Link and auto-post to Instagram

Instagram auto-posts from the web app and the mobile app once the channel is linked. One sign-in at instagram.com is enough to publish. A second kind of link, through a Facebook Page, adds tagging, music, and analytics.

Link Instagram

1. Select the Instagram avatar in the channel row at the top right. Every workspace starts with Instagram in the row as a reminder-only channel.
2. Choose Link Account.
3. Sign in at instagram.com and allow Planoly access. Planoly asks for permission to read your profile, publish content, and manage comments.

A workspace holds one Instagram channel. Choosing Link Account when the channel is already there signs that channel in again.

On mobile, tap your workspace avatar, tap Manage, open the workspace, tap the Instagram row, then tap Link account.

Linking through Facebook

The instagram.com sign-in links the channel for scheduling and auto-posting. Location, Tag people, Tag products, collaborators, Music, and Instagram analytics need Instagram linked through a Facebook Page. Planoly offers that link from inside the tool that needs it. Select one of those tools on a channel linked at instagram.com and a card opens titled Update Instagram account to followed by the action in capitals, such as ADD LOCATION or TAG USERS. Select Activate, sign in with Facebook, pick the Page your Instagram Business or Creator account is linked to, and select Connect. Only Pages with an Instagram account attached are listed.

The Facebook sign-in upgrades the channel you already have. Link Instagram to a Facebook Business page covers the setup on the Facebook side.

Schedule an Instagram post

1. Select Create Post, then Click to add your channels, and pick Instagram.
2. The Instagram tab opens as a Post/Reel. For a Story, select the tab again and pick it from the menu.
3. Add your media. A Post/Reel takes 1 to 10 images or videos. A Story takes one image or one video.
4. Write your caption. A Post/Reel allows 2,200 characters and 30 hashtags, and the counters under the caption box track both.
5. Set the options you want. See below.
6. Under Posting method, choose Auto-post.
7. Select Pick a time, choose a date and time at least 10 minutes ahead, then select Schedule post.

What Instagram receives depends on the media:

• One image publishes as a feed post.
• Two or more items publish as a carousel.
• One video publishes as a Reel that also appears in your feed. A banner under the media says so while the channel is set to Auto-post.
• A Story publishes one item. Its caption box is a note for you and is not sent to Instagram.

Instagram options

The tools sit in the toolbar under the caption box.

• Exclude from main grid — switch on to publish a single video as a Reel that appears only in your Reels tab. With images or several items the switch is off and says why. While it is on, Location and Creator Store leave the toolbar.
• Cover photo — appears when the post holds exactly one video. Upload a cover image for it. See Add a cover photo to a video.
• First comment — a comment Planoly posts under the post after it publishes, up to 2,000 characters and 10 mentions. Its hashtags count toward the caption's 30. See Auto-post first comments.
• Location — search Instagram's places and attach one.
• Tag people — tag accounts on your media and add up to 3 collaborators. The post needs media first. See Invite and tag Instagram collaborators.
• Tag products — tag items from your Instagram Shop. The post needs media first. See Tag Instagram products.
• Music — pick a sound from Instagram's catalogue for a single video. See Add audio to an Instagram post.
• Creator Store — a link title and URL. When the post publishes, Planoly adds it to your Creator Store's social feed with that link. Without a Creator Store on the workspace the fields do nothing. See Feature your social feed on your Creator Store.

Location, Tag people, Tag products, and Music need the Facebook-linked connection. On a channel linked at instagram.com they open the Update Instagram account to card.

A Story has fewer tools: Tag people, and Music only when the channel is set to Reminder.

Limits

Planoly checks these before it will schedule an Instagram auto-post.

• Post/Reel: 1 to 10 items, a 2,200-character caption, 30 hashtags across the caption and first comment, and 20 mentions in the caption.
• First comment: 2,000 characters and 10 mentions.
• Collaborators: 3 per post.
• Story: one item, and a video must be 60 seconds or less.
• Timing: at least 10 minutes ahead and no more than a year out.

File sizes, aspect ratios, and formats are in Media requirements for auto-post. Instagram auto-post limits lists what each post type and connection supports.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to connect through Facebook to auto-post?

No. The instagram.com sign-in publishes posts, carousels, reels, stories, and first comments. Linking through Facebook adds location tags, tagging people, product tags, collaborators, music, and analytics.

Does linking pull in my published Instagram posts?

Yes. Once the channel is linked, Planoly loads your published posts into the Instagram grid view. A reminder-only channel does not. See Plan your Instagram grid.

Why does the builder say my connection expired?

Instagram stopped honouring Planoly's access. Auto-post is locked until you select Reconnect in the banner under Posting method, and Reminder keeps working in the meantime. Refresh a channel connection has the steps.

What happens when I unlink the channel?

Unlink Account in the avatar menu switches the channel to reminder-only and converts every scheduled Instagram post to a reminder notification. Link Account on the same avatar turns auto-post back on for the channel. Posts that unlinking converted stay reminders; open each one and set Posting method back to Auto-post. To sign in with a different account and keep your scheduled posts, use Refresh Channel Connection instead.

Can I give Instagram a different caption from the other channels in the same post?

Yes. Add the channels to one post and select each channel's tab to write its own caption, swap its media, and set its own options. Under scheduling, Customize per channel also lets each channel go out at its own time.