Instagram · 3 min read
Instagram Hashtag Strategy
Working within the thirty-tag limit without filling it for the sake of it.
Relevance over volume
Instagram allows thirty hashtags per post, and that number is a ceiling rather than a target. Instagram's own creator guidance emphasises describing the post accurately, because the tags feed a recommendation system that is trying to work out who should see it.
Ten precise tags give that system a clear signal. Thirty loose ones give it a contradictory one.
Sets per pillar
If your account covers three subjects, keep three sets rather than one blended block. Each set should contain the tags that are true for that subject and nothing else. Blended blocks are the main reason accounts get recommended to the wrong audience.
Rotate two variants of each set so identical captions do not appear week after week.
Caption or first comment
Both are indexed, so choose based on how you want the post to read. Whichever you pick, apply it consistently — mixing the two makes it impossible to tell later whether a change in performance came from placement or content.