Skip to content

Saving Instagram Photos in 2023: An In-Depth Guide

So you want to save photos from Instagram? I totally understand why. After all, Instagram is one of the internet‘s top photo-sharing platforms. Over 1 billion people actively use it every month to share snippets of life through images.

A scroll through your Instagram feed likely serves up everything from jaw-dropping travel vistas to cute pet pics to tasty food porn. Maybe you spotted an uproariously funny meme or a clever life hack clip.

With over 100 million photos and videos uploaded daily, it‘s no wonder many Instagram users want to save photos for later inspiration or entertainment.

Common reasons people wish to save Instagram photos include:

  • Creating vision boards and mood boards
  • Compiling vacation destination ideas
  • Saving recipes or craft tutorials to try
  • Sharing funny memes with friends
  • Recreating photo ideas or poses
  • Supporting brands by promoting products
  • Curating collections around hobbies or interests

However, while easily done with your own uploads, saving someone else‘s Instagram photos requires a bit more finesse.

Instagram actively prevents bulk downloading to protect creators. But some legitimate methods exist to ethically save photos you truly love or find helpful!

This in-depth guide will teach you:

  • Instagram‘s download and copyright policies
  • Legal methods to save your own or others‘ uploads
  • Ethical practices for utilizing saved images
  • Tools to organize collections
  • Additional tips and troubleshooting

Let‘s dive in!

Overview of Instagram‘s Terms of Service

Before attempting to download any Instagram photos, you need a clear understanding of the platform‘s policies surrounding copying and distributing content.

As a photo-first social network, Instagram allows billions of users to share personal, often creative images. Like any artwork or media, legal protections govern how it can be used.

Familiarizing yourself with Instagram‘s terms around downloads and shares will help avoid potential issues:

You Own Your Original Uploads

The photos and videos you personally capture through the Instagram in-app camera or upload from your device‘s library belong to you.

As the copyright holder, you alone have rights regarding:

  • Distributing or publishing your original uploads
  • Creating derivative works – like photoshopping or remixing
  • Stopping unauthorized usage in its various forms

Within Instagram itself, you can easily save your own published content back to your camera roll or device storage without issue.

You Don‘t Own Others‘ Uploads

For fellow Instagrammers‘ photos appearing in your feed or Explore page, rights are more complex.

Instagram‘s Terms of Use clearly state:

"You can‘t attempt to create accounts or access or collect information in unauthorized ways. This includes creating accounts or collecting information in an automated way without our express permission."

This means that:

  • Downloading or scraping mass images violates Instagram‘s terms
  • You cannot claim ownership over others‘ creative work
  • Sharing or uploading content elsewhere requires permission

Instagram‘s Saved Feature Provides Options

The app does allow options to compile and organize enjoyed posts without actually downloading files:

  • Instagram‘s "Save" feature notifies creators when you bookmark their post
  • They can revoke access if ever desired
  • You retain access for inspiration without ownership

Understanding these core policies is crucial. Next let‘s explore legitimate methods to save photos ethically based on Instagram‘s guidance.

Save Your Original Uploads Automatically

Thankfully, Instagram makes it incredibly easy to save the photos you directly upload through the mobile app‘s camera or photo library.

As the copyright holder, you can automatically back up your published images with full resolution to your camera roll, cloud services, or computer storage.

  1. Start from your profile tab
  2. Tap the menu (3 horizontal lines)
  3. Choose "Settings"
  4. Tap "Original Posts"
  5. Toggle "Save Original Photos" on

Instagram Save Original Photos iOS Tutorial

Now whenever you upload new Instagram posts, the original high-quality version saves to your camera roll too! Convenient for safekeeping unfiltered versions off the platform.

For already published photos, you can also manually save them too:

On iOS

  • Tap and hold on your post thumbnail
  • Tap "Save Photo"

On Android

  • Press and hold on your post thumbnail
  • Tap the 3-dot menu
  • Select "Save photo"

I recommend albums or cloud storage to easily find your Instagram archive later.

Let‘s move onto saving photos from other accounts that inspire you!

Ethical Ways to Save Others‘ Instagram Photos

While re-sharing others‘ Instagram photos without permission is prohibited, a few legitimate options exist to save posts you love or find helpful:

Use Instagram‘s "Save" Feature

Ever since March 2017, Instagram has allowed users to "Bookmark" posts – aka the "Save" feature. This lets you privately flag content within the app to reference later.

To save an Instagram post:

  1. Tap the ribbon bookmark icon below the photo
  2. View bookmarks from your profile > menu > bookmarks
  3. Organize with Collections (more below)

This creates an archive visible only to you within Instagram. The original poster is also notified when you bookmark their content. They can revoke this access if ever desired.

It‘s like creating digital vision boards!

Copy the Direct Image URL

Every Instagram photo post has a direct URL assigned specifically to display that image file. On mobile or desktop, you can extract just the image address:

On Mobile:

  1. Tap the "…" menu on the post
  2. Choose "Copy Link"
  3. Paste URL in browser
  4. Long press image to save

On Desktop:

  1. Right click the post
  2. Select "Copy image address"
  3. Paste into browser to open
  4. Right click image to save

Then upload downloaded files anywhere desired!

Leverage Third-Party Tools Ethically

Numerous websites and apps claim to allow fast Instagram saving or downloading. However, most violate policies by scraping data without consent. Beware of shady tools injecting ads or malware too.

The only one I recommend is DownloadGram. This reputable website handles permissions and URLs appropriately:

To use DownloadGram:

  1. Copy the post URL from Instagram app
  2. Visit DownloadGram.com
  3. Paste URL into the search bar
  4. Click the "Download" button beside the image

It will save the photo file directly without any hassle. This preserves creator rights while offering the option to back up cherished posts.

Best Practices for Using Saved Photos

With great photo saving power comes great responsibility. Simply downloading an Instagram post does not transfer copyright ownership or licensing rights to you.

The original creator still maintains full control over:

  • Distributing or sharing their photo
  • Who can access the file
  • Creating derivative versions like edits or merchandise

Before sharing a saved photo – even casually with friends – it‘s imperative to ask the creator‘s explicit permission.

Send them a friendly Instagram DM explaining what you‘d like to do with their photo, such as:

  • Personal use like a mood board
  • Printing stickers for personal journals
  • Incorporating into a blog post with credit

Outline any specifics around sharing or modifications. The more details the better!

Ideally, get their permission in writing via DM before proceeding. If willing, request they include any special directions, such as:

  • Linking to their Instagram profile
  • Using their @handle for credit
  • Stating if modifications are allowed
  • Noting if commercial use (selling merchandise with the image for example) is prohibited

Gaining consent protects creators while enabling you to legally save Instagram photos you love!

Keep Organized with Instagram Collections

Once those gorgeous travel vistas, mouthwatering entrées, and hilarious memes fill your saved Instagram feed, keeping track can get messy.

Thankfully, Instagram Collections allow you to neatly sort bookmarked and saved content within the app itself. Think of it like creating digital albums or folders!

To organize your Instagram saves into Collections:

  1. Tap the bookmark icon when viewing posts to save them
  2. View all your bookmarked posts on your profile under the bookmark icon
  3. Tap the "+" symbol to create a new Collection
  4. Give your Collection a name like "Travel Bucket List"
  5. Tap into your bookmarked feeds and select images to add them to your named Collection

Now whenever you want to access those dreamy Bali beaches or toe-curling tiramisu pics, everything stays neatly organized!

Some popular Instagram Collection theme ideas include:

  • Travel bucket list
  • Gift ideas for friends + family
  • Outfit inspiration sorted by season or style
  • DIY project tutorials to recreate
  • Healthy recipes to cook
  • Meditation or yoga poses to try

Protected from prying eyes, Collections really do emulate old-school vision boards and scrapbooks!

Boost Your Brand with Collections

For business owners, organizing saved Instagram photos into Collections provides additional value:

  • Track user-generated content easily for re-sharing
  • Monitor competitors making waves in your niche
  • Collect interview ideas from influencers in your field
  • Save product release announcements for future cross-promo

The bookmark feature essentially replaces tracking hashtags in your main feed!

Pro Tips for Downloading Instagram Photos

Congrats! At this point you should have all the knowledge needed to properly save Instagram photos from both your own account plus others.

Let‘s recap top tips for becoming a pro Instagram photo saver:

  • Enable auto-save for your own original uploads at full resolution as a backup
  • Don‘t overdo saving every single photo that appears in your feed
  • Actually review your bookmarked Collections for top quality keepers
  • Ensure you have explicit permission before resharing others‘ content
  • Credit beautifully with links to original Instagram source + handles
  • Use eye-catching graphics alongside helpful context in shares
  • Follow best practices regarding prints, merchandise, ownership rights and more

And consider these advanced pointers too:

  • As with feed posts, you can screenshot Stories before they disappear. But always ask first before externally sharing as Instagram Stories bypass creator review

  • Reels offer entertainment and discovery value similar to TikTok. Use Instagram‘s built-in "Share" options to circulate these too.

  • For downloading your own feed videos or live streams, enable "Save Original" under Settings > Original Posts.

  • Reliably extract even deleted or expired Instagram photos using Google Chrome extensions to surface cached versions still hosted on Instagram servers.

I sincerely hope these tips help you engage more deeply with Instagram content you love, while empowering creators! Maintaining open communication and transparency with fellow users fosters a positive community lifting all boats.

Let me know if you have any other questions around downloading Instagram photos! I‘m happy to help advise as both a consumer rights advocate and daily Instagram enthusiast myself.