instagram Mentions
Mention another Instagram handle by adding @handle in the post text. For example you can mention the @ayrshare handle in the post text:Instagram Mentions
Collaboration
Instagram collaboration allows you to co-author content with other Instagram accounts by tagging others as collaborators. This allows you to designate other Instagram users as creators on your post. When tagged, these users receive an invitation to collaborate in the mobile app. If they accept, the post will also appear in their feed and be visible to their followers, extending the post’s reach and engagement potential.Collaborators
The public original author can tag another public account as an Instagram collaborator. The other account will receive a message, which allows them to either accept or deny the request. If the other account accepts, the post will also show on their profile and be distributed to their followers in Instagram feed. The post’s header will attribute the content to both accounts. You may add collaborators to a Reel, image, or carousel. Tagging a private collaborator is not permitted via the Instagram API. While such a functionality exists within the Instagram app, platforms and their APIs are often not at feature parity. Invite up to three collaborators by with an array public Instagram usernames.Instagram Collaborators
Get Collaborator Request Status
After inviting a Instagram collaborator, you can check the status of the request using the Get Collaborator Request Status API.Auto Image Resize
Max Pack Required
autoResize parameter. Please note, this will resize the image for all included platforms, so we recommend making one call for Instagram and a different /post call for additional platforms.
Instagram Auto Image Resize
Used Quota
The Instagram response will include the currentusedQuota for the number of Instagram posts done over a rolling 24 hours period. Only 50 Instagram posts are permitted by Instagram in a 24-rolling-hour period.
Instagram Used Quota
Content Issues
Ayrshare includes built-in media protection that can detect and resolve certain media delivery issues during posting. When a post succeeds but a content issue was detected and resolved, the response includes an optionalcontentIssues object. This allows you to identify and fix issues with your media hosting proactively.
The contentIssues object is only present when an issue was detected and resolved — normal successful posts do not include it.
| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
originMediaHostFailed | boolean | The social network could not retrieve the media from the provided URL. Ayrshare’s automated media protection resolved the issue and completed the post successfully. Consider reviewing your media hosting configuration — see Meta Media Crawler Blocked for common causes. |
details | array of strings | Human-readable descriptions of each detected issue. |
Content Issues Response Example
