Instagram Highlights: How to Add Them and Change Covers

A highlight keeps a story on your profile after its 24 hours are up. Instagram's Help Center says "You can add stories to appear on your profile as highlights, even after they disappear." To make one, open a current story, tap the three dot menu, then tap Highlight, as Instagram's own 2026 Stories guide describes it. You can set a cover straight from your camera roll, and a 1080 by 1920 image with the art in the middle fits the round frame. One thing has changed, though. Since late 2025, many profiles show highlights in their own tab, next to posts and Reels.

We read Planoly, Avocado Social and EmbedSocial through our server on October 23, 2026. Instagram's own pages come from Google's snippets, because Instagram shuts out our reader.

Where are Instagram highlights now?

When Instagram launched them on December 5, 2017, it said "Stories Highlights appear in a new section on your profile below your bio." That row of circles is moving. Planoly reported in November 2025 that "Highlights will now live in their own dedicated tab on the grid." Avocado Social saw the new tab "placed second from the left on profiles, just before Reels."

Date	What happened
December 5, 2017	Highlights launch, shown below the bio
2024	Instagram tests a separate Highlights area
September 2025	Early sightings of a Highlights tab
November 2025	Wider rollout, all users by mid-November

Instagram's 2017 announcement as Google showed it, Brand Vision (January 6, 2025), Avocado Social (September 26, 2025) and Planoly (November 19, 2025), read October 23, 2026. "All users by mid-November" was Planoly's estimate.

Instagram's head, Adam Mosseri, explained the reason, as Planoly quotes him: "We're trying to figure out a way to improve the profile and get more of the content above the fold." He added, "You will still have control, you can still pin things, there'll be a dedicated Highlights tab." Planoly says you can also choose whether a highlight shows in your main grid.

How do you add a highlight on Instagram?

From a story that's still live:

1. Open your current story.
2. Tap the three dot menu.
3. Tap Highlight at the bottom.
4. Pick an existing highlight, or create a new one and name it.

From your archive, for older stories, EmbedSocial's September 2026 guide gives these steps:

1. Open your profile and find Story Highlights.
2. Tap the plus icon.
3. Select the stories you want and tap Next.
4. Tap Edit Cover, pick a cover, add a name and save.

Your archive has to be on for this. "How to add highlights on instagram" gets about 14,800 searches a month.

How do you change a highlight cover without posting it?

You don't need to post the cover to your story first. Save the cover image to your phone, then follow EmbedSocial's steps:

1. Go to your profile and press and hold the highlight.
2. Tap Edit Highlight.
3. Tap Edit Cover.
4. Choose the photo from your camera roll.
5. Tap Done.

A Reddit answer from 2023 describes the same trick: "long-press it to edit that Highlight, and you'll have the option to set a cover for it."

What size is an Instagram highlight cover?

Spec	What guides use
Canvas	1080 by 1920 pixels
Ratio	9:16, like a story
What shows	A small circle in the middle
Design	One simple icon, no tiny text

Moda (March 15, 2026), Krumzi (October 6, 2026) and Linearity (September 10, 2026), as Google showed them on October 23, 2026.

Linearity's advice is to "work on a 1080 × 1920 px Story canvas and place a simple icon in the center." Moda notes that "only the center is shown in the circular crop," so keep anything important away from the edges. "Instagram highlight covers" gets about 201,000 searches a month, and Canva offers free cover templates if you'd rather not design your own.

How many highlights can you have?

As many as you like. EmbedSocial says "There's no limit to the number of Highlights you can create." Each one can hold up to 100 photos or videos, according to Rebekah Read Creative. Highlights also don't expire. They stay on your profile "until you choose to delete them," EmbedSocial says.

What should go in your highlights?

With highlights one tap away in their own tab, Planoly says they "will no longer be the first thing a new visitor sees." So put the essentials where people look first. That's your bio, your three pinned posts and your links. Our Instagram bio guide covers the 150 characters and 5 links, and our Instagram captions list has 120 ideas for your posts. If you'd like a few extra views on a public post, Hclout's free tier gives 100 free Instagram views with no password, on the free page. A short Cloudflare check runs before each claim.

Frequently asked questions

How do you add a highlight on Instagram?

Open a current story, tap the three dot menu, then tap Highlight and pick or create one. For older stories, use the plus icon on your profile.

How do you change a highlight cover without posting it?

Press and hold the highlight, tap Edit Highlight, then Edit Cover, and choose a photo from your camera roll.

What size is an Instagram highlight cover?

1080 by 1920 pixels, with the icon in the middle, since only a circle shows.

Where did my Instagram highlights go?

On many profiles they've moved to their own Highlights tab, next to your posts and Reels.

Do Instagram highlights expire?

No. They stay on your profile until you delete them.

Sources

• Instagram Help Center, "Add a story to your Story Highlights"; Instagram's December 5, 2017 announcement; and Instagram's 2026 Stories guide, July 2, 2026, as Google showed them on October 23, 2026
• Planoly, November 19, 2025; Avocado Social, September 26, 2025; and EmbedSocial, September 8, 2026, read through our server on October 23, 2026
• Brand Vision, Moda, Krumzi, Linearity, Canva, Rebekah Read Creative and Reddit, as Google showed them on October 23, 2026
• Google Ads Keyword Planner, worldwide, read October 23, 2026