Average Instagram follower growth rate All
The average number of followers gained during the month relative to the previous month.
Benchmark dataInstagram benchmarks
See how your content compares to over 250,000 other creators. We’ve analyzed millions of posts to help you make smarter, data-driven decisions to grow your audience and increase engagement on Instagram.
We calculate our benchmarks using aggregated data from over 27 million posts from 273,000 active Instagram accounts with over 13 billion engagements.
Last updated August 12, 2025
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Highlighted Instagram benchmarks
- Average Instagram follower growth rate
- 205followers per monthSee details
- Average Instagram posting frequency
- 17posts per monthSee details
- Median Instagram engagement rate
- 0.04See details
- Median Instagram reach per post
- 237See details
Average Instagram follower growth rate
The rate at which your Instagram following grows is a good indicator of whether your content is resonating with your audience. Growth below the average suggests you might need to rethink your content strategy.
Looking to improve your follower growth rate?
13 Ways to Get More Followers on Instagram in 2025
Growing on Instagram takes time and effort — but with these must-do tactics, the path to an engaged following is a lot more straightforward than you might think.
Instagram posting frequency benchmarks
How regularly are creators posting every month and what is the influence of consistency on Instagram growth? If you’re on or below the average and not getting the results you want, increasing your content cadence is worth exploring to grow reach, engagement, and followers.
Average Instagram posting frequency by follower growthAll
How many times Instagram creators post within a given month, broken down by how quickly their follower counts are growing.
Learn more about how consistency influences success in our research report
Consistent Posting Means 5x More Likes, Comments, and Shares: Study
A massive analysis of more than 100,000 Buffer users revealed just how much posting consistently can boost engagement per post.
Instagram engagement benchmarks
Engagement — how many likes, comments, and saves your content gets — can make or break your post. Instagram’s algorithms see engagement as a key signal that your content is worth showing to more users. More engagement means a higher reach and, with any luck, more followers.
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Median Instagram engagement per postAll
The median number of likes, comments, and post saves on all Instagram post types, including images, carousels, and reels.
Learn how to increase engagement on Instagram
10 Simple Tips to Increase Your Instagram Engagement
Instagram engagement goes beyond the simple metric of follower count – here are 10 actionable tips to start increasing it with your audience.
Instagram post reach benchmarks
The more accounts you reach on Instagram, the greater your chance of building an audience. A high reach indicates that the Instagram algorithms have recommended your content in their various feeds.
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Median Instagram reach per postAll
The median number of unique users reached by all Instagram post types, including images, carousels, and Reels.
Looking to grow your reach on Instagram?
How to Increase Your Reach on Instagram: 14 Actionable and Easy Methods (For Every Content Type)
Want to get more views on Instagram but don’t know where to begin? Here are 14 no-fluff, actionable ways to increase your Instagram reach.
FAQs
What are Buffer Instagram benchmarks?
What are Buffer Instagram benchmarks?
A benchmark is a standard that you can measure your own performance against. At Buffer, we’ve analyzed the performance of millions of Instagram posts and accounts to find the average and median performance (benchmarks) for various follower tiers for important metrics like follower growth, engagement rate, and posting frequency. Our goal is to help you on your own Instagram journey by letting you see how others are doing.
Where is the data sourced from?
Where is the data sourced from?
Our benchmarks are derived by analyzing post performance data from over 30 million Instagram posts created by 250,000 distinct Instagram accounts connected through Buffer. Our data is updated with new benchmarks each month so you can be sure you have the latest numbers to compare against. Learn more about our research and analysis methodology for uncovering social media insights.
I’m a Buffer user, is my data contributing to benchmarks?
I’m a Buffer user, is my data contributing to benchmarks?
All Buffer accounts contribute to Benchmarks, as outlined in our Terms of Service, excluding internal test accounts and churned accounts whose data has been deleted. However, the data is fully anonymized and aggregated to ensure the privacy of all our users.
Can I opt out of including my data in benchmarks?
Can I opt out of including my data in benchmarks?
Buffer anonymizes all data before calculating Benchmarks. This usage of account data is accepted within Buffer’s Terms of Service.
How does Buffer measure Instagram engagement?
How does Buffer measure Instagram engagement?
Buffer measures engagement by counting the number of likes, comments, and post saves an Instagram post receives.
Why do you use averages in some charts and medians in others?
Why do you use averages in some charts and medians in others?
We use medians for reach and engagement metrics because these tend to have high variance, meaning a few outliers can skew the results. Medians give a more accurate picture of what a typical account experiences on Instagram.
For follower growth, the data showed less variance, so we use averages to better reflect overall trends.