How much data does Instagram use?
An hour in the Instagram feed costs about 150 to 200 MB on default settings. The same hour in Reels is three to four times that, 500 to 700 MB, because Reels is video from the first second to the last.
Three things set the number: how much of your hour is video, the quality the app chooses for your connection, and pre-loading. Instagram fetches the next few posts before you reach them, so a quick scroll through fifty posts can download photos you never looked at. Stories autoplay and count the same way.
The app has one switch that changes all of this: "Use less mobile data" in the media quality settings. It lowers photo resolution and stops video pre-loading on mobile networks while leaving Wi-Fi alone.
Megabytes per hour
| Mode | Per hour |
|---|---|
| Feed with "Use less mobile data"Photos load at lower resolution and videos do not pre-load until you tap them. | 90 MB/h |
| Feed, default settingsAbout 150 to 200 MB: full-size photos, autoplaying clips and posts pre-loaded ahead of you. | 175 MB/h |
| ReelsAbout 500 to 700 MB: continuous video at the quality the app picks for your connection. | 600 MB/h |
Checked October 4, 2026 · Sources: help.instagram.com. Figures are from the app’s own documentation unless marked as our measurement. The tables on this page are published under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with a link to the source.
How to use less
- Turn on the data saver: Instagram → your profile → menu (≡) → Settings and activity → Media quality (or Data usage and media quality) → Use less mobile data.
- In the same screen switch off "Upload at highest quality" while abroad; a single HD photo upload is several megabytes, a Reel tens.
- Watch Reels on Wi-Fi and the feed on mobile data. Swapping the two is the single biggest saving you can make without giving anything up.
- Open Stories deliberately rather than letting them run: each one autoplays video and loads the next before you swipe.
- If you only need messages, open Instagram Direct from the notification and leave the feed closed; chat alone is about as light as any messenger.
How much data Instagram uses on a trip
1 h of Instagram a day for 14 days is about 2.1 GB. Add your other apps in the calculator.
Calculate for my tripQuestions
Does Instagram use data in the background?
Yes, modestly: it refreshes notifications and may pre-fetch the top of the feed so it opens instantly. Background refresh is in the phone settings, not in the app: iOS Settings → General → Background App Refresh, Android Settings → Apps → Instagram → Mobile data → Background data.
How much data does Instagram need for a two-week trip?
An hour a day of the feed at about 150 MB an hour is roughly 2 GB over two weeks. Replace half of that hour with Reels and you are closer to 5 GB.
Does "Use less mobile data" make Instagram worse?
Photos look slightly softer when you zoom and videos start a moment later because they are not pre-loaded. Posting, messaging and Stories work exactly as before.
Can I pre-load Instagram on Wi-Fi like a video app?
No. Instagram has no offline download, so what you watch on the road is what you pay for. Wi-Fi only helps with what you upload: hold HD photos and Reels until you have it.
