Buffer Resources Analyzes Instagram Reels Length
Instagram Reels between 90 seconds and three minutes reach 4-7% more people, according to Buffer Resources. This length is optimal for reach, but longer reels get more engagement.
Original reporting · buffer.com
Original: “How Long Should Instagram Reels Be? We Analyzed 2.7 Million Reels”
Read “How Long Should Instagram Reels Be? We Analyzed 2.7 Million Reels” at Buffer Resources →
How this was written. GMS Agency Desk wrote this article with a language model from Buffer Resources’s reporting (model: @cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast); it describes that reporting rather than adding to it. The original, linked above, is the full story.
Key points from Buffer Resources’s report
- Instagram Reels between 90 seconds and three minutes reach 4-7% more people than the account's average.
- Reels longer than three minutes get the most engagement, with an engagement rate 2.65 percentage points above the account's baseline.
- The optimal length for Instagram Reels depends on the goal of the content creator, either reaching new audiences or engaging with an existing audience.
Buffer Resources analyzed 2.7 million Instagram Reels to determine the optimal length for reach and engagement. The study found that reels between 90 seconds and three minutes reached 4-7% more people than the account's average.
Instagram Reels can be up to 20 minutes long, but only reels of three minutes or less are eligible for recommendation to new audiences. This means that longer reels may not appear in the reels tab, explore page, or home feed of non-followers.
The study compared each account's performance to itself, to avoid skewing the data with accounts that have enormous followings. The results showed that reels between 90 seconds and three minutes reached roughly 4-7% more unique accounts than the account's typical reel.
Reels longer than three minutes got the most engagement, with an engagement rate 2.65 percentage points above the account's baseline. This suggests that longer reels can be effective for nurturing an existing audience.
The optimal length for Instagram Reels depends on the goal of the content creator. If the goal is to reach new audiences, then 90 seconds to three minutes is the optimal length. However, if the goal is to engage with an existing audience, then longer reels may be more effective.
The study's findings have implications for content creators who want to optimize their Instagram Reels for reach and engagement. By understanding the optimal length for their goals, creators can create more effective content and improve their overall performance on the platform.
Questions and answers
What is the maximum length of an Instagram Reel?
The maximum length of an Instagram Reel is 20 minutes.
Why do reels longer than three minutes get less reach?
Reels longer than three minutes are not eligible for recommendation to new audiences, which means they may not appear in the reels tab, explore page, or home feed of non-followers.
What is the optimal length for Instagram Reels if the goal is to engage with an existing audience?
The optimal length for Instagram Reels to engage with an existing audience is longer than three minutes, as these reels get the most engagement.
