Key takeaways
- Instagram announced in December 2025 that captions on posts and Reels will be limited to five hashtags, down from the long standing 30.
- Adam Mosseri said in 2025 that hashtags do not improve visibility on Instagram, but they help tell people what a post is about.
- Instagram’s own search guidance says to put keywords and hashtags in the caption, because search matches captions, names, bios and places.
- Spend your five hashtags on specific topic and community tags that describe the post, not generic tags such as #reels.
How many hashtags can you use on Instagram in 2026?
Instagram’s announced limit is five hashtags per post or Reel, as of October 2026. Instagram announced the cap on December 18, 2025, through its @creators account. Social Media Today reports the post. Instagram said it “will gradually update the number of hashtags” allowed in a caption for a reel or post “to five.”
The old limit was 30 hashtags per post. Before the five tag cap, Instagram tested a lower limit. Social Samosa reports that some users were limited to as few as three during those tests.
Instagram gave a reason for the change. It said using “fewer (up to 5) more targeted hashtags, rather than many generic ones” can improve performance and user experience.
Is the five hashtag limit live for every account?
Instagram said the change would roll out gradually, and sources still disagree on how far it has gone. Later, in an April 2026 guide, calls it a hard limit on posts and Reels for all account types. Later also says hashtags in the first comment count toward the same five.
Other pages say otherwise. A Metricool guide updated in June 2026 still lists 30 as Instagram’s limit. A Lilach Bullock article updated in October 2026 says the cap still appears only on some accounts. Neither claim comes from Instagram.
Our advice: plan for five. Instagram has said five is where it is going. A plan built on five works whether your account has the cap yet or not.
Do hashtags still help reach on Instagram?
Not much, according to Instagram itself. In 2025, Mosseri said hashtags “don’t improve visibility on Instagram,” per Social Media Today. Instagram also removed the option to follow hashtags, Social Media Today reported in December 2024.
Recent data points the same way, though studies differ in age and method.
| Study | Date | Sample | Finding |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metricool 2026 Instagram Study | June 2026 | Over 24 million posts from 375,000 accounts | Posts with hashtags averaged 32% fewer views and 34% fewer interactions than posts without |
| Later hashtag study | June 2025 | 18.1 million feed posts (no Reels or Stories) | Posts with 20 hashtags had the highest average reach; 30 hashtags close behind |
The two studies conflict, and both have limits. Metricool says its result is “a correlation, not a proven cause.” Later’s study came out before the five tag cap, so its 20 to 30 tag advice no longer applies.
What do hashtags actually do on Instagram now?
Hashtags now work mainly as labels. Mosseri said in 2025 they are “a great way to let people know what a post is about and connect posts.”
They also feed Instagram search. In its search explainer, Instagram says the text people type is matched against usernames, bios, captions, hashtags and places. That explainer dates from August 25, 2021. It is old, but it is still Instagram’s most detailed public statement on search ranking.
The same page ranks the signals in order:
- Your search text, the most important signal.
- Your activity, such as accounts you follow and posts you view.
- Popularity, such as clicks, likes, shares and follows for an account, hashtag or place.
How do you pick the right five hashtags?
Pick tags that describe what the post actually covers, for people who would search for it. Here is a simple process.
- Start with the topic. Write one or two tags for the exact subject, such as the product type or the problem it solves.
- Add a community tag. Choose one or two tags your buyers use, such as a niche, a hobby or a local area.
- Add a branded tag if you run one. Use it only if you track it or feature customer posts.
- Skip generic tags. Social Samosa’s report on the change names #reels and #explore as generic tags to avoid.
- Check tag size. Later suggests tags with 10,000 to 200,000 posts as a sweet spot for most content. Treat that as Later’s guidance, not an Instagram rule.
- Rotate sets by topic. Later advises against pasting the same tag set on every post.
- Review results monthly. Compare reach on posts that used different tag sets, and drop tags that never help.
Put the tags in the caption. Instagram’s search explainer says, “For a post to be found in Search, put keywords and hashtags in the caption, not the comments.”
What matters more than hashtags on Instagram?
Keywords in your caption, name and bio matter more for search than the hashtag count. Instagram’s 2021 search guidance says to use a name tied to your content and to add descriptive terms and location to your bio.
Hootsuite gives practical steps in a guide updated in October 2026:
- Weave 3 to 5 relevant keywords into the caption naturally, without stuffing.
- Write alt text that describes the post, without forcing keywords into it.
- Put product or niche words in your profile name, not only your personal name.
Hootsuite reports that SEO optimized posts can earn 30% more engagement in its own comparison.
Google is now part of this too. Since July 10, 2025, public content from professional accounts can appear in Google and other search engines by default, per PPC Land. That makes clear captions useful beyond the app.
Organic search takes time to build. If you need sales sooner, paid campaigns are a separate channel, and Meta ads vs Google ads explains the differences. SureSocial runs Meta ads and Google ads, and the first step is a free 30 minute strategy call on Zoom.
FAQ
Do hashtags in comments get around the five tag limit?
Later says no: tags in the first comment count toward the same five. Instagram’s search guidance also says to put hashtags in the caption, not the comments, if you want posts found in search.
What happens if I add more than five hashtags?
Later says Instagram will either block publishing or remove the extra tags. Behavior may vary while the rollout continues, so check before you publish.
Should I stop using hashtags entirely?
No. Mosseri says hashtags do not boost visibility, but they tell people and search what a post is about. Two or three accurate tags cost nothing.
Are 3 to 5 hashtags still the right number?
Yes. Instagram’s own announcement recommends “fewer (up to 5) more targeted hashtags,” and five is now the announced maximum.
Sources
- Instagram Implements New Limits on Hashtag Use (Social Media Today)
- Instagram limits number of hashtags to five per post (Social Samosa)
- Instagram hashtags in 2026, win with the 5 tag limit (Later)
- How many hashtags should you use on Instagram (Later study)
- How Many Hashtags to Use On Each Social Media Platform in 2026 (Metricool)
- Why Instagram only lets you use 5 hashtags on some posts (Lilach Bullock)
- Do you still need to use hashtags? (Social Media Today)
- Breaking Down How Instagram Search Works (Instagram)
- Instagram SEO (Hootsuite)
- Instagram content becomes searchable on Google starting July 10 (PPC Land)
