How to Post Different Size Photos on Instagram

Ever take the perfect photo, only for Instagram to crop it into an awkward, unrecognizable square? You're not alone. Figuring out how to post different size photos on Instagram - tall portraits, wide landscapes, and everything in between - can feel like a puzzle. This guide breaks down exactly how to post any size photo you want, so your images look just as you intended on the grid, in feeds, and in your Stories.

First, Let's Talk Aspect Ratios (But Make It Simple)

Before we get into the "how," it's helpful to understand the "why." Instagram's cropping issues come down to one thing: aspect ratio. That term describes the shape of an image - the relationship between its width and its height. Think of it like a frame. If your photo doesn't fit the frame Instagram provides, the app will automatically crop it for you, often with less-than-ideal results.

Here are the three main "frames" or aspect ratios you need to know for the Instagram feed:

• Square (1:1): This is the classic Instagram look. The width and height are equal. (e.g., 1080 x 1080 pixels).
• Portrait (4:5): This is the tallest your photo can be in the vertical feed. The height is longer than the width. It's fantastic for grabbing attention because it takes up more screen space. (e.g., 1080 x 1350 pixels).
• Landscape (1.91:1): This is the widest your photo can be. The width is significantly longer than the height, ideal for scenic shots. (e.g., 1080 x 566 pixels).

For Instagram Stories and Reels, the aspect ratio is 9:16, which is the standard vertical dimension of a smartphone screen. If you understand these four basic shapes, you're already halfway to mastering your Instagram grid.

How to Post Different Sized Photos Directly in Instagram

Sometimes you just want to post a quick photo without opening another app. Luckily, Instagram has a built-in tool that gives you some flexibility, though many people don't even know it's there. Here's a quick walkthrough for a single-image post.

Step 1: Open the New Post Screen

Tap the plus icon [+] at the bottom of your screen to create a new post, just like you normally would. Select the photo you want to upload from your camera roll.

Step 2: Find the "Expand" Button

When you select a photo, you'll see it appear in the preview window, likely cropped into a default square (1:1). Look in the bottom left corner of that photo preview. You should see a small button with two expanding corner icons: <, >,.

Tap this button! It will instantly switch the preview from the default square crop to your photo's original aspect ratio. If you have a portrait photo, it will expand to fill the 4:5 frame. If you have a landscape photo, it will shrink to fit a wider frame.

Step 3: Adjust and Post

With the photo expanded, you can use your finger to pan and adjust the crop a little more if needed. Once you're happy, hit "Next," add your filters and caption, and post as usual. Your photo will appear in the feed in its intended landscape or portrait format rather than a forced square.

Remember, this method only works if your photo is already within Instagram's limits (no taller than 4:5 and no wider than 1.91:1). If your shot is an extra-wide panorama, Instagram will still force a crop.

What About Posting Multiple Sizes in a Carousel?

Carousels introduce another rule: Instagram locks the aspect ratio of the entire carousel to the shape of the very first photo you select.

This is a common source of frustration. If your first photo is a square, every other landscape or portrait photo you add to that carousel will be automatically cropped into a square, too. If your first slide is a 4:5 portrait, all subsequent slides will be forced into a 4:5 frame.

The solution? Decide on your desired orientation before you build the carousel. If you want a tall, engaging carousel, make sure the very first photo you select is a 4:5 portrait. If a square format works better, start with a 1:1 image. This small step gives you control over how the rest of your slides will look.

The Best Way: Resize Your Photos *Before* Posting

While the in-app expand button is great for quick adjustments, the professional approach is to resize your photos before you even open Instagram. This gives you complete creative control, guarantees no weird crops, and ensures the highest possible image quality. You have two main routes here: simple mobile apps or more robust design tools.

Option 1: Use a Simple "No-Crop" App on Your Phone

Search your phone's app store for "no crop" or "square fit," and you'll find dozens of simple, often free, apps designed for exactly this purpose. They all work in a similar way: they add borders (often called padding) to your image to make it fit into a standard Instagram-friendly shape, usually a 1:1 square.

Here's the basic process:

1. Download an App: Find an app like Square Fit, NoCrop, or any other well-reviewed option.
2. Import Your Image: Open the app and select your non-standard photo - let's say it's a very wide landscape photo.
3. Add Borders: The app will automatically place your landscape photo inside a new square frame, adding blank space above and below it. You can almost always change this padding to an interesting color, a blurred version of the photo itself, or a clean white or black.
4. Save and Export: Save the newly created square image to your phone's camera roll.
5. Upload to Instagram: Now, when you upload this new image to Instagram, the app will see a perfect 1:1 square. It won't crop anything because your original photo is already perfectly centered within that square frame.

This technique is perfect for wide group shots or scenic panoramas that you absolutely cannot crop further. The added borders become a part of the design, giving your grid a clean, consistent look.

Option 2: Use a Design Tool for Full Control

For brands, creatives, and anyone wanting a more polished finish, using a design tool like Canva, Figma, or Adobe Photoshop is the gold standard. Instead of letting an app add generic borders, you can create a canvas with the *exact* Instagram dimensions you want and place your photo inside it. Canva is an excellent choice because it's free and highly intuitive.

Here's how to do it in Canva:

1. Create a New Design: Open Canva and choose to create a design with custom dimensions.
2. Enter Ideal Dimensions: For a perfect tall portrait post, enter 1080 px width by 1350 px height. This is the optimal 4:5 aspect ratio. For a square, use 1080 x 1080 px.
3. Upload and Place Your Photo: Upload your photo into Canva and drag it onto your blank canvas.
4. Compose Your Shot: Now you have full control. Drag your photo to position it perfectly within the frame. If you have space on the top or bottom, use it for text overlay, branding elements, or just a solid brand color.
5. Export and Post: When you're happy with the composition, export the design as a high-quality JPG or PNG file. It's now perfectly formatted and ready to be uploaded to Instagram, with zero risk of unexpected cropping.

Creative Strategies for Mixing Photo Sizes on Your Grid

Once you know how to post different sizes, you can start using it strategically to make your grid more visually interesting and dynamic.

Create a Clean, Minimalist Grid with Borders

A popular aesthetic technique involves using a no-crop app to add consistent white or black borders to all your photos. Whether the original photo is a portrait, landscape, or square, placing it inside a uniform white square frame creates an incredibly clean, organized, and gallery-like feel for your profile grid. It gives your content breathing room and immediately tells visitors that you have a thoughtful, curated brand.

Turn a Wide Photo into a Swipeable Panorama

Have an amazing panoramic picture that's just too good for a tiny landscape post? Turn it into an immersive carousel experience. Use a free "pano splitter" or "carousel collage" app to slice your wide photo into several consecutive square images (two or three usually works best). When you upload these images in order to an Instagram carousel, users can swipe through them to see the full, seamless panoramic view. It's an engaging trick that stops scrollers in their tracks.

Tell a Better Story with the Right Format

Instead of just defaulting to whatever size your camera shoots in, think about what format serves the content best. A 4:5 portrait is excellent for headshots, powerful product shots, or any "hero" image meant to command attention. A square 1:1 is great for flat lays, quotes, or graphics. A multi-slide carousel offers a chance to tell a longer story, show a before-and-after, or create a photo dump from a recent event. Matching the format to the mission of your post makes your entire content strategy stronger.

Final Thoughts

Posting different photo sizes on Instagram stops being an issue once you understand its preferred aspect ratios and have a few simple tools at your disposal. Whether you use the quick-and-easy in-app expand tool or take a few moments to prep your images in a tool like Canva, you can take back full creative control over your grid and ensure your content always looks exactly how you envisioned.

Prepping all your content - getting the crops right, picking a format, and crafting a great caption - is definitely part of the work. That's why we built Postbase to make the publishing and management part of social media feel effortless. Once your beautifully sized photos are ready, you can upload them to our visual calendar, see your entire grid planned out weeks in advance, and schedule them to go live automatically. It's designed to bring a sense of calm and control to your social media workflow, letting you focus on making more great stuff.