How to Import Music to Instagram

Adding the perfect song can transform your Instagram Story or Reel from just another post into something that stops the scroll, but getting the right music in place isn't always as simple as it seems. If you've ever felt limited by Instagram’s music library, you’ve come to the right place. This guide walks you through every method for adding music to your Instagram content, from using the official in-app library and understanding copyright rules to importing your own unique audio for a truly custom vibe.

Using the Easiest Method: Instagram’s Official Music Library

For most day-to-day posts, Instagram’s own library is your fastest and safest option. It’s packed with licensed tracks, from chart-topping hits to obscure indie gems, which means you don’t have to worry about copyright infringement. Here’s how to access it on Stories and Reels.

How to Add Music to an Instagram Story

The Instagram music sticker is a seamless way to add a soundtrack directly to your Story. It’s interactive, effective, and simple to use.

• Step 1: Open the Instagram app and tap the + icon at the top. Select Story from the menu.
• Step 2: Create your Story post by taking a photo, recording a video, or uploading existing content from your camera roll.
• Step 3: Tap the Sticker icon (the smiling square) at the top of the screen. Select the MUSIC sticker from the menu.
• Step 4: Search for a song by title or artist, or browse by genre or mood. Once you find one you like, tap on it to review it.
• Step 5: Customize the Sticker. You can scrub through the song to select the exact part of the track you want to use (up to 15 seconds). You can also choose different display styles for the sticker, including lyrics, album cover art, or a simple tag.
• Step 6: Drag and position the sticker anywhere on your Story and share it. You can also pinch to resize or rotate it.

How to Add Music to an Instagram Reel

For Reels, adding music is integrated directly into the creation process. Sound is critical for gaining traction on Reels, so knowing how to do this right is essential.

• Step 1: Open Instagram and tap the + icon in the bottom navigation bar. Then select Reel from the pop-up menu.
• Step 2: On the left side of the screen, you'll see a few icons. Tap the Audio icon (the music note).
• Step 3: This opens the Instagram music library. Similar to Stories, you can search for a song or browse recommendations, Trending tracks, and For You sections to see what’s popular at the moment.
• Step 4: Once you've selected your song, you can slide the scrubber at the bottom to choose the exact section you want to use. This becomes the soundtrack for the video you're about to record.
• Step 5: Record your Reel clips or upload existing video clips from your camera roll. The audio will automatically play in the background.

Why Some Songs Are Missing (Personal vs. Business Accounts)

If you've ever tried to find a specific popular song but couldn't find it in the library, you probably have a Business Account. Because of complex music licensing agreements, Business Accounts have access to a smaller, royalty-free library called the Instagram Sound Collection. This collection contains thousands of tracks that are safe to use for commercial purposes without risking copyright infringement.

Personal Accounts, on the other hand, have access to the entire commercial music library, including the latest hits. If you're trying to build a brand, it's a trade-off: access to popular music versus the legal protection and business tools a Business Account provides.

Understanding Music Copyright on Instagram (A Quick Guide)

Why can't you just grab any song from Spotify and use it on Instagram? It simply comes down to copyright: Music labels and artists own the rights to their music, and platforms like Instagram need to have licenses to let you use it. When you use Instagram's own library, they've already taken care of that for you.

But if you upload a video with copyrighted music without permission, Instagram's automated system can detect it, and one of a few things can happen:

• Your video might be muted. The audio will be removed, but the video will remain without sound.
• Your video could be taken down. Your post will be removed from the platform entirely.
• In rare cases of repeated infringement, you might receive an account strike. Multiple strikes can lead to your account being suspended or even permanently removed.

That's why it's important to understand that the methods below which help you import your own audio are workarounds, not legal loopholes. Instagram's content detection system may still apply.

How to Import Your Own Custom Music or Saved Audio

So, what if you have a song in mind that isn't on the Instagram library, whether it's an original track you've created, royalty-free music from a subscription service, or a song you want to layer over your video for a professional result? These methods give you more flexibility.

Method 1: Pre-Editing Your Video with Custom Audio

This is the most common and most effective way to get your own audio into Instagram. The idea is to edit your video in another app first by adding the music directly to the video file.

• Step 1: Source your audio. First, you need to have the audio file on your computer or phone. This could be an MP3 file you created yourself, a track you downloaded from a royalty-free music site, or a licensed track from a professional service.
• Step 2: Choose a video editor. There are tons of excellent, user-friendly video editing apps that work right on your phone. A few popular ones include CapCut, InShot, and Videoleap. Most of them have free versions that are more than capable enough to accomplish this task.
• Step 3: Import, edit, add your track. In your video editor app, import the video clip you want to publish. Then, import your audio file (usually an MP3) as a separate track. Position the audio where you want it to start, trim out any unneeded silence, and adjust the volume of both your original video clip (if any) and your music track.
• Step 4: Export the final video. Once your music and video are perfectly synced, export the video as a single MP4 file to your camera roll. When you're doing this, it's a good idea to export in high quality (at least 1080p) to maintain clarity on social media platforms.
• Step 5: Upload to Instagram. Now, upload the edited video to Instagram as a Reel or an Instagram Story. Instagram will see the audio as "Original Audio" attached to your post.

Important Caveat: Instagram Might Still Flag Your Audio

Just because you embedded the audio in the video file doesn't mean it's invisible to Instagram’s copyright detection tools. If you've used a famous commercial song without a license, the algorithm may still flag it and mute your audio, remove the Reel, or even flag your account. This method is great for using original audio or properly licensed tracks but not a foolproof way to get around copyright.

Method 2: Using 'Original Audio' from Other Reels

If you hear a sound on another Reel that isn't in the music library (perhaps it's a viral soundbite, a movie quote, or another creator's original sound), you can easily use it in your own content.

• Find the Audio: Scroll through Reels until you find a piece of audio you want to use. At the bottom of the Reel, tap the scrolling song name.
• Go to the Audio Page: This takes you to the "Audio Page," which shows a grid of other Reels that have used this exact sound. At the top, you'll see a button that says Use audio
• Use Audio: Tap this button, and Instagram will open the Reels creation screen with the audio pre-loaded. Now you can record your videos and it will be synced with this same audio.

Method 3 (For Pros and Brands): Using Royalty-Free Music Services

For content creators, brands, and marketing professionals who need to add quality music without any worry of copyright, subscription-based royalty-free music services are the ultimate solution. Services like:

• Epidemic Sound
• Artlist
• Soundstripe
• PremiumBeat

These providers offer you a massive library of high-quality music and sound effects for a flat monthly fee. A license allows you to use any of their tracks in your commercial content. Then you can just download the MP3 track and add it to your video using Method 1, knowing that you're fully covered and legally compliant.

What About Music on Instagram Feed Posts?

In the past, music was mainly an option for Stories and Reels. However, Instagram has rolled out the ability to add music to standard photo posts in the feed as well. The process for doing this follows a familiar pattern:

• Tap the + icon to create a new post and choose Post.
• Select the photo(s) you want to publish.
• Once you hit Next, you'll see an Add music option at the top, next to Add Location.
• From there, you can access the music library, just as you do for Stories and Reels.

This may still be rolling out for some accounts, and the same Business Account restrictions apply.

Final Thoughts

Adding the right music to your Instagram content can transform your work. While the in-app music sticker is always your best and safest bet, learning to import your own audio by pre-editing videos on a third-party application or using a licensed music service will open up a world of possibilities for creators and brands looking for something better.

Once you've created that amazing Reel or video with the perfect track, the next step is scheduling it. Managing your content can be a chore, which is why a good scheduling tool is essential. At Postbase, we built our platform to simplify managing your social media content, including short-form video. Our visual calendar enables you to plan your content schedule weeks or even months in advance, giving your team a clear overview of what's coming up. Postbase is designed for collaboration, allowing your team to organize everything from initial ideas to final edits in one place. By keeping your projects organized, you free up more time to focus on growing your business instead of getting bogged down by logistics as your social media presence grows in importance.