How do the Instagram news feed algorithms work?

The main factors that Instagram will show your content to the audience:

User interest in the content

Relationship between the content author and the user

How often does the user open the app

Number of subscriptions per user

User Activity

Let's talk about everything in order

1. Instagram predicts what content will be interesting to each user

Do you think that the app gives you a random order of posts that you see in the feed? Everything is different. The algorithm takes into account all your interests.

If you often interact with posts that contain French bulldogs, the algorithm will remember this, and next time it will first show posts with this breed of dog.

The algorithms also pay attention to the content of those people you have marked in your posts or stories, whose live broadcasts you watch and how you react to them.

2. Instagram has its own idea of what kind of relationship you are in with each of your followers

Know that the posts of your relatives and friends will appear in your feed in the very first place! How does he do it?

One of the developers of Instagram told how the platform determines which users are most interesting to you:

The ones you like (posts in the feed, live broadcasts and stories);

Those with whom you often communicate in Direct;

The ones you often look for in the search;

Users you know outside of the internet.

If you like and comment on every post of a user @user or they often mark you in their posts, then they may fall into a certain category that Instagram will perceive as a list of close people.

3. Does the frequency of app openings affect the order of content in the feed?

It affects you even more. Have you ever thought about how often you open the app throughout the day? Try to calculate this figure somehow - you will be surprised.

If you log in to the app several times a day, then most of the posts of your subscriptions will be distributed in chronological order. Instagram will actively show you everything interesting from the moment of your last visit.

If you are not a frequent guest of the app and visit once a day or less, then all posts in the feed will be sorted by algorithms.

4. How will the content be displayed relative to the number of subscriptions?

The more subscriptions, the more content in the feed. It makes sense. And, accordingly, more options for displaying it. With a large number of subscriptions, Instagram will not be able to show the content of each user, unless they spend a lot of time in the app.

5. The algorithm monitors the amount of time in the app

To find out how much time you spend in the app, go to the "Your actions" section in the settings. Are the numbers surprising?

Instagram will show you as much content as you can watch. The amount of content for an account with 30 minutes spent on the platform per day and for an account with 6 hours will differ significantly. For these two accounts, the algorithms will work completely differently.

What conclusions can be drawn from this?

The algorithms work in such a way that with high-quality content and the right approach, they will help you show it to your target audience. Create content, and the algorithm will do the main work.

In addition, it is important to build a trusting relationship with the audience. Communicate, comment, write in Direct, mark. People don't always do the action we need at the first contact. Your task is to properly "warm up" them. Content solves a lot, but knowing your target audience and understanding their interests gives you a huge advantage.