Reels length: Instagram’s flip-flopping

Instagram’s playing the “do as I say, not as I said last year” game again with Reels length. 👀

At their latest NYC Creator Event this week, Instagram shared their current “best practices” for Reels success. And what do you know? The advice has mysteriously changed since last year’s event.

The Convenient Change of Heart

Less than a year ago, Instagram was adamant that Reels longer than 90 seconds were practically poison to your engagement. Their exact advice? “Avoid Reels that are 90 seconds+”

Their reasoning? Users supposedly weren’t interested in longer Reels, and therefore the almighty algorithm wouldn’t recommend them as widely.

Fast forward to January 2025, and suddenly Instagram expanded Reels to 3 minutes. According to Instagram chief Adam Mosseri:

“We’ve heard a lot of feedback from a lot of you creators out there that 90 seconds is just too short, so we’re hoping that upping that limit up to three minutes will help you tell the stories that you really want to tell.”

And now at this week’s NYC event, their updated advice slide has exactly ONE change – you guessed it – now you shouldn’t post Reels longer than 3 minutes instead of 90 seconds.

What’s Actually Happening Here

Let me translate this corporate flip-flop for you:

Instagram: “Users don’t like long content! Keep it under 90 seconds!” Also Instagram: “Oh wait, TikTok might get banned in the US? Quick! Let’s allow longer videos so we can scoop up those creators!” Instagram again: “We’ve always believed in the power of slightly longer content, up to exactly 3 minutes. This is definitely what users have been asking for, not at all what we suddenly decided is strategic for us.”

I nearly spat out my coffee while scrolling through these updates last night. Ian looked over and asked what was so funny – I had to explain that watching platforms pretend their strategic decisions are actually “user-driven” is peak social media comedy.

What This Actually Means For Your Brand

Here’s what I want you to take away from this:

1. Platform “best practices” are often just platform preferences What they call “best practices” are really just “what we’re prioritizing in our algorithm right now.” It has less to do with what users actually want and more to do with what the platform wants to push.
2. Be adaptable, but don’t chase every change Yes, it makes sense to adjust to platform updates, but don’t completely overhaul your content strategy every time Instagram has a change of heart. The core principles of good content remain the same.
3. The real insight is in your own data Pay attention to what YOUR audience is responding to, not just what Instagram claims everyone wants. I have a client whose 45-second Reels consistently outperform her 2-minute ones, despite Instagram’s new love of longer content.
4. This change actually gives you more flexibility If you’ve been feeling constrained by the 90-second limit, now you have more creative options. Just don’t feel pressured to make every Reel 3 minutes long if your message can be delivered in less time.

The Bottom Line

Instagram isn’t changing its recommendations because users suddenly developed longer attention spans in the last 8 months. They’re changing because they’re in a strategic battle with TikTok, which already offers longer videos.

As I always tell my clients during our strategy sessions: understand the game, but play it on your terms. Use the 3-minute option when it serves YOUR content, not because Instagram decided to change its mind.

Remember when Instagram insisted carousels were the future, then pivoted to Stories, then to Reels? The platforms will always change direction based on their business needs – your job is to use these changes to your advantage without being yanked around by them.

What do you think about the extended Reels length? Are you planning to create longer content, or sticking with shorter snippets? Get in touch and let me know!