How to Edit Links on Instagram

Your Instagram link is one of the most powerful tools you have for driving traffic, but figuring out how to update it can feel like a chore. Whether you need to change the link in your bio, fix a typo in a Story sticker, or just want to add more than one destination for your followers, we've got you covered. This guide walks you through exactly how and where you can edit every type of link on your Instagram profile.

Editing the Most Important Link: Your Instagram Bio

Your bio link is prime real estate. It's the one permanent, clickable link that every visitor to your profile can see. Brands, creators, and business owners use this space to direct followers to their website, latest blog post, product page, or portfolio. Keeping this link current is vital for any content strategy. Luckily, updating it is straightforward.

How to Edit Your Bio Link on the Mobile App

Most people manage their Instagram on their phones, so let's start there. The process takes less than a minute.

• Step 1: Open the Instagram app and go to your profile page by tapping your profile picture in the bottom-right corner.
• Step 2: Tap the "Edit profile" button located just below your bio.
• Step 3: You'll see several fields you can edit. Tap on the "Links" field.
• Step 4: Tap on the existing link you want to edit. You can delete the old URL and paste in your new one. You can also edit the link title here to describe what the link is.
• Step 5: After you've entered your new URL, tap "Done" in the top-right corner, and then tap "Done" again to save your profile changes.

Pro Tip: After saving, always go back to your profile and click the link to make sure it works and goes to the correct destination. A broken link is a missed opportunity.

How to Edit Your Bio Link on Desktop

If you're managing your social media from a computer, you can easily change your bio link through your web browser.

• Step 1: Open your web browser and navigate to Instagram.com.
• Step 2: Log into your account and click on "Profile" from the menu on the left side of the screen.
• Step 3: Click the "Edit profile" button next to your username.
• Step 4: The "Website" field or "Links" editor is right there. Delete the old URL, paste in your new one, and click the "Submit" or "Done" button at the bottom of the page.

The "One Link" Problem and How to Solve It

The biggest limitation of the bio link is that Instagram only gives you one of them (well, technically you can add a few now, but they get hidden behind a “+1 more link” toggle). If you’re promoting a new YouTube video, a blog post, and your main website, you have a problem. This is where link-in-bio tools come in.

Services like Linktree, Later, and Beacons let you create a simple, mobile-friendly landing page that houses all of your important links. You put the URL for this landing page in your Instagram bio, and when followers click it, they see a menu of options you've curated.

Editing the links on these pages is done through the service's website, not Instagram. You simply log in to your Linktree (or similar) account, add, remove, or reorder your links, and the changes appear instantly on your landing page. You never have to change the actual URL in your Instagram bio again unless you switch to a different link-in-bio provider.

How to Edit Links in Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories are a dynamic way to share real-time updates, and the "Link" sticker is your best friend for driving immediate traffic from them. Ever post a Story and realize the link is wrong? Here’s what you need to know about editing it.

The Hard Truth: You Can't Edit a Live Story

Once an Instagram Story is published, you cannot go back and edit the content, including the link sticker. If you post a Story with a broken link or the wrong URL, you have two options:

1. Leave it as is. If it’s not a critical link, you might just let the Story expire after 24 hours.
2. Delete and re-upload. This is the most common solution. You'll need to delete the incorrect Story and post a new one with the correct link.

It's not ideal, but it’s the only way to fix a link in a published Story. This makes it really important to double-check your URL before you hit "Share."

Getting it Right Before You Post

Since editing isn't an option, prevention is your best strategy. When preparing a Story:

• Add the Link Sticker: Tap the sticker icon from the top menu and select the "Link" sticker.
• Paste Your URL: Carefully paste your link into the URL field.
• Customize Sticker Text: Instagram often auto-generates text for the sticker, but you can tap it to customize what it says. Make it a clear call-to-action like "Shop Now," "Read Here," or "New Video."
• Double-Check the URL: Before placing it, take one last look at the URL to make sure there are no typos. You can even copy it from the sticker and paste it into a browser to test it before publishing.

What About Links in Captions and Comments?

This is a frequent point of confusion for new Instagram users. Despite users' wishes, Instagram does not make URLs clickable in the captions of feed posts (Reels, photos, or carousels) or in the comments section.

You can paste a URL into a caption, but it will appear as plain text. Your followers would have to manually copy and paste it into their browser, which almost no one will do. Because these links are not functional, there’s nothing to "edit" in terms of functionality. If you make a typo in the written-out link, you can edit the caption to fix it, but the link will remain unclickable.

This is why the phrase "link in bio" is so popular. It’s the standard way of directing people from your feed post content to the clickable link waiting for them on your profile page.

Can You Edit Links in Instagram DMs?

Sharing links via Direct Message (DM) is a great way to have a one-on-one conversation with a follower or share something specific. However, just like with feed posts and published Stories, an Instagram DM cannot be edited once it has been sent.

If you send a DM with the wrong link, your only course of action is to unsend the message. To do this, press and hold on the message you sent, and then tap "Unsend." The message will disappear for both you and the recipient. You can then write and send a new message with the correct link. Be aware that the recipient may have already seen the original message if their notifications are on, but unsending it is the best way to correct the mistake.

Editing Links for Instagram Shopping and Product Tags

For e-commerce brands using Instagram Shopping, links are built directly into your product tags. These tags allow users to tap on a product in a photo or Reel and go directly to a purchase page.

The URLs for these products are not edited within the Instagram app itself. Instead, they are managed through your product catalog on Facebook Commerce Manager. To edit a product link, you need to:

1. Go to your Facebook Commerce Manager.
2. Navigate to your "Catalog" and find the "Items" section.
3. Select the product whose link you need to update.
4. Click "Edit Item" and find the "website_link" field to update the URL.

Once you save the changes in Commerce Manager, they will eventually sync with your Instagram Shop, usually within a day, updating the link on all associated product tags.

Best Practices for Managing Your Instagram Links

Editing links is the technical part. Using them effectively is the strategy. Here are a few final tips for making the most of your clickable URLs.

• Always Use a Call-to-Action (CTA): Whether in your bio, a caption, or a Story, explicitly tell people what to do. "Click the link in my bio to see our new collection!" is much more effective than just hoping they find it.
• Use Shortened or Branded URLs: Long, messy URLs can look untrustworthy. Services like Bitly can create clean, shortened links. For an even more professional look, you can create a branded short domain to show your followers they're clicking a safe link.
• Keep Your Link-in-Bio Page Updated: If you use a link hub tool, don't let it become a graveyard of old links. Regularly prune it to feature only your most relevant and important content. Think of it as a mini-website for your brand.
• Align Your Bio Link With Your Content: If your latest Reel is about a new product, make sure the link in your bio goes directly to that product page for the next few days. Keeping your content and your primary link in sync reduces friction for your audience and increases conversions.

Final Thoughts

Mastering how to edit your Instagram links is about knowing where you can and, just as importantly, where you can't. Your bio link offers the most flexibility, Stories require pre-publication accuracy, and captions or DMs don't allow for functional, editable links in the way many wish they did.

Coordinating which link should be in your bio to match a new campaign or the latest Reel can feel like a constant scramble. We designed Postbase to make that simpler. Our visual content calendar shows you exactly what's scheduled to post across all of your platforms, giving you a clear, bird's-eye view of your entire strategy. This way, you can easily plan ahead and remember to update your bio link to match your most important content, keeping your entire presence perfectly aligned without the headache.