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Instagram is the channel people have most trouble connecting, almost always for the same reason: Instagram does not allow personal accounts to be connected to any scheduling tool. Your account must be a Business or Creator account.

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Before you start

1

Switch to a Business or Creator account

In the Instagram mobile app, go to Settings → Account type and tools → Switch to professional account. This is free, reversible, and done entirely in the Instagram app.
2

Link the account to a Facebook Page

Instagram publishes through Facebook’s systems, so a Business account must be linked to a Facebook Page. In the Instagram app: Edit profile → Page → connect or create a Facebook Page.
3

Check you administer that Page

You need an admin role on the linked Facebook Page. Without it the connection completes but no profile appears.

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Connect Instagram

1

Open Channels

Select Channels in the left sidebar, then Connect channel.
2

Choose Instagram Business

Pick Instagram Business from the Add a connection panel.
Add a connection modal with a category sidebar on the left — All, Social, Streaming, Community, Blogging, Ecommerce and Developers, each with a count — and a grid of channel cards, each with its logo, name and a one-line description

Instagram Business in the Add a connection panel.

3

Sign in to Facebook and approve everything

You sign in through Facebook, not Instagram. Approve every permission and tick every Page and Instagram account in the list. Facebook’s screens default to not selecting them, and skipping this is the single most common cause of “my profile isn’t showing”.
4

Select your Instagram profile

Choose the Instagram account to add. It appears on your Channels page.

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What you can post

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Instagram’s limits

Ocoya checks these before publishing and tells you which one a post breaks.

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Image sizes and cropping

Instagram accepts a limited range of shapes. Ocoya crops images automatically to fit:
  • Landscape — 1.91:1
  • Portrait — 4:5
If an image comes out cropped differently than you expected, it fell outside that range and was adjusted. Crop it yourself before uploading to control exactly what’s kept.

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Common problems

“My Instagram account isn’t in the list.” In order of likelihood: it’s still a personal account; it isn’t linked to a Facebook Page; you don’t administer that Page; or you didn’t tick it on Facebook’s permission screen. Work through those in order. “Instagram keeps disconnecting.” Facebook and Instagram expire access more aggressively than other networks. See Reconnect a channel. “My Reel failed to publish.” Check length and size — 3 seconds minimum, 15 minutes maximum, 1000 MB cap. “My carousel only posted one image.” Instagram accepts up to 10 images. If a post had more, it breaks the limit and Ocoya reports it before publishing. “My account is restricted.” Instagram sometimes restricts accounts for activity it considers automated. Ocoya can’t lift a restriction — you’ll need to resolve it in the Instagram app, then reconnect.

Reconnect a channel

Fixing Instagram access when it expires.

Why didn't my post publish?

Diagnosing a post that didn’t go out.