How to post a carousel on Instagram, step by step
To post a carousel on Instagram, tap Create, tap Post, tap Select multiple, choose up to 20 photos and videos, then edit, order, caption and share them as one post. The eight steps below are Instagram's own, from its help centre, and they're the same on iPhone and Android.
Below: the steps, then the questions that come up once you've made your first one. Last checked 25 October 2026.
- Tap Create (the + at the top), or swipe right anywhere in your feed.
- Tap Post, then tap Select multiple.
- Choose up to 20 photos and videos from your phone. Pick square, portrait or landscape: that one shape is used for every slide. Tap any photo to move it inside the frame, then tap Next.
- Add a filter to everything at once, or tap one photo or video to edit it on its own.
- Put the slides in order. Tap and hold one, then drag it. To take one out, tap and hold it and drag it to the bin. Tap Next.
- Write the caption. Choose Single caption for the whole post, or Multiple captions for one per slide.
- Add a location and tag people. One location covers the post; tags go on each photo. Tap Tag People, then swipe to the photo you want.
- Tap Share.
Or build it on your computer. In WedSchedulePro's Designer you drag your photos into a carousel and watch it swipe through as it will on Instagram. See how it works →
What is an Instagram carousel?
A carousel is a single post that holds several photos or videos, which people swipe through. Instagram's help centre calls it "a single post, also known as a carousel".
In the feed, people see your first slide with a row of dots under it; on your profile it shows as the first slide with a small multiple-photos icon in the top right. Likes and comments sit on the whole post, not on each slide.
How many photos can you put in an Instagram carousel?
Up to 20 photos and videos in one post. Instagram's help centre says you can share "up to 20 photos and videos as a single post".
That's the number to plan a wedding set around: twenty is enough for a story from getting ready to the last dance, and few enough that you have to choose.
Can you mix photos and videos in one carousel?
Yes: the 20 can be any mix of photos and videos. Two things change when videos go in, though, and both come from Instagram's help centre.
A video inside a carousel isn't a reel, so it won't show in your Reels tab or get reel features. And a post with several videos can take longer to upload, so share it on a reliable connection, not one bar of signal at the venue.
How do you reorder photos in an Instagram carousel?
Before you share, tap and hold a slide and drag it to a new spot. After you've shared, tap the three dots on the post, tap Edit, then long-press a slide to drag it, and tap Done to save.
Both routes are in Instagram's help centre. If you drag a different slide to the front, that becomes the one people see first, so check your profile once you've saved.
Why do some carousel slides get cropped?
Because the shape you choose (square, portrait or landscape) applies to every slide in the post. Instagram's help centre is plain about it: "You can't select a different orientation for each photo or video."
So a landscape in a portrait carousel loses its sides, and a portrait in a landscape one loses its top and bottom. You can tap each slide and move the photo inside the frame, which decides what goes, but not whether something goes. If your set mixes shapes, crop every photo to one shape yourself before posting, or set the odd ones inside a border.
How do you make a carousel on Instagram from a computer?
On instagram.com, click Create, click Post, then Select from computer, and choose up to 20 photos and videos. From there it's the same job as on a phone: crop, order, filter, caption, tag and share.
The computer steps in Instagram's help centre differ in two small ways. You click the multiple-photos icon and then the + to add more, and you remove a slide by clicking the x next to it rather than dragging it to the bin. The computer steps also mention one caption for the whole post, not one per slide.
Can you edit an Instagram carousel after posting it?
Yes: you can reorder slides, remove slides, edit the caption, and change the location and the tagged accounts. Open the three-dot menu on the post and tap Edit, per Instagram's help centre.
| What you want to change | After posting? | How |
|---|---|---|
| The order of the slides | Yes | Three dots → Edit → long-press and drag → Done |
| Take a slide out | Yes | Three dots → Edit |
| The caption | Yes | Three dots → Edit (caption help) |
| The location and tagged accounts | Yes | Three dots → Edit |
| Add a new photo or video | No | Delete the post and share it again |
Source: Instagram's help centre page on multi-photo posts, read on 25 October 2026.
Can you add photos to an Instagram carousel that's already posted?
No: once a carousel is shared, you can't add new photos or videos to it. Instagram's help centre says so directly, and offers deleting the post as the way out.
If you've missed a photo, you have two choices: leave the carousel as it is and post the missing photo on its own, or delete the post and share the full set again. A new post starts with no likes or comments, so decide early.
Which photo should go first in a wedding carousel?
The one that works on its own, small, because slide 1 is what people see in their feed before they choose to swipe. It's also the slide your profile shows: Instagram's help centre says your profile displays the first photo or video of a carousel.
For a wedding, that usually means the couple, close enough to read their faces on a phone, rather than a detail shot or a wide that needs a big screen. Save the details, the room and the guests for slides two onwards, where people who've already chosen to swipe will look at them.
