Instagram Limits - Current Restrictions and Boundaries
Instagram limits act as rules set to keep the platform safe and smooth for everyone using it. These guidelines are designed to stop spam, abuse, and bots that could negatively impact the community. There are daily or hourly caps on things like how many posts you can share, people you can follow, likes you can give, and messages you can send.
By having these limits, Instagram wants to make sure everyone can use the app in a safe and balanced way without being overwhelmed by too much activity. Understanding these limits is important if you want to avoid temporary blocks or restrictions on your account.
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What Are Instagram Limits?
With millions of people actively using it around the globe, Instagram ranks among the top social networks today. But because of its large user base and wide range of interaction options, Instagram has set some limits to keep the user experience balanced and the platform running smoothly.
Instagram puts various limits in place to organize and protect users’ experiences. These limits help stop misuse, reduce spam and bot activity, ensure user safety, and make the social media environment better overall.
For example, actions like following too many accounts, liking, or commenting too much within a short time are limited to prevent spammy behavior or annoying other users. These limits let people create and share content on Instagram in a healthier, more effective, and safer way while encouraging genuine interaction with followers.
Sometimes, these limits can be a hurdle, especially for new users or those involved in social media marketing. That’s because the platform might see sudden or excessive activity as suspicious and apply temporary restrictions.
Understanding Instagram’s limits is very important to manage your account better and avoid unexpected blocks. Knowing why these limits exist and what actions they cover is a key step for both individual users and businesses to plan their social media strategies properly.
Below, you’ll find a detailed explanation of Instagram’s main action limits and what they mean for users. This way, you can make the most of your Instagram experience and enjoy all the opportunities the platform offers without interruptions.
- Follow Limit: New accounts: 98 - 200 people per day Active accounts: 400 - 800 people per day
- Maximum Following Count: 7,500 people
- Unfollow Limit: Between 800 and 1,000 accounts allowed daily.
- Follower Removal Limit: 1,000 - 2,000 people per day
- Like Limit: Total 400 - 1,000 likes per day - First hour: 200 likes, then 120 likes every hour
- Comment Limit: Comments allowed daily 200 to 400 on accounts you follow, and 100 to 200 on those you don’t.
- DM (Direct Message) Limit: To people who don’t follow you: 35 DMs per hour, 100 - 200 DMs per day / To people who follow you: 200 - 400 DMs per hour (no daily limit)
- Post Sharing Limit: 99 posts per day
- Story Sharing Limit: 99 stories per day
- Daily Story Views Cap: Between 5,000 and 7,000 stories
- Daily Story Like Cap: Between 1,000 and 1,500 likes allowed each day.
Instagram Follow Limits
Instagram sets certain limits to make the user experience as good as possible and to prevent spam, abuse, and other bad behavior on the platform. A key restriction among these is known as the follow limit.
This limit is especially important for new users and entrepreneurs trying to grow their profiles. Daily and hourly follow quotas matter a lot. Not knowing about these limits or going over them can cause your account to be temporarily restricted or even permanently blocked.
That’s why anyone aiming to grow their account and increase engagement on Instagram needs to understand these follow limits well and follow the rules. When setting follow limits, Instagram looks at each user’s account history, engagement rates, behavior, account age, and trust level on the platform.
So, there isn’t a fixed, one-size-fits-all follow limit. It varies for each account. Instagram’s sophisticated AI technology constantly monitors and adjusts these limits in real time. In general, these limits cover both how many people you can follow in a single day and the total number of people your account can follow.
For new accounts or those with low organic engagement, these limits are stricter. Typically, newly created accounts can follow between 100 and 200 users each day. These rules help prevent spam and fake actions and keep Instagram’s ecosystem safe.
If users follow, like, or comment too fast and too much, Instagram may see this as spam. Then, the platform can apply restrictions like temporarily disabling the follow feature or hiding the account’s visibility (called shadow banning). To prevent this, make sure you stick to Instagram’s guidelines and restrictions.
On the other hand, accounts that have been active for a long time, have natural engagement, and follow the rules get higher follow limits. Verified users are allowed to follow anywhere from 400 up to 800 accounts daily.
However, reaching this level requires organic and natural growth over time. Sudden, fake, or automated spikes (like using bots or mass follow tools) are easily detected by Instagram’s algorithm, and such accounts may have their limits suddenly reduced.
Instagram sets a cap that prevents users from following over 7,500 accounts altogether. Once you reach this number, you need to unfollow some people before following new ones. For people relying on the follow/unfollow strategy, hitting the limit means fewer opportunities to follow new profiles as you approach the maximum allowed.
Also, follow requests sent to private accounts that haven’t been accepted yet count toward this 7,500 limit. For example, if you have sent follow requests to 500 private accounts and are waiting for approval, you can only actively follow about 7,000 more accounts. This detail is often overlooked but is very important for users with high follow goals.
Therefore, canceling old, unapproved follow requests helps increase your follow capacity and avoid going over the limit. Also, accounts that break community rules, post spam, or use automated tools may have their daily follow limits lowered drastically — sometimes down to around 30-50 follows per day.
Instagram Unfollow Limits
Instagram sets various rules and limits to protect user experience and prevent spam or abuse on the platform. These limits aim to keep both individual users and communities safe, ensure the system runs smoothly, and help users have real, genuine interactions.
Among these rules, there are important limits specifically for unfollowing others. Even though Instagram doesn’t officially share exact numbers, experience and user feedback show that if someone unfollows too many accounts in a short time, Instagram may see this as unusual or automated (bot-like) behavior.
In such cases, Instagram might temporarily restrict the account or pause unfollow actions for a while. This helps keep the account safe and preserves the natural and organic feel of the platform. Just like following, unfollowing also has limits. Instagram roughly allows a user to unfollow between 800 and 1000 accounts within 24 hours.
This number can change based on Instagram’s policies and updated algorithms, but this range is a good general guideline. The main goal is to stop users from making too many fast, extreme changes that look abnormal to the system.
For example, trying to unfollow thousands of accounts in one day can cause technical issues with your account and might trigger Instagram’s security systems designed to detect spam or malicious activity. When that happens, users may temporarily lose the ability to unfollow or get warnings from the platform.
The unfollow limit doesn’t just cover active unfollowing—it also includes canceling pending follow requests you’ve sent that haven’t been accepted yet. So, if you cancel 500 pending follow requests in a day, your daily unfollow limit will drop by about 500 for that day.
This means users need to plan their daily actions carefully. These limits are especially important for those who want to grow, manage, or optimize their follower list. Account managers should handle unfollowing carefully and avoid quick, mass unfollowing. Also, spreading out unfollow actions over time helps avoid triggering Instagram’s spam detection algorithms.
Instagram Follower Removal Limits
Instagram is a dynamic platform that lets users easily manage their follower counts. When users want to quickly and drastically reduce their followers, the platform sets certain limits and rules. These limits are designed to keep Instagram’s ecosystem healthy. Especially when it comes to removing followers, there are set limits on how many followers a user can remove in a certain time frame.
These follower removal limits are in place to protect account security, prevent misuse, and stop spam activity on the platform. Instagram’s algorithms constantly watch user behavior and spot unusual actions.
For example, if a user tries to remove many followers in a short time, this looks suspicious. As a result, restrictions may apply. These could mean the account temporarily can’t perform some actions or even faces a temporary suspension.
To reach a wider, real audience on Instagram, support organic growth, and increase engagement, it’s important to regularly check your follower list. Over time, fake accounts, bots, or inactive users may build up on your list.
These types of accounts can hurt your post reach and visibility, lowering your engagement rates. So, cleaning out these accounts can improve your performance.
When cleaning followers, the number you can remove in one day usually ranges between 1,000 and 2,000, depending on your account’s size and status. This number isn’t fixed and may vary based on Instagram’s current policies.
Trying to remove too many followers at once can trigger the platform’s spam protection. This may cause limits on your account, like blocking follower removal or losing access to some features temporarily.
To make follower removal safer, it’s better to do it gradually. This is especially important if you have many bots or inactive accounts. Spreading follower cleanup over a few days helps avoid being flagged as spam and lowers risks. This way, your account stays healthy over time and stays in good standing with the platform.
Some users try to speed up follower removal by using third-party apps or automatic tools. However, Instagram strictly forbids using these apps. These outside apps can seriously risk your account’s security. You might lose your account, get suspended, or have it permanently closed. That’s why it’s always safest and best to manage followers only through Instagram’s official methods and to be patient.
Instagram Like Limits
Spending hours on Instagram and liking posts one after another has become very common. To keep user activity healthy and balanced, Instagram sets daily like limits. These limits are crucial to prevent misuse and protect user experience. If you go over the like quota, your account might be temporarily restricted or lose access to some features.
This can be a big problem for both individual users who want organic growth and for content creators, social media experts, and brands. So, what exactly is Instagram’s like limit? How many likes are you allowed to send daily?
Instagram’s like limits aren’t fixed or the same for everyone. They’re personalized and depend on your account’s history, trustworthiness, activities, and how you behave on the platform. For example, a new account with few followers and low engagement won’t have the same limits as an active account that shares regularly and has high engagement.
New accounts have lower limits, while active and trusted accounts get more freedom. Generally, experts say the daily like limit is between 400 and 1000. The key is not to push these limits suddenly but to grow your interactions gradually and naturally. Sudden bursts of likes can be seen as bot or spam activity by Instagram’s algorithms, which might temporarily restrict or even suspend your account.
There’s also an hourly limit to watch. The recommended maximum likes in the first hour is 200, and after that, you shouldn’t exceed 120 likes per hour. Especially using auto-like apps or third-party tools to go over these limits can trigger spam detection and risk your account’s safety.
So, keeping a pace that looks like real, natural user behavior is necessary for long-term success. Another important point is the quality of your likes. Quickly liking just to increase numbers might boost visibility in the short term, but it hurts your brand’s or personal account’s trust in the long run.
To build a lasting and genuine audience on Instagram, focus on improving your content quality, engage with your followers, and support their posts organically. This way, Instagram will see you as a real user and help expand your account’s reach.
Instagram Comment Limits
Instagram sets various interaction limits to keep the user experience smooth and to stop spam from spreading on the platform. One of the most important limits is the comment limit.
There is a limit on how many comments a user can post within certain time frames. If you post too many comments in a day, hour, or short period, Instagram may see it as spam or fake interaction and temporarily block you from commenting.
Instagram’s algorithm closely watches accounts that post lots of comments quickly or repeatedly comment the same things. In these cases, it may flag those accounts as suspicious and apply restrictions to protect the platform.
So, whether you use Instagram for personal or professional reasons, it’s important to know these comment limits. Staying within the limits helps keep your account safe and makes your interaction strategies more effective.
A user’s daily comment limit can change depending on their past interactions, how many followers and people they follow, and their overall account activity. Instagram updates these limits regularly to encourage real, natural interactions and to stop fake or automated behavior. That means comment limits can vary by account and can change over time.
For example, the number of comments you can make on posts from people you follow usually ranges between 200 and 400 per day. Instagram uses this limit to help interactions stay natural and genuine, encouraging real conversations and connections between users.
Leaving regular, thoughtful comments on posts from people you follow is a great way to boost your account’s visibility and reach more people. But posting too many comments too quickly can be seen as spam.
This could lead to your account being temporarily blocked from commenting or other activities. At times, this limitation may persist anywhere from a couple of hours up to multiple days. On the other hand, the number of comments you can make on posts from people you don’t follow is usually lower — around 100 to 200 per day. This helps Instagram control interactions with unknown accounts and prevent spam.
If you comment excessively on accounts you don’t know or don’t follow, the system may see it as suspicious behavior and take action against your account. So, especially when commenting on posts from strangers, it’s important to be cautious.
Keep your comments meaningful and measured, and follow Instagram’s rules and community guidelines. By doing so, you safeguard your account while enhancing your performance within Instagram’s algorithm.
Instagram DM Limits
On Instagram, direct messaging (DM) is a quick, personal, and popular way for people to communicate. Instagram DMs help both individuals and brands improve customer relationships, answer questions, make collaboration offers, or just socialize easily.
To keep the platform running smoothly and protect user experience, Instagram sets some limits on sending DMs. One of these is the DM limit. Instagram restricts how many messages users can send to prevent spam and bad behavior.
At the moment, the limit allows you to send a maximum of 35 direct messages every hour. This hourly limit resets automatically at the start of each hour, so users have a regulated messaging capacity throughout the day. Besides the hourly limit, there’s also a daily limit of around 100 to 200 DMs in total. These numbers aren’t fixed and may change depending on your account’s activity and trustworthiness, based on Instagram’s algorithm.
If you go over these limits, your account might be temporarily blocked from sending messages or restricted for spam-like behavior. Some sources say you can send between 200 and 400 DMs per hour, but sending that many messages usually looks like unnatural behavior.
Instagram may flag this as spam or automated activity, which can harm your account’s safety. This is especially important for new or low-engagement accounts to keep in mind. Also, sending too many DMs too fast doesn’t just risk your account being restricted — it can also lower your organic reach and visibility because Instagram’s algorithm may reduce your interactions.
Instagram Post Sharing Limit
Instagram is a huge social media platform with billions of active users today. It lets people share content, capture moments, and connect with their followers. At the same time, it sets certain limits to keep things organized and maintain a good user experience.
One of the most important limits is the Instagram post sharing limit. This is especially important for influencers, businesses, brands, and anyone who shares content often.
The post sharing limit basically restricts how many posts an account can share in a certain time period. This helps Instagram prevent overuse and stop spam while making the experience better and more controlled for users.
According to Instagram’s current rules, a user can share up to 99 posts per day. These posts can be photos, videos, or carousels. This limit isn’t just about the number of posts—it also depends on how the account behaves and its past activity.
For new or suspicious accounts, these limits can be stricter. Also, if you share a lot of posts quickly, Instagram’s spam filters might kick in. This can cause your posts to be removed automatically or temporarily block you from posting.
That’s why Instagram watches user activity closely and tries to stop any unusual behavior. Every photo or video shared isn’t just about the visuals. The detailed captions, hashtags, and tags also have a big impact on viewers.
These captions help build stronger connections with followers, promote products better, and increase engagement. But when you share posts with long captions, it can also affect the comment limits directly.
Instagram’s comment limit is another important rule designed to manage how users interact on the platform. It becomes especially important for active users and business accounts that get a lot of comments.
If you go over this limit, you won’t be able to comment on posts for a while. This helps stop spam comments and keeps the platform orderly. Users who post a lot of detailed, engaging content might hit this limit quickly.
In that case, users who want to keep sharing detailed posts might need to delete some comments or change how they handle comments. For example, they could reduce the number of comments they make to get more engagement, improve comment quality, or be more selective with comments.
Instagram Story Limits
Instagram’s Stories feature has become one of the most popular and engaging parts of the platform. Users can share quick, short posts to show moments from their daily lives to their followers. This feature offers a dynamic and effective way to communicate for both individuals and brands. The fast, visual style of Instagram Stories plays a big role in catching users’ attention.
Like any digital platform, Instagram Stories has certain limits and rules to improve user experience and prevent spam or overuse. Instagram users can share up to 99 stories in 24 hours. This limit helps users keep their posts balanced and prevents followers from feeling overwhelmed or bored by too many stories.
Sharing too many stories can make followers lose interest and lower engagement rates. Also, this limit helps stop spammy behavior and keeps the platform’s overall quality high. A user can watch between 5,000 and 7,000 stories within 24 hours.
This viewing limit is set to ensure a healthy experience on the platform. It lets users explore and interact with different accounts while preventing excessive or automated watching. If this limit is exceeded, Instagram may temporarily restrict viewing for security reasons.
Likes on stories are also limited. Users can like between 1,000 and 1,500 stories in 24 hours. This limit keeps interactions organic and realistic. Constantly liking too many stories can look like spam and lead to restrictions from Instagram. For healthy account management, it’s important to follow these limits.
After reading this content, be sure to check out our article titled “How To Fix Instagram Not Sending Verification Code?”
