How to Resize Photos for Instagram Without Cropping
The right Instagram sizes for posts, portrait posts and Stories — and how to fit a whole photo in without Instagram cutting it off. Free, no upload.
3 min read ·
Instagram crops anything that isn't the right shape. To post a photo the way you want it, open the Social Media Image Resizer, add the photo, tick the Instagram sizes you need — square, portrait 4:5, landscape or Story — and choose Crop to fill or Fit · blurred to keep the whole picture. Download, then post.
Instagram image sizes
| Format | Size in pixels | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Square post | 1080 × 1080 | 1:1 |
| Portrait post | 1080 × 1350 | 4:5 |
| Landscape post | 1080 × 566 | 1.91:1 |
| Story / Reel | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 |
Instagram displays images at 1080 pixels wide. Bigger photos are scaled down; smaller ones are scaled up and look soft.
Portrait 4:5 is the best choice for the feed — it takes up the most screen space as people scroll. Your profile grid shows posts as taller 3:4 tiles, so a sliver of each side is hidden in the grid; keep important details away from the very edges.
Resize for Instagram step by step
- Open the Social Media Image Resizer and add your photo.
- Tick the Instagram sizes you want — you can tick several and export them all at once.
- Choose How to fit:
- Crop to fill — fills the frame by trimming the edges. Click the photo to choose which part stays in view.
- Fit · blurred — keeps the whole photo and fills the gaps with a soft, blurred copy of it. This is the look you see on Stories and Reels.
- Fit · colour — keeps the whole photo on a solid background colour you pick; clean for products and screenshots.
- Choose the Format and download.
Posting a landscape photo without cropping
Instagram's tallest feed shape is 4:5, and a wide landscape photo squeezed into it gets its sides cut off. To keep the entire photo:
- Use Fit · blurred at 1080 × 1350: the photo sits in the middle with a blurred version above and below, and fills the screen in the feed.
- Or use Fit · colour with white for a minimal "white border" look.
- Or add a frame yourself with Add Border to Image, which can pad a photo to a square.
Panoramas and grid layouts
- Panorama carousel: split a wide panorama into several square slides people swipe through with the Image Splitter.
- Profile grid puzzle: split one big image into a 3 × 3 grid so it forms a single picture on your profile — the same tool does it.
Stories and Reels covers
Stories and Reels are 9:16 (1080 × 1920). Keep text and faces in the middle: the top and bottom of the screen are covered by your profile name, the reply bar and buttons. A Reels cover is also shown cropped to a tile in your grid, so centre the important part.
Quality tips
- Start with the original photo, not a screenshot or an image already compressed by a messaging app.
- Upload over Wi-Fi if your Instagram settings limit upload quality on mobile data.
- Avoid tiny text — most people view Instagram on a phone.
- Exact pixel sizes matter less than shape. A 2160 × 2700 photo is also 4:5 and works perfectly.
Other platforms at the same time
The same tool includes Facebook, X, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest and TikTok sizes. Tick them alongside the Instagram ones to get every version in one download.
Frequently asked questions
Is the photo uploaded?
No. It's resized in your browser and only goes online when you post it yourself.
Why does Instagram still crop my photo?
When you post, Instagram may start at a square crop. Tap the expand icon in the corner of the preview to switch to the full 4:5 or landscape shape.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes. Resize in Safari or Chrome, save the image, and post it from your gallery.