This article was contributed by Northline Media
Have you ever posted something you were proud of, only to watch it stall while someone’s blurry lunch photo gets hundreds of likes? Most new creators run into this. Likes aren’t just luck, though. They follow patterns you can learn and test.
Why Are Instagram Likes Important?
Likes matter for two reasons.
The first is ranking. In January 2025, Instagram head Adam Mosseri named three of the most important ranking signals: watch time, likes per reach and sends per reach. Sends per reach is how often people share your post by DM. “Per reach” means Instagram looks at the share of viewers who liked your post, not just the total.
The second is social proof. When someone visits your profile and sees posts with steady engagement, they have one more reason to follow you.
What Determines How Many Likes You Get on Instagram?
Content quality matters, but it isn’t the only factor.
Who sees the post first: Instagram usually shows a new post to a small group before deciding whether to show it to more people. A strong early response can help a post travel further. It doesn’t guarantee wider reach, because watch time and shares count too.
Your relationship with followers: People who regularly like or comment on your posts are more likely to see your next one in their feed.
Timing: If most of your followers are asleep when you post, fewer people see it in those first hours.
Format: Reels, carousels and single images get different treatment. A Reel is judged heavily on watch time, while a single photo leans more on likes.
10 Ways to Get More Instagram Likes
1. Post High-Quality Visuals
This one sounds obvious, but it’s genuinely the foundation. Shoot near a window in daylight and wipe your camera lens first. Before you post, look at the image at thumbnail size. If you can’t tell what it is in a small grid square, crop tighter or choose another shot.
2. Write Captions That Hook and Invite a Reply
Instagram cuts captions off after a line or two, so the first line has to earn the tap on “more.” The end of the caption should give people an easy reason to respond.
Try this: Open with a specific statement or question, not a greeting. “I wasted ₹8,000 on skincare before learning this” works better than “Happy Monday everyone!” End with a question people can answer in a few words, like “Which one would you pick: A or B?”
Comments are a useful sign that people care about a post. Instagram hasn’t said they always count for more than likes, so treat them as one signal among several.
3. Use Instagram Reels
Reels can reach people who don’t follow you yet. That makes them a strong format for new likes. Instagram has said watch time is a key signal for video, so the first few seconds matter most.
Show the result or the most interesting moment in the first two to three seconds, then explain how you got there. Keep the video short enough that people watch to the end. A tight 15-second Reel usually holds viewers better than a slow 60-second one.
4. Post at the Right Time
Instagram Insights is available on any Creator or Business account. Open it, go to “Total followers” and scroll to “Most active times.”
Choose two time slots from that chart. Post at each slot for two weeks, then compare likes per reach. Keep the slot that wins and test it against a new one.
5. Use a Few Targeted Hashtags
Instagram now allows a maximum of five hashtags per post or Reel. Mosseri has said hashtags help Instagram understand what a post is about and can help with search. He has also said they don’t increase reach on their own. So use them to describe your post, not to chase growth.
Use three to five specific tags instead of broad ones. A home baker in Pune might use #sourdoughindia or #punebakers rather than #food or #instagood.
6. Interact With Your Audience Genuinely
Replies show people there’s a real person behind the account, and that gives them a reason to come back.
Stay online for the first 30 to 60 minutes after you post and reply to every comment. Give real answers, not just an emoji. Spend ten minutes a day leaving thoughtful comments on posts from accounts in your niche.
If you want more ideas from other users, here is the best tip to get more Instagram likes, shared in a Reddit thread where people swap advice on growing engagement.
7. Collaborate With Other Creators
Instagram’s Collab feature lets two accounts publish the same post together, so it shows up for both sets of followers.
Find a creator of a similar size in a related niche. A fitness coach and a healthy-recipe creator are a good pair. Plan one joint post together, such as “a post-workout meal in 10 minutes.”
8. Post Consistently
Long gaps followed by bursts of posts make it harder for followers to get into the habit of seeing your content. Regular posting gives you more chances to reach people, and it gives you more data to learn from.
Pick a pace you can keep for three months, such as three feed posts and a few Stories a week. Batch-create your content in one day so you don’t have to make something new every time you post.
9. Use Carousels
Carousels hold up to 20 photos or videos. People spend more time on a post when they swipe through it, and that time can help the post’s performance.
Turn one idea into a numbered series. Some examples: “5 mistakes I made in my first year of freelancing” or a step-by-step recipe with one step per slide. End on a final slide that asks a question or tells people to save the post.
10. Review Your Results and Repeat What Works
Most accounts never look back at what worked, so they keep guessing. A monthly review fixes that.
Try this: Once a month, open Insights and list your last 10 posts. For each one, write down:
Likes per reach: likes divided by accounts reached
Shares: how many times it was sent or shared
Saves: how many people saved it
Average watch time: for Reels only
Look at your top three posts and find what they share. It might be the format, the topic, the posting time or the opening line. Make more posts like those next month.
How Instagram Likes Affect Engagement and Account Growth
Likes are one part of a bigger picture that also includes comments, saves, shares and watch time. Instagram has said shares by DM matter a great deal for reaching people who don’t follow you. Likes carry more weight with your existing followers.
That’s why the review in Tip 10 tracks more than likes. If a post gets plenty of likes but almost no shares, people enjoyed it but didn’t find it worth passing on. If a post gets lots of shares, make more of that kind of content.
Organic Vs Alternative Methods of Increasing Instagram Likes
There are four broad ways to get more likes:
Organic Growth
This means likes from real people who found and enjoyed your content. It’s slower, but these followers are the ones most likely to keep engaging, and to buy if you run a business. Every tip above is organic.
Paid Advertising Through Instagram
You can boost a post or run ads through Meta Ads Manager. Your content goes to people you target by location, interests or age. It costs money, but it’s transparent and fully within Instagram’s rules. Ads can bring real people to your content. Whether they like it still depends on the content itself.
Other Promotional Services
This group includes paid shoutouts from other accounts, influencer partnerships and social media agencies that manage content and promotion for you. These can be legitimate when they put your content in front of real audiences. Paid partnerships must be disclosed with Instagram’s “Paid partnership” label. Before you pay, check whether the audience is a good match for you.
Artificial Engagement
This means bought likes, bot accounts, automation tools and engagement pods set up to trade likes. Instagram’s Community Guidelines ban artificially collecting likes, followers or shares. Instagram can remove fake engagement and limit the reach of accounts that use it. Even when the likes stick, they come from accounts that won’t follow you, buy from you or share your posts.
There’s no reliable shortcut that replaces steady, genuine effort over time.
Frequently Asked Questions About Instagram Likes
Can hiding likes on Instagram affect my reach?
Instagram lets you hide like counts from your audience, but the algorithm still counts them behind the scenes. Hiding likes doesn’t really affect the number of people who can see your content, but it will affect the way your posts are seen by your visitors.
How many likes is considered good on Instagram?
Hiding like counts only changes what visitors see. Instagram still records likes in the background. Hiding them doesn’t appear to change how many people see your post, but it does change how your posts look to people visiting your profile.
Do hashtags still increase Instagram likes in 2026?
Not directly. Instagram limits posts to five hashtags, and these hashtags help people find posts through search but don’t increase reach. A few specific, relevant tags are still worth using. Long lists of generic tags aren’t.
Can I increase Instagram likes without spending money?
Yes. Strong opening lines, Reels that hold attention, carousels, replying to comments and a monthly results review are all free. Most accounts grow this way.
The editorial staff of the Los Gatan was not involved in the creation of this content. The content is for general information and does not constitute the financial, medical or professional advice of this publication. Readers should consult qualified professionals regarding their individual circumstances. The Los Gatan disclaims any liability for loss or damage resulting from reliance on this content.
