Introduction

We understand the limitations Instagram places on image size and aspect ratio when publishing posts. To upload an image through Meta APIs, the maximum size allowed is 8MB, and the aspect ratio must fall within the range of 1.91:1 to 4:5. While these guidelines ensure consistent performance on the platform, they can be restrictive when you need to share higher-quality images.

In response to requests from our customers for more flexibility in uploading larger images, we have developed a feature that allows you to easily upload images larger than 8MB to Instagram, while still meeting the platform’s requirements. Here’s how this feature works and the key benefits and considerations for you.

How the Feature Works

When you upload an image for Instagram, the following steps are followed to make the image compatible for the API limitations:

1. Upload the Image to Facebook as a Dark Post

The original image is first uploaded to Facebook as a dark post. Dark posts don’t appear on your Facebook page feed, but they allow us to upload images as large as 1GB—much larger than Instagram’s 8MB limit.

2. Image Resizing by Meta

Once the image is uploaded, Meta automatically resizes it to a compatible size. This resizing process happens regardless of whether the image is uploaded directly to Facebook or as a dark post, ensuring that it meets Instagram’s size requirements.

3. Fetch the Resized Image URL

After resizing, we fetch the resized image URL from Facebook through Sprinklr. This URL now points to an image that is compatible with Instagram’s size and aspect ratio restrictions.

4. Delete the Dark Post

To keep your content organized, the dark post is automatically deleted from both Sprinklr and Facebook once the resized image URL is retrieved.

5. Publish on Instagram

Finally, we use the resized image to create and publish the post on Instagram through the Meta API. This ensures the image is within Instagram's acceptable size and aspect ratio limits.

If this feature is enabled for a partner, the process outlined above will be followed regardless of the original media specifications of the uploaded image. In other words, when the DP is enabled:

• You can publish images on Instagram according to Facebook's media specifications.

• You will not encounter any size validation errors when uploading images to Instagram.

Key Benefits

This feature offers several key advantages, making it easier for you to upload larger images to Instagram while maintaining image quality. Here's how it helps:

1. Upload Larger Images: This feature allows you to upload images that exceed Instagram's standard size limit of 8MB. Since Facebook allows images up to 1GB, you can now share high-resolution visuals that would otherwise be restricted on Instagram.

2. More Flexible Media Specifications: With this feature, you can upload images based on Facebook's media specifications, which are more flexible than Instagram's. This means you can bypass Instagram's more stringent size and resolution constraints.

3. Better Image Resizing: The resizing process happens at Meta's end, which ensures that the quality of the image remains consistent when published natively or via the API. This eliminates any discrepancies in image quality between images uploaded directly and those published through the API.

Image Metadata Comparison

Potential Drawbacks

While this feature provides significant benefits, there are a few considerations and limitations that you should be aware of:

1. Aspect Ratio Limitations: You must still adhere to Instagram’s required aspect ratio for images, which must fall within the range of 4:5 to 1.91:1. This is a strict requirement for Instagram, and images outside of this range will not be accepted.

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2. Facebook Image Dimension Guidelines are Recommendations: When uploading images to Facebook as part of the process, it's important to note that Meta’s image dimension guidelines (pixel size) are not strict limitations—they are simply media recommendations. This means there’s no guarantee that images, particularly those with extremely high resolutions, will successfully upload to Facebook and be processed for Instagram.

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3. Uncertainty with High-Resolution Images: Given that Facebook’s upload guidelines are not enforced, there’s a chance that very high-resolution images may not be processed properly, causing potential issues when publishing to Instagram. To avoid this, we strongly recommend adhering to Meta’s size and resolution guidelines for Facebook.

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4. Resolution Loss During Resizing: Since Facebook allows images up to 1GB in size, which is significantly larger than Instagram's 8MB limit, there is a risk of substantial resolution loss when images are resized. The larger the image, the more likely it is that quality will be compromised during the resizing process. To mitigate this, we recommend keeping the image size below 8MB to ensure the best possible quality on Instagram.