Skip to main content
All CollectionsGlossary
Instagram Glossary
Instagram Glossary

Explore the Instagram glossary to deepen your understanding of essential terms and concepts, elevating your social media insights.

Gulce Gumrukcu avatar
Written by Gulce Gumrukcu
Updated over a year ago

Name

Description

Section

Post

A post simply refers to an image uploaded to Instagram. A post may include a caption, a geotag, and also tags of other users.

Posts

Like

Instagram (like many other social networks) is based on receiving likes and liking other users’ media, you like an image by double-tapping the image itself, or by clicking the like button to the bottom left of the image.

Engagement

Username

Your username is the name of your account, which people will type to find you, and which is also the address to view your profile online at www.instagram.com/[username].

Engagement

Follower

Much like many other social media platforms, Instagram is based on followers. A follower is a user who follows your account, and consequently sees every photo you publish on their feed.

Followers

Bio

The bio section (the area below your name on your profile) is an area designated for writing a 150-character description about yourself or your brand.

Overview

Filters

A unique combination of different elements: including exposure, color balance, and contrast. Some filters also include frames and can be added over a photo to the degree you choose.

Filters

Manual Edits

Rather than using a filter at all – many people choose to manually edit their photos through Instagram’s manual editing options instead.

Overview

Hashtag

Is the symbol ‘#’ before a word or phrase – and will appear in blue. Hashtags allow users to connect with others, and discover images based on a common word or phrase.

Overview

Comments

Simply, a user can comment on another user’s, or their own, photo.

Engagement

Feed, Gallery, or Album

Many refer to a user’s collection of photos (posted to their profile) as their feed, gallery, or album.

Overview

Newsfeed

Accessed by the home button on the Instagram app, this shows a feed of the images from those you follow as they are uploaded, and so appears in chronological order

Overview

Activity Tab

Your activity tab will show you: when a user likes or comments on one of your photos; when a user mentions your username in a comment; when your photo is posted to the popular page; when someone follows you and when you are tagged in a photo by another user.

Profile Activity

Following Tab

Shows a feed of photos that people you are following have liked or commented, and also accounts they have started following

Overview

Explore Tab

This tab facilitates two important features: searching and discovering, allowing you to search by hashtag or by the user.

Overview

Suggested Users

A selection of users who become recommended as suggested users to new users creating a profile. Suggested users are also followed by @Instagram for the period in which they are suggested.

Overview

Private vs. Public

The essential difference is that public profiles can be viewed and followed by any user. Private profiles, on the other hand, require acceptance after a request is sent to follow.

Overview

Direct Message

Allows you to send a photo, text, or voice record to a single user, or a group – privately. This image doesn’t appear on the news feed, search results, or on any users’ profile. The photo you send can be edited in the same way as a post.

Overview

Geotag,

The location attached to an image, which corresponds to a longitude and latitude on a map.

Followers

Sponsored Posts

Instagram ads take form of a typical Instagram photo or video. What distinguishes an Instagram ad from other photos is the “Sponsored” mark above the top right corner of the photo, the spot where the posting time is normally displayed.

Posts

IGTV

IGTV video is an app that can be used alone or in tandem with Instagram. It's essentially Instagram's answer to YouTube in that it's designed for the mobile-optimized viewing of long-form videos. Any user can set up their own channel and share video content that's up to an hour-long.

Overview

Total Followers

The number of people who follow your Instagram Account.

Overview

Follower Growth

Evolution of followers during a selected time range.

Overview

Total Engagement

Total engagement received during a selected time range where engagement is defined as anytime a user likes, comments, or saves on one of your posts. Excluding ads.

Overview

Engagement Rate

The engagement rate is calculated by dividing the total engagement number by total followers and then multiplying by 100 during a selected time range. It is expressed as a percentage. Excluding ads.

Engagement

Impressions

The total number of times your posts, stories, and promotions have been viewed. Includes ad activity generated through the API, Facebook ads interfaces, and the Promote feature. Does not include profile views.

Impressions & Reach

Reach

The total number of times your posts, stories, and promotions have been uniquely viewed. Includes ad activity generated through the API, Facebook ads interfaces, and the Promote feature.

Impressions & Reach

Total Posts

The number of total posts shared during a selected period of time.

Overview

Followers Breakdown

The number of followers per day during a selected time range.

Followers

Interactions Breakdown

The number of interactions (Likes, Comments, Saves) per day during a selected time range.

Posts

Growth Projection

An algorithm that calculates your follower's potential growth for the next 6 months by looking at your past data.

Followers

Growth of Total Followers

The number of follower growth per day during a selected time range.

Followers

Number of Interactions

The number of interactions (Likes, Comments, Saves) for each Profile during a selected time range.

Posts

Number of Profile Posts

This graph shows the total number of posts made during a selected time range. The data are aggregated and can be visualized by the hour of the day, per day, day of the week, week, or month during a selected time range.

Posts

Number of Content posts/stories

The number of posts and stories made by profile administrators in a selected time range.

Posts

Profile Impressions

The number of times your posts and stories have been seen.

Impressions & Reach

Profile Reach

Reach refers to the number of different people who see your profile. One person can see your post 5 times but is only counted once toward Reach.

Impressions & Reach

Profile Views

The number of times your Instagram profile page was viewed over the selected time period.

Profile Activity

Profile Clicks

The number of times a user clicked on a specific contact on your profile.

Profile Activity

Followers by country

The number of followers by country.

Followers

Followers by city

The number of followers by city.

Followers

Followers by demography (age and sex)

The age and gender of your followers.

Followers

Post Engagement by Post Type

The number of Likes, Comments and Saves your posts received during a selected time range.

Posts

Post Interactions by Interaction Type

The number of Likes, Comments and Saves your posts received during a selected time range, broken down by the type of Interaction. The data source of this chart is different from the Post Engagement by Post Type chart. As a result, the number of interactions may vary.

Posts

Post Impressions by Post Type

The number of times your posts have been seen during a selected time range, broken down by post types.

Posts

Average Reach on Post

The average number of unique users that have seen your posts during a selected time range.

Posts

Video Views

The number of times your video has been viewed during a selected time range, broken down by video type. A video's view count doesn't include video loops, and a view is counted when a video is watched for 3 seconds or more.

Engagement

Number of Stories photo/video

The number of Stories made by profile administrators broken down by content type during a selected time range.

Stories

Story Impressions photo/video

The number of times your Story has been seen broken down by content type during a selected time range.

Stories

Completion rate photo/video

The percentage of times a Story impression was not interrupted by an exit, tap back, or tap forward.

Stories

Average Story Reach, photo/video

The average number of unique users that viewed your Stories during a selected time range.

Stories

Story Replies

The number of replies your Stories received during a selected time range.

Stories

Story Exits

The number of people who exited from a particular Story during a selected time range

Stories

Story Taps Back

The number of people who Tapped back to go back to a previous Story during a selected time range

Stories

Story Taps Forward

The number of people who Tapped Forward to go to the next Story during a selected time range

Stories

Story

Instagram Stories is a feature on Instagram that users can share images and video content on their profiles for 24 hours.

Stories

Interaction

The number of activities taken on your account during users' search.

Overview

Total Impressions

Total number of times that your content have been viewed during a selected time range.

Impressions & Reach

Post Impressions

The number of times your post have been seen.

Impressions & Reach

Total Reach

The total number of times your content has been viewed by unique users in a selected time range.

Impressions & Reach

Average Reach per Post

The average number of unique users that viewed your post during a selected time range.

Impressions & Reach

Organic Impressions

The total number of times your contents have been viewed on users' newsfeed organically.

Impressions & Reach

Paid Impressions

The total number of times your paid content has been seen.

Impressions & Reach

Organic Reach

Organic reach refers to the number of different users you reach by posting without ads.

Impressions & Reach

Paid Reach

Paid reach refers to the number of unique users you reach by publishing your ad content.

Impressions & Reach

Profile Activity

The insights measure the number of actions that took place on your account

Profile Activity

Website Clicks

The number of times the link to your website was clicked.

Profile Activity

Email Clicks

The number of times the link to your e-mail was clicked.

Profile Activity

Get Direction Clicks

The number of times the link to your address or get directions button was clicked.

Profile Activity

Follow Rate

This metric is calculated as your rate of follower increase or decreases.

Profile Activity

Average Engagement Rate

The average engagement rate per content.

Engagement

Saves

Saves are the feature of Instagram to help users to keep the contents in different collections. It has become a more important element than likes and comments for the engagement of your account.

Engagement

Average Saves

The average number of your posts' saves during a selected time range.

Engagement

Average Video Views

The average number of times your video has been viewed during a selected time range, broken down by video type.

Engagement

Total Likes

The total number of likes that your posts had during a selected period of time.

Engagement

Total Comments

The total number of comments that your posts had during a selected period of time.

Engagement

Slidebeast Score

Engagement

Average Post Engagement

The average number of your post engagement.

Posts

Average Post Reach

The average number of times your posts have been viewed by unique users during a selected period of time.

Posts

Post Frequency

It refers to how often you post.

Posts

Post Type

It is used to explain the type of your content and includes images, videos, and carousels.

Posts

Post Performance

It is the term that includes all your post insights.

Posts

Average Post Impression

The average number of times your content has been viewed during a selected period of time.

Posts

Average Post Likes

The average number of likes your content has had during a selected period of time.

Posts

Average Post Comment

The average number of comments your content has had during a selected period of time.

Posts

Average Post Saves

The average number of your posts' saves during a selected time range.

Posts

Best Time to Post

It is calculated in the accordance with the time (hour and day) your followers were online most on Instagram.

Posts

Promoted Post

The promoted post refers to the post you share and then pay to reach a broader audience.

Posts

Promoted Story

The promoted story refers to the stories you paid-for ads and they run as long as you set the duration for.

Stories

Reels Tab

Shows a feed of reels that are suggested to you by Instagram

Overview

Shopping Tab

Shows a feed of products that you searched before or the products which are similar to you searched before. It also allows you to prepare a wishlist that you can add the products you would buy.

Overview

Paid vs Promoted Contents

Paid content are created to publish as ads at the beginning. Promoted posts are the organic posts that you share and then promoted to reach more audiences.

Overview

Did this answer your question?