How to Auto Post to Instagram Safely and Easily 2023

Wish you could auto post to Instagram?

As business use of Instagram has exploded, social media marketers have clamored for this feature.

And now we have it!

Instagram has added safe, seamless direct publishing. Now all you need is a business account and an app from a Facebook Marketing Partner.

Read on to learn about approved apps for Instagram scheduling and auto posting.

What is Instagram Auto Posting?

Auto posting to Instagram means you schedule your post in a third party app, which will then publish it to Instagram for you, at your set time.

Up until 2018, only tools that broke Instagram’s Terms of Service would auto post – but these put your account at risk.

Approved apps allowed you to schedule posts in advance, but they couldn’t actually publish them for you. They sent a push notification to your phone, so you completed the post manually.

Instagram’s updated Graph API allows auto-posting through any of Facebook’s Marketing Partners. Look for an approved partner.

My favorite is Tailwind App!

Why I Prefer Tailwind for Instagram Posting

There are a few Instagram Partners which offer auto-publishing to Instagram. Why choose Tailwind?

1. Tailwind knows visual marketing! They’re experts in Instagram and Pinterest.
2. Tailwind is your best buy if you pay for a year in advance.
3. Tailwind analytics rock – no upcharges to access valuable stats on your IG performance.
4. Tailwind Smart Schedule posts when your audience is most engaged.
5. Hashtag Finder! Save time and increase engagement with a perfect collection of hashtags.
6. Finally, Tailwind is a small business of dedicated, hardworking folks like you and me. I love to support small business, don’t you?

Try Tailwind with the Smart Schedule and Hashtag Finder. Take it for a spin with the new Forever Free plan. No obligation!

• • • Click here to try Tailwind for Instagram FREE• • •

I’m an affiliate for Tailwind and may receive a referral fee if you purchase a paid plan.

Approved Instagram Schedulers: Compare Prices

I’ve listed the top approved scheduling tools in low-to-high price order.

If you’re interested in a particular tool, contact the company to ensure the availability of direct posting to Instagram.

These tools offer various features included their pricing. Contact companies directly for more details. Multi-user and upgraded features are available at higher cost.

I may receive a referral fee if you purchase a plan via a link below.

Best-priced schedulers for small businesses

I know you’re on a budget, just like I am! These approved scheduling apps work hard to keep their plans affordable.

Tailwind: $19.99 per month or $120 paid a year in advance. Lowest cost option if you pay for one year. For 1 account: 1 Instagram, 1 Pinterest, 1 Facebook. Includes Smart Schedule and the amazing Hashtag Finder.

Planoly: $13 per month or $135 paid a year in advance for 1 account. Lowest cost if you need to pay by month and only need Instagram scheduling.

Later: $18 a month for one social set (one of each of Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, Tiktok) and 1 user. $180 a year if paid in one payment.

More options below, up to $249 per month. Yikes!

More IG scheduling apps

These options are a bit pricey, but I’ve included them so you can compare.

HootSuite: Monthly payments not available. $588 paid a year in advance. Add up to 10 social profiles. 1 user.

AgoraPulse: $59 per month or $588 paid a year in advance. Add up to 10 social profiles. 1 user.

Iconosquare: $62 a month for 3 profiles or $620 a year if you pay in one go. Includes post and account analytics.

Sprout Social: $249 per month then an extra $199 a month per user. Add up to 5 social profiles.

SocialFlow: No prices revealed but they offer a custom plan based on your needs.

My first choice is always Tailwind, because it’s a small business with real people – who really care.

I personally use Tailwind for Pinterest, and Missinglettr to automate my other social media marketing. I can’t wait to try the Instagram auto-posting feature on Tailwind.

HootSuite is great tool used by millions, but as you might imagine, the service is pretty impersonal. I was a paid user for a couple years though, and it worked well. I switched to MissingLettr because it’s the perfect hands-off tool for bloggers. We all need more time! That’s what MissingLettr provides that HootSuite didn’t.

Tailwind now includes posting to Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook, all from one account. HootSuite costs more than Tailwind, but it does allow 10 social profiles, including Twitter and LinkedIn.

Of course, you won’t have Tailwind’s proprietary SmartSchedule and Hashtag Finder, so you’ll have to spend some valuable time figuring the best time to post, and the best hashtags to use.

Why not take Tailwind for a spin with the new Forever Free plan. No credit card required!

• • • Click here to try Tailwind for Instagram FREE• • •

I’m an affiliate for Tailwind and may receive a referral fee if you purchase a paid plan.

More about Instagram Automated Posting

The Instagram Graph API includes the ability to:

• Analyze metrics and insights about the business’s performance on Instagram.
• Moderate comments.
• Access the business’s mentions and add responses to those.

Some of the things not yet supported in direct scheduling and posting to Instagram include:

• Posting videos.
• Using filters.
• Adding location data and shopping tags.

Most scheduling tools now let you publish multi-image or carousel posts. Some can do it automatically, some may need you to go to the app to complete the process.

Instagram had said that support for non-business profiles was in the works for an early 2019 release. As of December 2022, we still haven’t heard anything new on that.

For now, non-business profiles are limited to using a scheduling tool that sends push notifications, or setting up Drafts right inside the IG app itself.

You can find more tools that post to Instagram from desktop here.

I haven’t heard anything to suggest that Instagram will include a scheduling feature inside the app. You can schedule posts for free on Facebook, and with a bit of rigamarole, if you have a business account with Instagram you can try using the Meta Creator Studio to schedule posts.

Related: How Many Hashtags on Instagram in 2023?

Wrap Up: How to Schedule and Post to Instagram

What do you think of this feature? Have you tried it yet?

If you’d like to give it a whirl, I recommend you try Tailwind to post to Instagram directly.

Try Tailwind with the Smart Schedule and Hashtag Finder. Try it out with the new Forever Free plan. No credit card required!

• • • Click here to try Tailwind for Instagram FREE• • •

I’m an affiliate for Tailwind and may receive a referral fee if you purchase a paid plan.