45 Instagram Stories Statistics for 2026

Instagram Stories launched in 2016 as an ephemeral content format, and by 2026 the feature has become one of the most powerful engagement tools on social media. With 500 million daily active users, Stories now serve as the primary way brands and creators maintain daily contact with their audiences. Whether you are building a content calendar or measuring return on ad spend, these 45 Instagram Stories statistics provide the data you need to shape your strategy.

At Outfame, we have analyzed Stories performance across 65,000-plus accounts to understand what separates high-growth profiles from the rest. The statistics below combine our proprietary findings with published research from Meta, Socialinsider, Buffer, Dash Hudson, and other leading sources.

General Instagram Stories Statistics

1. 500 million people use Instagram Stories every day. That figure has held steady since Meta last disclosed it, making Stories one of the most-used features on the platform. (Source: Meta, 2019; reaffirmed by Statista, 2025)
2. More than 1 billion Stories are shared daily across Meta's family of apps, including Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger. (Source: Meta, 2025)
3. Instagram has more than 2 billion monthly active users as of 2026, meaning roughly one in four monthly users also engages with Stories on any given day. (Source: Meta, 2025)
4. 86.6 percent of Instagram users post Stories. The format has moved well beyond early adopters and is now a default content behavior. (Source: EarthWeb, 2025)
5. Stories content is split roughly 57 percent images and 43 percent videos, based on an analysis of 161,180 Stories across account sizes. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)
6. 70 percent of Stories are watched with sound on, a notable contrast to feed video, where the majority of views begin muted. (Source: MediaKix, 2024)

Instagram Stories Usage and Adoption

7. Users under 25 spend an average of 32 minutes per day consuming Stories, while users 25 and older average 24 minutes. (Source: MediaKix, 2024)
8. Large accounts (100K-plus followers) post roughly 80 Stories per month, or about three per day, while small accounts (1K to 5K followers) post around 12 per month. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)
9. Accounts with 10K to 50K followers post approximately 35 Stories per month, landing at about one Story per day on average. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)
10. Brands publish an average of 10 Stories per month, while the top 25 percent of active brands post 16 or more. (Source: Meltwater, 2025)
11. 71.9 percent of brand content on Instagram now appears in Stories, making it the dominant format for brand communication. (Source: Hootsuite, 2025)
12. 60 percent of millennials publish or watch Stories daily, and usage among Gen Z is even higher. (Source: Better Marketing, 2025)

Instagram Stories Engagement Statistics

13. The average Stories completion rate is 87 percent, based on a benchmark study of nearly 15,000 accounts tracked over six months. (Source: Flick, 2025)
14. Dash Hudson reports a cross-industry completion rate of 70 percent, with larger accounts slightly outperforming smaller ones (70.5 percent vs. 68.3 percent). (Source: Dash Hudson, 2025)
15. The highest drop-off occurs after the first Story frame, with an exit rate of 23.8 percent. By Story nine, the exit rate drops to 13.3 percent. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)
16. The average tap-forward rate is 56 to 66 percent, meaning most viewers skip through frames rather than watching each one to completion. Image Stories are tapped forward more often than video. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)
17. One in five Stories receives a direct message from a viewer. This makes Stories the leading organic DM driver on the platform. (Source: IZEA, 2025)
18. Accounts with higher Stories engagement received 1.6 times more profile visits, based on Outfame data from 65,000-plus accounts. (Source: Outfame, 2026)
19. Sports-related accounts achieve a 90 percent Stories completion rate, the highest of any content vertical, followed by entertainment at 88 percent. (Source: Marketing Charts, 2025)
20. Outfame users who posted Stories daily saw 23 percent higher follower retention rates than those who posted Stories fewer than three times per week. (Source: Outfame, 2026)

Instagram Stories vs Reels Performance

Reels and Stories serve different roles in a content strategy. Reels are designed for discovery and reach, while Stories excel at deepening relationships with existing followers. Here is how they compare.

Metric	Instagram Stories	Instagram Reels
Reach (relative to carousels)	Lower	36% higher than carousels
Engagement rate	Higher DM and reply rate	Higher likes and shares
Content lifespan	24 hours (unless highlighted)	Permanent
Primary function	Follower retention and conversion	Discovery and audience growth
Budget allocation (marketers)	31% of Instagram ad budget	Growing share, exact % varies

21. Reels achieve 36 percent more reach than carousels and 125 percent more reach than single-image posts, while Stories primarily reach existing followers. (Source: Buffer, 2024)
22. Carousels generate 12 percent more engagement than Reels, making them the highest-engagement feed format when measured by likes, comments, shares, and saves. (Source: Buffer, 2024)
23. Marketers allocate 31 percent of their Instagram ad budget to Stories, a significant share that reflects the format's conversion strength. (Source: eMarketer, 2025)
24. Stories reach rate for small accounts (1K to 5K followers) averages 9.5 to 10.4 percent, while Reels reach a broader audience including non-followers. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)
25. Instagram Stories drive more direct purchase intent than Reels. Fifty percent of users report visiting a website to make a purchase after seeing a product in Stories. (Source: Hootsuite, 2025)

Instagram Stories for Business

26. One-third of the most-viewed Instagram Stories come from business accounts. Brands are not just participating; they are leading in viewership. (Source: IZEA, 2025)
27. 58 percent of users say they became more interested in a brand or product after seeing it in Stories. The format's full-screen, immersive nature drives stronger brand recall. (Source: Hootsuite, 2025)
28. 200 million-plus business profiles exist on Instagram, and approximately half of all users interact with at least one business account daily. (Source: Meltwater, 2025)
29. 55.4 percent of influencers use Stories for sponsored posts, making it the second-most popular format for paid partnerships after feed posts. (Source: Hootsuite, 2025)
30. Outfame's data shows that accounts combining daily Stories with AI-powered growth strategies grew followers 1.6 times faster than accounts relying on feed posts alone. Tools like Outfame help automate the engagement side while creators focus on content. (Source: Outfame, 2026)

Instagram Stories Ad Performance

31. Instagram Story ads reach more than 900 million users per month, making them one of the highest-reach ad placements on the platform. (Source: Marketing LTB, 2025)
32. Story ads cost 20 to 30 percent less than feed ads, offering better cost efficiency for awareness and top-of-funnel campaigns. (Source: Marketing LTB, 2025)
33. The average CTR for Instagram Stories ads is 0.90 percent, compared to 0.78 percent for feed ads and 1.25 percent for Reels ads. (Source: Marketing LTB, 2025)
34. Stories ads generate a 17-point lift in ad recall compared to standard placements, according to a Meta case study. (Source: Instagram for Business, 2024)
35. Adding interactive poll stickers to Story ads increases engagement by 30 percent. Brands that incorporate interactivity into their paid Stories see measurably better results. (Source: Marketing LTB, 2025)
36. 25 percent of users visit a website after viewing a Story ad, demonstrating strong mid-funnel conversion behavior. (Source: Marketing LTB, 2025)
37. 4 million advertisers were running Story ads as of Q4 2019, and that number has grown substantially since. (Source: TechCrunch, 2020; reaffirmed by Meta, 2024)

Instagram Stories Interactive Features

38. Interactive sticker usage in Stories correlated with a 41 percent increase in direct message volume among Outfame user accounts. Polls, quizzes, and question stickers all drive two-way conversation. (Source: Outfame, 2026)
39. Poll stickers increase three-second video views by up to 30 percent in organic Stories, and the effect is even more pronounced in paid placements. (Source: Meta, 2024)
40. The link sticker (which replaced swipe-up in 2021) is now available to all accounts regardless of follower count, democratizing traffic-driving capabilities across the platform. (Source: Instagram, 2024)
41. Stories with the question sticker receive 2.5 times more replies than Stories without interactive elements, making them the most effective sticker for sparking conversation. (Source: Later, 2025)
42. The Support Small Business sticker saw 61 percent adoption within its first month of availability, demonstrating how quickly the Instagram community embraces interactive features. (Source: EarthWeb, 2025)

Optimal Stories Strategy by the Numbers

43. Posting one to seven Stories per day maintains the highest completion rates. Once an account exceeds seven frames in a single day, viewer retention begins to decline. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)
44. The first frame is make-or-break: 23.8 percent of viewers exit after the first Story, but those who stay through the second frame are significantly more likely to watch the entire sequence. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)
45. Video Stories earn lower exit rates than image Stories at every follower tier. For accounts with 10K to 50K followers, video exit rates average 10.5 percent compared to 9.3 percent for images, but videos hold attention longer overall. (Source: Socialinsider, 2025)

These statistics make one thing clear: Stories remain indispensable for any serious Instagram strategy in 2026. While Reels and carousels dominate discovery, Stories serve as the connective tissue between you and your existing audience. They drive DMs, build trust through daily touchpoints, and convert attention into action more reliably than almost any other format on the platform.

For creators and businesses looking to accelerate their Instagram growth, combining a consistent Stories cadence with a tool like Outfame can compound results. Outfame's AI handles audience targeting and engagement automation so you can focus on creating Stories that keep your followers coming back every day.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many people use Instagram Stories every day?

Roughly 500 million people use Instagram Stories daily. That figure represents about one-quarter of Instagram's 2 billion-plus monthly active users. Stories remain one of the most-used features on the platform, second only to the main feed.

What is a good completion rate for Instagram Stories?

A good completion rate falls between 70 and 87 percent, depending on account size and content vertical. Sports and entertainment accounts tend to perform at the high end. If your completion rate dips below 60 percent, it typically signals that your Stories are too long or not immediately engaging.

Are Instagram Stories or Reels better for engagement?

It depends on the type of engagement. Reels outperform Stories on reach and are better for attracting new followers. Stories, however, drive more direct messages, poll responses, and website visits from existing followers. The most effective strategy uses both: Reels for discovery, Stories for retention.

How often should I post Instagram Stories?

One to seven Stories per day is the sweet spot for maintaining strong completion rates. Accounts that post daily see up to 23 percent higher follower retention, according to Outfame data. Consistency matters more than volume, so focus on showing up every day rather than posting 15 frames once a week.

Do Instagram Story ads actually work?

Yes. Story ads reach more than 900 million users monthly, cost 20 to 30 percent less than feed ads, and deliver a 0.90 percent average CTR. Adding interactive stickers such as polls can boost engagement by an additional 30 percent. For businesses with strong creative, Stories ads are among the most cost-effective placements on Instagram.

Methodology

The statistics in this article were compiled from a combination of proprietary Outfame data and publicly available research. Outfame statistics are based on aggregated, anonymized performance data from 65,000-plus Instagram accounts managed through the platform between January 2025 and January 2026. Third-party data comes from published reports by Meta, Socialinsider, Buffer, Dash Hudson, Flick, Hootsuite, Meltwater, Marketing LTB, eMarketer, IZEA, EarthWeb, MediaKix, and Marketing Charts. Where a statistic was originally published in a prior year and has not been updated by its source, we note the original source and year. All percentage figures are rounded to the nearest tenth.