How to Post Non-Square Photos on Instagram

Your amazing photos deserve to be seen in their full glory, not awkwardly cropped into a restrictive square. If you've ever been frustrated by Instagram forcing your beautiful landscape or stunning portrait shots into a format that just doesn't work, you're in the right place. This guide walks you through exactly how to post non-square photos on Instagram, giving you full control over how your content appears in the feed.

Understanding Instagram's Aspect Ratios: The Rules of the Grid

Before jumping into the "how," it's helpful to understand the "what." An aspect ratio is simply the relationship between the width and height of an image. While Instagram started as a 1:1 square-only platform, it has long since expanded to accommodate other shapes. Knowing these dimensions helps you prepare your content to look its absolute best.

For standard feed posts, Instagram supports photos within a specific range of aspect ratios:

• Square (1:1): The classic Instagram format. A 1:1 ratio means the width and height are identical (e.g., 1080 x 1080 pixels). It’s a solid, reliable choice, but it doesn't give you the most screen real estate.
• Portrait / Vertical (up to 4:5): This is the golden goose for feed posts. A 4:5 aspect ratio is taller than it is wide (e.g., 1080 x 1350 pixels). This format is the most impactful because it takes up the maximum amount of vertical space on a phone screen as someone scrolls, grabbing more of their attention.
• Landscape / Horizontal (up to 1.91:1): This is a wide format, flatter than a typical square (e.g., 1080 x 566 pixels). While it's great for showcasing panoramic scenes or certain group shots, it occupies the least amount of screen space in the feed and is often less engaging as a result.

Anything taller than a 4:5 ratio or wider than a 1.91:1 ratio will still be forced into a crop by Instagram. The goal is to control this crop yourself, before you even open the app.

How to Post Non-Square Photos Directly in the Instagram App

For a quick and easy way to post a non-square photo, you can use Instagram's built-in formatting tool. This works well if your photo already falls within the platform's accepted aspect ratios. If your photo is much taller or much wider, you'll still be forced to crop, but this is the first and simplest method to try.

Follow these quick steps:

1. Open Instagram: Tap the "+" icon at the bottom of the screen to create a new post.
2. Choose Your Photo: Select the image you want to upload from your phone's gallery. By default, Instagram will present it as a 1:1 square crop.
3. Find the Format Icon: In the bottom-left corner of the image preview, you’ll see an icon that looks like two angled brackets (<, >). This is the aspect ratio toggle. Tap it.
4. Adjust the View: The photo will immediately expand to its original aspect ratio, or to the maximum vertical/horizontal format Instagram allows. You can see the full view of your landscape or portrait shot.
5. Reposition if Needed: You can use two fingers to pinch and zoom or drag the photo around within the frame. This allows you to fine-tune the final composition before moving on. What you see here is exactly how it will appear in the feed.
6. Continue Editing: Once you're happy with the framing, hit "Next" to add filters, make edits, write your caption, and post as usual.

This in-app method is great for speed and convenience. However, if you want total precision and professional control, your best bet is to prepare your photo before you upload.

Prepping Your Photos Before You Post: The Pro-Level Method

Relying solely on Instagram's in-app cropper is a bit of a gamble. You're ceding creative control to the app's limitations. Cropping your photos in a dedicated editing app first gives you a massive advantage: you see exactly what the final product will look like, you can perfect the composition down to the pixel, and there are no surprises when you upload.

Cropping to the Perfect Aspect Ratio in an Editing App

Most photo editing apps, from the simple one built into your phone to more advanced tools like Adobe Lightroom Mobile or Snapseed, make this process incredibly straightforward.

Here’s the general workflow, which is similar across most applications:

• Open Your Image: Launch your preferred editing app and open the photo you plan to post.
• Select the Crop Tool: Find and tap the crop icon. It usually looks like a square with overlapping corners.
• Choose the Aspect Ratio: Within the crop tool, you’ll find options for aspect ratio. Instead of "Free" or "Original," look for preset ratios. Your primary target is 4:5. Many apps even have a pre-built "Instagram Post" preset that uses this vertical dimension. For wider images, you can use the 1.91:1 ratio, but the 4:5 vertical option is almost always the better choice for engagement.
• Compose Your Shot: A cropping frame will appear over your photo in the 4:5 ratio. Now, you can drag the corners to resize it and move the frame over the most important parts of your image. This step is where you gain full creative control, ensuring you don't cut off someone's head or ruin the composition you carefully planned.
• Save a Copy: Once you’ve framed the photo perfectly, save the edited version. It's often best to "Save a Copy" so you can keep your original, un-cropped image.

When you go to post this newly saved image on Instagram, it will fit perfectly in the upload frame without you needing to make any further adjustments. No crop, no pinch-and-zoom, just a perfect fit. This helps you to perfect the composition down to the pixel.

The "Border Trick": How to Post ANY Shaped Photo Using Letterboxing

But what if your photo is an extreme panorama or a super-tall image that just loses its soul when cropped to 4:5? In these cases, you can use a clever technique called "letterboxing" (or "pillarboxing"), where you add borders to fit your image into a standard Instagram-friendly shape.

The idea is simple: you create a blank canvas that is a supported aspect ratio (like a 4:5 frame) and then place your original, un-cropped photo on top of it. The empty space on the canvas creates clean borders around your image.

Apps like Canva, Adobe Express, or Picsart make this incredibly easy.

Here's a quick walkthrough using Canva:

1. Create a 4:5 Canvas: Open Canva and start a new design. Use custom dimensions: 1080 pixels wide by 1350 pixels high. This creates a perfect 4:5 frame. You can choose a background color - white and black are the most common choices for a clean look.
2. Upload Your Photo: Add the unusual-sized photo you want to post to your Canva canvas.
3. Position Your Photo: Drag and resize your photo to fit within the canvas. If it’s a wide landscape photo, you'll have borders on the top and bottom. If it's a very tall portrait, you'll have borders on the sides.
4. Export the Final Image: Once you're satisfied, download the design. You now have a JPEG or PNG file that is a perfect 1080x1350 image, which Instagram will accept without complaint. The borders preserve your original composition.

The benefit is that your masterpiece remains untouched. The potential downside is that a letterboxed photo can sometimes feel less immersive than a full-frame image, and the actual image will appear smaller in the feed.

The Strategic Advantage: Why Bother With Non-Square Photos?

Taking this extra time to post your photos in their intended format isn't just about aesthetics, it's smart social media strategy. Here's why getting it right matters.

Maximizing Screen Real Estate to Stop the Scroll

This is the most significant benefit. A 4:5 vertical photo unapologetically takes up more physical space on a smartphone screen compared to a square or, even worse, a landscape image. When a user is scrolling through their feed at lightning speed, a larger, more dominant visual has a much higher chance of grabbing their attention and making them pause. More screen space equals more attention, which directly translates to a higher potential for likes, comments, and overall engagement.

Improving Visual Storytelling and Impact

Artistic composition is intentional. Wide, sweeping landscapes feel grand and epic in a horizontal format. A powerful close-up portrait of a person feels more intimate and direct in a vertical orientation. Forcing everything into a generic square can severely weaken its emotional impact and destroy the narrative you were trying to create with your camera. Honoring the original aspect ratio respects your creative vision.

Building a Professional and Cohesive Brand Aesthetic

A well-curated Instagram grid tells a story. One that's filled with randomly cropped, awkwardly framed images looks unintentional and a bit messy. By consciously deciding whether to use a 1:1, 4:5, or landscape format for each post, you demonstrate a higher level of care and professionalism. This attention to detail elevates your brand's visual identity, making your profile look more polished, deliberate, and appealing to new followers.

Final Thoughts

Mastering Instagram's different aspect ratios is a simple step that transitions your profile from amateur to professional. Taking a few moments to crop your images to the optimal 4:5 ratio helps you claim more screen space and stop the scroll. For those images that just can't be cropped, having the border trick up your sleeve gives you complete creative freedom. In the end, it’s all about making your photos look their very best in the feed.

Planning your visual story is just as important as creating it. We designed Postbase's visual calendar to help you see your entire content strategy at a glance, allowing you to preview how your vertical, square, and landscape posts will look together in your grid before they go live. This view helps us focus on a cohesive brand look without getting lost in spreadsheets or last-minute uploads.