Instagram is strict about what it lets an app post to, and the requirement sits on your account, not on ours. Get it right once and the connect takes seconds.
What you need on your account
- A professional account, Business or Creator. A private account cannot be connected, by Instagram's rule, not ours. Switch it in the Instagram app under Settings, Account type and tools.
- The account linked to a Facebook Page. Instagram's publishing API runs through the Page, so no Page means no connect. Link it in the Instagram app under Settings, Sharing and reposts.
- An admin role on that Page.
Connecting it
- Open Social Media, then Channels.
- Click Connect on the Instagram tile.
- On Meta's screen pick the business portfolio, then tick the Page and its Instagram account. Ticking only the Page is the most common mistake: the connect then finds no Instagram account.
- Confirm. You come back and the account is in the list with its name and photo.
What it can do
- Feed posts with up to ten images or videos
- Stories
- First comment, posted right after the post
- Scheduling and the calendar
- Comments and direct messages in the inbox
What it cannot do yet
- Reels as a separate format
- Carousels mixing images and video
- Tagging other accounts
When it does not work
No Instagram account is linked to your Pages. The Instagram account is either still private or not linked to a Page. Both are fixed in the Instagram app, see above.
Meta handed over no Page. Start the connect again and tick the Page on Meta's screen that asks which assets to share.
A post fails with a format error. Instagram takes JPEG only. A PNG or a WebP is refused.