Instagram allows up to five hashtags in the caption of a post or Reel. The change was announced by Instagram's @creators account on December 18, 2025, and rolled out to accounts gradually, as Social Media Today reported. For years the cap was 30, and many guides and tools still say so.
The short version: use up to five hashtags, and make them specific. Instagram says a few targeted hashtags work better than many generic ones, and that broad tags such as #reels or #explore can even hurt a post. Put the words people search for in the first line of the caption too: hashtags tell Instagram what a post is about, but they do not add reach on their own.
In this guide
- What is the Instagram hashtag limit?
- Why did Instagram limit hashtags?
- Do hashtags still help on Instagram?
- How do I choose my five hashtags?
- Can I put more hashtags in the first comment?
- Do hashtags go at the end or in the caption?
- How many hashtags should I use on other networks?
- Check old templates and tools
What is the Instagram hashtag limit?
Five hashtags per caption, on both feed posts and Reels. Instagram had tested lower limits for about a year before the change, with many accounts capped at three in the last test. The caption itself can still run to 2,200 characters, with up to 20 @ mentions; our character limits guide has the numbers for every network.
Why did Instagram limit hashtags?
To stop hashtag stuffing. Instagram's announcement said that fewer, more targeted hashtags, up to five, rather than many generic ones, improve both how content performs and people's experience. Long blocks of popular tags had stopped describing what a post was about, which is the job hashtags still do in search and on hashtag pages.
Do hashtags still help on Instagram?
Yes, for being found, not for reach. Instagram's head, Adam Mosseri, has said for years that hashtags do not increase a post's reach, but that they tell people what a post is about and connect related posts. A specific tag puts your post on a page people browse for that subject. A generic one puts it in a stream nobody reads. Instagram's search also reads the caption, so a clear first line with the words people would type does the same work as a tag.
How do I choose my five hashtags?
- One for the topic, as people would search it: #sourdoughbaking, not #food.
- Two for the niche or audience: the community that cares, such as #homebakers or #smallbakery.
- One for place or event, if it matters: #londonbakery, #pancakeday.
- One branded tag you use every time, so your own posts collect in one place.
Skip tags that describe every post on Instagram (#instagood, #reels, #explore, #viral). Instagram says broad tags like these can hurt a post, and they say nothing about yours. Check each tag's page before you use it: if the top posts are nothing like yours, so is the audience.
Can I put more hashtags in the first comment?
Instagram's announcement covered captions and did not say how it treats hashtags in comments. Even if a comment accepts more, the reasons for the cap still apply: a post is understood by its caption, and a block of generic tags in a comment does not make it easier to find. Put your five best in the caption and leave the comment for conversation.
Do hashtags go at the end or in the caption?
Either works for search. Tags inside a sentence read naturally when they are words you would use anyway; a short line of tags at the end keeps the caption clean. What matters more is the first line: Instagram shows about the first 125 characters before "more", so open with the point of the post, not with tags.
How many hashtags should I use on other networks?
| Network | Hashtags |
|---|---|
| Up to 5 per post or Reel (Instagram's cap) | |
| Threads | One topic tag per post |
| No cap; one to three that name the topic | |
| X (Twitter) | No cap; one or two, or none, since every tag uses characters from 280 |
| Bluesky and Mastodon | No cap; one to three, since people follow and search tags there |
Only Instagram's and Threads' numbers are rules; the others are our starting points.
Check old templates and tools
If you keep a caption template with 20 or 30 hashtags, or a scheduling tool that adds them, trim it to five before your next post. Size the image with our Instagram post size tool, schedule the post, and publish at the best time to post on Instagram.
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