Caption Length Limits for Reels and Spotlight (2026)

#Instagram Reels caption length

Meta's IG User Media reference sets the caption limit for anything published through the API: a maximum of 2,200 characters, 30 hashtags and 20 @ tags. Go over any of those and the publish fails.

#The hashtag limit is now 5, at least in the app

Instagram's help centre page on hashtags now says you can use up to 5 tags on a post, and that if you include more than 5 tags, your comment won't post. Meta's developer reference still says 30.

The two official pages disagree, and Meta hasn't explained which applies to API publishing. Until it does, use 5 or fewer. That passes both rules, and it avoids a scheduled post failing at the moment it's meant to go out. For what hashtags actually do for reach, see hashtags on Reels.

#How much of the caption people see

Instagram does not publish how many characters show before the caption is cut off in the feed, and it varies by device. The only related official figure is in Meta's ads guide for Instagram Reels ads, which says primary text over 44 characters can be truncated with an ellipsis depending on device size and settings. That is ad guidance, but it is a fair hint: put the point of the caption in the first line.

#Facebook Reels caption length

Meta's Reels Publishing API docs describe how to add a description but don't state a character limit for it, and I couldn't find one on Meta's help pages either. Facebook doesn't publish a Reels caption limit, and I won't repeat a number from a third party blog. Meta's July 2025 creator guidance does say captions with no links, minimal capital letters and no more than five hashtags perform best. Writing to Instagram's or Snapchat's limit means you never need to know it.

#Snapchat Spotlight description length

Snap's Public Profile API allows a Spotlight description of up to 160 characters, and it can include hashtags. In the app, Snapchat lets you add a description, location or #topic before submitting, but its help page does not give a character limit.

Snapchat Stories posted through the API have no description field. Any text you want on a Story has to be in the video itself.

#Writing one caption for every platform

When the same video goes to Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat, I write one caption to the tightest rule and reuse it:

1. Keep it to 160 characters, including hashtags. That fits Spotlight's API limit and comfortably fits Instagram.
2. Use no more than 5 hashtags, to match Instagram's help centre.
3. Put the hook in the first few words, because feeds truncate captions.
4. Don't rely on the caption for anything essential on Snapchat Stories, since there isn't one. Burn key text into the video instead, inside the safe zones for Reels text.
5. Paste it into the caption counter to check the length and hashtag count before scheduling.

Some people move hashtags or links into a first comment instead. That has its own trade offs, covered in links in the first comment.

For the other specs that need to line up, see video specs for Reels and Spotlight, and for the full process of posting one video to every platform, the cross posting guide.

#Questions people ask

#How many characters can an Instagram Reel caption have?

2,200, according to Meta's developer reference.

#How many hashtags can I use on Instagram Reels now?

Instagram's help centre says 5. Meta's API reference still says 30. Use 5 or fewer to be safe on both.

#What is the Snapchat Spotlight caption limit?

160 characters through the API, hashtags included. Snapchat doesn't publish a limit for the app.

#Is there a Facebook Reels caption limit?

Meta doesn't publish one for Reels.