Instagram limits: like, follow, unfollow, time

You have to set up with Instagram limits if you want to become an influencer on this social media network. For instance, there are limits for likes, comments, and subscribing per day and hour. Exceeding them puts your account at a risk to be banned. There are also limits, exceeding which is technically impossible, but you should know them to be able to use the app.

In this article, we explain Instagram limits in detail. We give the exact numbers, reasons, and ways to get around them. We also give tips on how to automate your Instagram account growth to get the best possible results and keep it within the limits.

Note, Instagram policy and features often change, so the current numbers may differ. This article is updated in June 2022.

Instagram has over a billion active users monthly. Every day, many of them upload new photos and videos. Statistically, the website gets more than 500 million Stories per day. Being such an overcrowded community, Instagram has to limit its users in terms of their everyday activity. If it doesn’t, it will unavoidably plunge into chaos.

There are many businesses on this social media. They try their best to promote various goods and services, get new subscribers, and increase revenue. Like any platform with sales tools, Instagram requires specific regulation and limitation so that it can work like a well-oiled machine, without interruption and fraud. And account owners must help the website achieve this goal.

Reaching some of the limits cause restricting your actions on Instagram or even the account ban. When this happens, you get the message from the app:

Fortunately, accounts are rarely banned for more than 24 hours. After this time, keep it slow down. Think over the content you share, check your comments, and, naturally, do not overuse likes and tags. 

You can also get shadowbanned if you do not keep Instagram limits. Your account will not be restricted. You won't get any notification or warning. But you will see your impressions fall. 

Now let's see what these Instagram limits, limitations, and restrictions are.

Let us go through the most frequently asked Instagram limits. There are no accurate numbers. The website does not share this data, and the users tell different numbers. That's why the answer is complicated.

We can't tell the accurate numbers for safe activity limits on Instagram either. But we will explain how they can be figured out and give the safe intervals.

Consider the following primary factors that influence Instagram limits.

It is crucial for the platform to have enthusiastic users with lots of high-quality content. Thus, the more active you are on Instagram, the higher are your activity limits.

If you open Instagram several times a day, chat with your friends, share new posts, and comment on other users’ stories, the network sure allows you more. Provided, of course, that you do not misuse it.

In accordance with Instagram policy, every profile that was created more than three months ago is considered as old. Like, comments, follow/unfollow limits set for such accounts are higher.

This is quite reasonable as this time is enough to add a lot of posts, get followers, comments, and likes. But when hundreds of photos or videos appears on a two-days page, it looks suspicious. And the platform’s algorithms pay special attention to such activity.

This Instagram limit factor expectedly derives from the previous two ones. The older your profile is and the more you use it, the bigger the number of your Insta-friends is. And users with more followers are permitted to do more activities in the app.

It is different if your Instagram page is just a couple of weeks old, but you have already subscribed to thousands of users. It seems strange, and the network will remove your page as a bot.

Instagram limits for your specific account are based on your average activity. If you usually like a hundred of posts, leave a hundred of comments every day, then it's not a reason for banning. But if you rarely like a post and then suddenly start liking each one you see in the feed, then there is a risk.

It is a basic criterion that reflects your activity in the Instagram app over a period. Your engagement is calculated based on multiple factors, but the most essential of them are likes, comments, shares, and saves. In other words, if you interact actively with other people on Instagram, your engagement is high. 

Now let's get to the numbers and see what activity Instagram consider normal and does not limit.

Instagram users are limited to like up to 1,000 posts per day. This number is average: some accounts are blocked after 700 likes, while others have more freedom in this regard.

If your Instagram page is comparatively new and you have few followers, it is better to stop at 300-400 likes per day, gradually increasing this range.

Also remember about the limit of likes per hour on Instagram. The safe number for new accounts is 60. Old accounts with a lot of followers can like up to 120 posts.

The number of comments you are allowed to write on Instagram is from 180 to 200 per day. This limit depends on the age of your account. The longer you use the app, the more you can comment.

Remember to increase the limit gradually to avoid banning on Instagram. If you didn't comment often, start with 10 comments a day. Increase the number by 5 with every day. 

It is not recommended to post the same comment again and again. Instagram distinguishes duplicate texts and deletes them. Leaving an emoji without even a couple of words is also not recommended, it looks like spam too. Remember, it punishes users who spam in these ways. 

Typically, people are allowed to subscribe or unsubscribe to no more than 200 users per day. Besides, you are recommended to subscribe to no more than 10 users per hour. Exceeding this Instagram limit can cause problems.

If your page is comparatively new, the follow and unfollow limit can be reduced to 150 Instagram users every day.

What more, your following and unfollowing activity on Instagram must look natural. If you make it run over the cup, Instagram can block your account before you reach the 150-200 accounts limit. 

To protect your Instagram profile from any risks, try to avoid spamming. It means your following and unfollowing activity should not be aggressive. Try to increase it gradually, starting from 50 accounts per day on the first week, 100 on the second, and 150 on the third.

It is interesting to note that Instagram does not limit its users in terms of the number of new Stories. On the contrary, it encourages them to share high-quality, unique content as frequently as possible. Thus, it is a good idea to post them regularly, providing that your Stories are worth looking at.

As for Instagram Stories time limit, each one lasts 15 seconds maximum. This limitation is not a big deal. If you upload a longer video, it will be divided into several stories automatically. If you upload a photo, the story will last 7 seconds.

One Story remains on your Instagram page during 24 hours. After reaching this time limit, it goes to Archive. You can get Instagram Stories back from Archive to make them appear on your profile page for another 24 hours.

Now we know the Stories limits, but what about other Instagram videos? Here is the maximum length for:

Instagram DM also has limits. The safe zone is from 50 to 80 new chats a day. For new accounts, this message limit can be smaller, so do not rush to text to all your contacts. Read more the limits and restrictions in the guide How to DM on Instagram.

There are also limits exceeding which does not result in restricting or banning your Instagram account. These are the technical limitations, which you can't exceed in any way. And here we have accurate numbers. 

There is a limit for hashtags on Instagram, you can add 30 hashtags maximum under a post. Note, adding 30 ones is almost never good for your promotion. Read where to put Instagram hashtags — in the comments or caption — and how many of them for better results. 

If you like to tag and mention people in your posts, you should remember that the number of tags is limited to 20 per post on Instagram. As for mentions, their number can not exceed 10 users.

You set the age when creating an account. Later, you can change it in the settings anytime.

Instagram limits the age of people who use the social network. You should be at least 13 years old. But, this number can be higher in some jurisdictions. 

Users can report accounts that are used by the children under 13 years old. This helps to enforce the age limit on Instagram.

A child under 13 can use the app. Instagram allows this if their account is managed by a parent. This fact must be stated in the bio.

Character limits on Instagram usually refer to:

Instagram limits links you share on your and others' profile pages. For example, it doesn't approve of inviting its users to other apps and websites. That's why you have to use a genious way to add a Snapchat link to your bio.

There is more to the Instagram restrictions.

You can add:

You can't add:

If you don't want your activity on Instagram to be restricted because of the limitations, use the following tips.

Define your target audience and focus on them, avoiding all unnecessary communications and interactions. Do not waste your likes, comments, followings within the Instagram limits on people who are not interested in your account. It doesn't bring new engaged followers but put you at the risk to be banned.

For instance, if you run a page about healthy nutrition, interact with people who are interested in dieting. These users like and share healthy recipe posts and stories, actively discuss weight loss ideas in comments, and so on.

You should act like a "normal user" to avoid being banned. It means you should watch videos, share Stories, visit users' profiles, etc. Also, send messages, leave likes and comments. And make sure you do these within Instagram limits.

Increase your daily activity gradually if you want to be able to leave more likes and comments, send more messages, etc. Do a bit more every day, then you will keep within Instagram limits and avoid the ban.

Don't fall for the temptation to buy followers and likes. The bots you buy as followers won't like your posts. This means a low engagement rate which causes a low reach rate too. Besides, buying followers and likes means their rapid increase. And you already know it should be gradual.

Use tools that consider Instagram limits instead. First of all, try the Folme app to automate your account promotion. It finds your audience, subscribes to the users, and likes their posts within the limits. The users do the same in return. And this is exactly what organic growth is.

You can get around some Instagram limits. Then you can increase your activity and add more information without being banned. Use Taplink for this. This is how you can help you to boost your page:

This is how it works: you create a web-page, don't worry, you can easily do it without programming skills, and then you add it to your bio, Stories, or even ads on Instagram. You can also tell about the page in the posts and reels caption, and thus, users can find it. 

That's it! You can share anything with your audience without a risk of being banned because of the Instagram limits. Look at users link in bio page examples to get inspired:

Use these templates to quickly create a similar page after a sign-up:

Or choose another template on Taplink. 

Instagram limitations and restrictions are not an issue in regard to building a brand on socials if you keep your activity reasonable. Keep the number of likes, comments, new followings average every day, then your activity will look natural. Increase them gradually if you need more. 

Exceeding Instagram limits can cause your account to be banned. Avoid it by keeping it under the limits we mentioned in the article and using the tools for organic growth like Taplink.