How to Allow Sharing on Instagram

Want more people to share your Instagram content? The good news is, you're in complete control. Getting your audience to hit that paper airplane icon is one of the best ways to grow your reach organically. This guide will walk you through exactly how to allow sharing for your Instagram feed posts, Stories, and Reels, turning your followers into your best advocates.

Why Sharing Matters (and How It Works on Instagram)

Before we jump into the settings, let's quickly cover why you want people sharing your content in the first place. When someone shares your post, they're giving it their personal endorsement. This isn't just about numbers, it's about social proof. It tells their network, "Hey, this is cool/useful/funny, you should check it out." This kind of authentic recommendation is incredibly powerful for building a brand and community.

On Instagram, sharing primarily happens in two ways:

• Sharing to a Story: This is when a user takes your feed post or Reel and embeds it directly into their own Story for 24 hours. The post is tappable, leading viewers right back to the original content and your profile. It's an amazing way to get in front of new audiences.
• Sharing via Direct Message (DM): This is the digital version of tapping someone on the shoulder and saying, "You've got to see this." While it’s more private, it can drive deep engagement and conversation among close-knit groups.

Nearly all of these features are controlled by toggles within your account's privacy settings. Let's find them and flip them on.

Enabling Feed Post Sharing to Stories

By default, public Instagram accounts should have this feature enabled, but it’s always a good idea to check and make sure. This single setting controls whether or not the option to "Add post to story" appears for other users who are looking at your feed posts (photos, carousels, and videos). When your account is private, nobody can reshare your feed posts to their Stories, no matter what this setting says.

Step-by-Step: Turning On Feed Post Resharing

If you've noticed the option is missing or you want to be certain it's on, here’s the direct path to the setting:

1. Navigate to your Instagram profile and tap the three horizontal lines (the "hamburger" menu) in the top-right corner.
2. Select "Settings and privacy" from the menu that appears.
3. Scroll down through the options until you find the section labeled "How others can interact with you." Tap on "Sharing and remixes".
4. The first option you should see is "Allow sharing post to Story." Make sure the toggle next to it is switched on (it will be blue).

That's it! Once this is enabled, anyone browsing your public profile can tap the paper airplane icon under your post and add it to their Story. This puts your content - and your username - directly in front of their followers, creating a free promotion that drives curious viewers back to your account.

Controlling Who Can Share Your Stories

Instagram Stories have their own unique sharing settings. Unlike feed posts, you have slightly different controls over how your ephemeral content gets passed around. This is also located in the "Sharing and remixes" menu, but it relates specifically to other people sharing the Story you've just posted.

Step-by-Step: Adjusting Your Story Sharing Settings

Here's how to manage story sharing:

1. Go to your Profile &rarr, Hamburger Menu &rarr, "Settings and privacy."
2. Once again, scroll down and tap on "Sharing and remixes."
3. Look for the section under the heading "Sharing." You will see a few key toggles:
   • Allow sharing story to messages: This is a big one. When this is on, people watching your Story will see the paper airplane icon in the bottom-right corner, allowing them to send your Story directly to a friend via DM. For most creators and brands, you want this on. It encourages private conversations and lets your superfans easily share your updates.
   • Allow sharing to Guides: This allows other people to include your public feed posts in their Instagram Guides. Guides aren't used by everyone, but it can be another source of discovery if someone features your post in a popular Guide. It’s generally best to keep this on.
   • Allow sharing to Facebook: This isn't about others sharing your content, but rather about you sharing your own. If you have your Meta accounts connected, you can turn this on to automatically or manually push your Instagram Stories to your Facebook Stories.

A Powerful Organic Growth Strategy: Tagging Others in Your Story

One of the most effective ways to get your Story shared isn’t a setting at all - it's an action. When you tag another account in your Story (using the @mention sticker), that person receives a DM notification with a prompt to "Add this to your story."

If they tap it, they instantly share your Story with their entire audience. This is a game-changer for collaborations, customer appreciation posts, or giving shoutouts to partners. It’s a direct invitation to share, and it works wonderfully.

Unlocking Viral Potential with Reels Sharing and Remixing

Reels are designed for virality, and Instagram provides several powerful tools to help them spread. Sharing of Reels is controlled by a mix of account-level settings and individual controls you set each time you post. The ability for others to "remix" your content is arguably the most powerful sharing-adjacent feature available.

A Remix allows another user to create their own Reel in a side-by-side format with yours, reacting to it or adding their own spin. When they do this, your original Reel is credited and linked, driving massive exposure back to you if their Remix takes off.

Enabling Remixing for Your Reels

You can turn this on for your entire account so that any Reel you post is available for remixing. This is the "set it and forget it" approach and is recommended for any account focused on growth.

1. Head back to Profile &rarr, Hamburger Menu &rarr, "Settings and privacy" &rarr, "Sharing and remixes."
2. Under the “What people create with your content” section, tap on “Allow remixing.”
3. Here you can separately toggle on or off the ability for others to remix your Reels, Feed videos, and Photos. To maximize your reach, make sure the “Allow remixing for reels” toggle is turned on.

You can also turn off remixing for a specific Reel if you want. Before you post your Reel, tap on "Advanced settings" at the bottom of the screen. There, you’ll find an option to "Turn off remixing" just for that single video.

Enabling Downloads for Your Reels

Another powerful feature is allowing others to download your Reels to their camera roll. While this may feel like you're losing control, it's actually an accelerant for virality. When people can save a video, they are more likely to share it with friends outside of Instagram (like in a group chat) or even re-upload it to other platforms like TikTok.

When they do, your Reel will have a watermark with your Instagram username, giving you credit no matter where it ends up. You can enable this for individual Reels before you post:

1. On the final screen before you share a Reel, tap "Advanced settings."
2. Scroll down and find the "Allow people to download your reels" option. Turn this on.

Beyond the Settings: How to Actually *Get* People to Share

Flipping on the right settings is only the first step. You still need to create content that people want to share. Just because they can doesn't mean they will. Here are a few proven strategies to create share-worthy content.

1. Create Value That Needs Saving or Sharing

Think about content that helps someone solve a problem, learn something new, or makes their life easier. This often takes the form of:

• Infographics with useful statistics or a step-by-step process.
• Checklists for a packing list, project plan, or self-care routine.
• Relatable or funny memes that tap into a shared experience within your niche.
• Carousel posts that teach a skill (e.g., "5 Photo Editing Tips You Don't Know").
• Beautiful images or inspiring quotes with a well-written, moving caption.

2. Use a Direct Call to Action (CTA)

Sometimes, all you have to do is ask. Don't be shy about prompting your audience to share. You can do this in your caption, in the video itself, or with text on a graphic.

Good examples include:

• "Save this for later and share it with someone who needs to hear it!"
• "Tag a friend in the comments who would love this."
• "Share this to your Story if you agree!"

3. Tag Other People and Brands

As mentioned earlier, tagging someone is a soft CTA to share. Are you wearing a specific brand's clothes? Tag them. Are you at a local coffee shop? Tag them. Did a customer leave you a great review? Post a screenshot and tag them. Every tag is an opportunity for a reshare that gets you in front of a new audience.

4. Run Contests that Require Sharing

Making sharing an entry requirement is a classic way to generate buzz and reach. A simple contest might look like this:

• To Enter:
• 1. Follow our account.
• 2. Like this post.
• 3. Share this post to your Story and tag us so we see it!

This incentivizes sharing and can quickly expose your profile to thousands of potential new followers.

Final Thoughts

Making your Instagram content easily shareable is more than a few clicks, it’s a strategy for letting your community build itself. By enabling the correct settings for posts, stories, and Reels, and by creating content designed to be spread, you give your message the best possible chance to find the people who need to see it.

Planning this variety of content and keeping up with the engagement it generates can feel like a lot. We built Postbase because we know the frustration of juggling multiple platforms and content types. With our visual calendar, you can schedule everything in one go, from share-worthy Reels to daily Stories, so you never miss a beat. It helps you focus on creating great content instead of just managing it.