How to Repost Longer Stories on Instagram

You've been tagged in an epic, multi-segment Instagram Story and want to share it with your own audience, but when you tap Add to Your Story, it only grabs the first 15 seconds or a static screenshot. It's a common and frustrating problem that breaks the flow of the content you're trying to share. This guide will show you exactly how to repost longer stories seamlessly while giving proper credit, covering the best methods that work every single time. We'll walk through the safest workarounds and the best practices for sharing user-generated content on your profile.

Why Reposting Long Stories is Tricky

First, it helps to understand why this happens. Instagram's native sharing features are designed to prioritize original content creation over regramming. When you're tagged in someone's Story, the "Add to Your Story" button is a convenient shortcut, but it's not built to handle complex, multi-segment videos perfectly. It often defaults to sharing a static image of the story segment you were viewing or grabbing only the initial 15-second clip.

Furthermore, any interactive elements from the original Story - like polls, quizzes, or countdown stickers - are flattened into the background. You’re not sharing the interactive Story itself, but rather a reference to it. For video content that's longer than a single segment, this built-in feature simply isn't equipped to chain the clips together for a repost. For that, we need a reliable workaround.

The Best Method: Screen Recording for a Flawless Repost

The safest, most reliable, and universally effective way to repost a longer Story is by using your phone's built-in screen recording feature. This method captures the Story exactly as it appears, preserving the video and audio perfectly. It avoids sketchy third-party apps and puts you in complete control of the final output.

Here’s the step-by-step process for both iPhone and Android.

Step 1: Prepare the Story for Capture

Before you hit record, you need to set the stage to get a clean recording without any distracting on-screen text or notifications popping up.

• Isolate the Story: Go to the profile of the person who created the Story and tap their profile picture to view it full-screen.
• Turn on "Do Not Disturb": This is a vital step. You don’t want a text message banner or a call notification appearing at the top of your screen mid-recording. On an iPhone, swipe down from the top-right corner to open the Control Center and tap the crescent moon icon. On Android, swipe down from the top to open the notification shade and find the Do Not Disturb toggle.
• Tap to Hide the UI: When viewing the Story, you'll see the account's username at the top and the "Send message" bar at the bottom. The trick here is to press and hold your finger on the screen. This will momentarily hide those user interface elements, giving you a clean, unobstructed view of the video. You will need to keep your finger held down for the duration of the recording.

Step 2: Start Screen Recording

Now that the Story is prepped, it's time to record. The process varies slightly between iOS and Android.

For iPhone Users:

1. Swipe down from the top-right corner to open the Control Center.
2. Find the screen record button (a circle within a circle). If it's not there, you can add it by going to Settings >, Control Center and tapping the green plus icon next to "Screen Recording."
3. Tap the screen record button. A three-second countdown will start before it begins recording. Use this time to swipe up, go back to Instagram, and get the Story ready.
4. Once recording, open the desired Story, press and hold to hide the UI, and let the entire Story sequence play through.
5. When it's done, tap the red clock or bar at the top-left of your screen and select Stop. The video will be saved automatically to your Photos app.

For Android Users:

1. Swipe down from the top of your screen to open the Quick Settings panel.
2. Find and tap the Screen Recorder icon. Depending on your phone's brand (Samsung, Google Pixel, etc.), you might have options to record with or without audio. Make sure you select an option that includes media audio.
3. A short countdown will begin. Navigate to the Instagram Story, press and hold to hide the UI, and let it play.
4. After the Story finishes, swipe down from the top of the screen again and tap the stop button on the screen recorder notification. The video will be saved to your phone's gallery or a dedicated "Screen Recordings" folder.

Step 3: Trim the Final Video Clip

Your screen recording will have captured everything - including the few seconds at the beginning and end where you were starting and stopping the recording. You need to trim this extra footage.

• Open Your Gallery/Photos App: Find the screen recording you just made.
• Enter Edit Mode: Tap the "Edit" button. You’ll see a timeline of your video at the bottom of the screen with handles at both ends.
• Drag the Handles: Drag the start handle to the exact moment the Story video begins, and drag the end handle to the moment it finishes. This removes the fumbling parts at the start and end.
• Save Your Work: Save the trimmed video as a new clip. This is your final, clean version ready for upload.

Step 4: Upload and Give Credit

Now you can upload the perfectly trimmed video to your own Story. This is also the most important step for social media etiquette: giving proper credit.

1. Open Instagram and swipe right or tap the plus icon to create a new Story.
2. Swipe up to open your camera roll and select the trimmed video you just saved.
3. Instagram will automatically segment the video into clips for you. The platform now supports continuous Stories up to 60 seconds long before it creates a break, so your longer video will look much more fluid than if you were to upload separate 15-second clips.
4. CRITICAL STEP: Give Credit! Before posting, use the "Sticker" tray to select the @Mention sticker. Type in the username of the original creator and place their tag prominently on the Story. This isn't just polite, it notifies the creator that you've shared their work and shows your audience where the amazing content came from.
5. Add any other context if you like - a bit of text, a GIF, or your own comments - then hit "Share to Your Story."

An Alternative Method: Using Third-Party Apps (with a Big Warning)

You may come across apps in the App Store or Google Play Store that promise to download Instagram Stories directly. While they can work, they come with significant risks that often outweigh the convenience.

The Risks Involved:

• Security Concerns: Many of these apps require you to log in with your Instagram credentials. Sharing your username and password with an unverified third-party app is a massive security risk. It could compromise your account, leading to it being hacked or used for spam.
• Violation of Instagram's Terms of Service: Using automated scripts or apps to scrape content from Instagram is generally against their terms of service. Overuse could result in your account being temporarily restricted or permanently banned.
• Privacy and Copyright: Downloading someone else's content without their permission walks a fine line. It’s always best to have permission to share, and screen recording serves the same purpose without handing your login information over to a random developer.

For these reasons, the screen recording method is highly recommended as the primary way to repost longer Stories. It's safer, completely free, and doesn't put your account at risk.

Best Practices for Ethical and Effective Reposting

How you share content says a lot about your brand. Follow these simple rules to build community, respect creators, and get the most out of user-generated content (UGC).

1. Always Ask for Permission When Appropriate

If you're friends with the person, a quick screen recording and tag is probably fine. But if you are a brand resharing a customer's detailed testimonial or an influencer's high-quality video, send them a quick direct message first. A simple "Hey! We love this Story. Would you mind if we shared it on our profile? We'll give you full credit, of course!" goes a long way. Most people are happy to have their content featured, and asking is a sign of respect.

2. Never Hide the Credit

Giving credit isn't a box to check off, it's a way to spotlight members of your community. When you add the @mention sticker, make it legible and place it somewhere obvious. Don't shrink it down to a tiny, unreadable size or hide it behind another GIF or sticker. Good attribution fosters positive relationships with creators and encourages more people to tag you in the future.

3. Add Your Own Context

Simply reposting content is good, but adding your own perspective is even better. Why are you sharing this Story? Add a text overlay that says, "Amazing feedback from a recent project! 👆" or "Check out this incredible tip from @username!" This gives your audience a reason to care and ties the reposted content back to your brand's narrative.

4. Stay True to the Original

Resist the urge to add heavy filters or make edits that change the essence of the original video. You're sharing something because you found it valuable as is - so let that shine through. The most you should add is your own commentary or branding elements, not alterations to the video itself.

Final Thoughts

Reposting longer Instagram Stories comes down to using a simple workaround - screen recording - and adhering to good social media etiquette. By capturing the Story directly from your screen and always giving clear, prominent credit, you can seamlessly share valuable content, strengthen community bonds, and keep your audience engaged with dynamic videos.

Managing all this user-generated content you're now able to reshare, on top of your own content, can get overwhelming. At Postbase, we designed our platform to remove that chaos. With a modern visual calendar built specifically for video-first content like Stories and Reels, we make it easy to plan, schedule, and track all your social activity in one clean dashboard, so you can focus more on community engagement and less on juggling apps.