If you’re looking to get more followers on Instagram, why not enlist the help of one or more Instagram tools?
It makes a TON of sense!
Whether you need to improve your visuals, build a gorgeous Instagram feed, or create better Instagram Stories, Instagram tools can make all the difference.
Not sure where to start? We’ve got you covered.
In this post we review 21 amazing Instagram growth tools that can help you grow a large and engaged following on Instagram. Here we go:
Instagram Tools #1: Post Better Quality Photos
Instagram is all about the visuals!
So, needless to say, if you want to be successful with your Instagram marketing and get more followers, you need to post great photos.
Need some help? These photo editing apps will help you add filters and overlays, adjust brightness, and even edit out any blemishes in the background!
1. VSCO
It’s very, very likely that you’ve heard of VSCO before. Not only do they boast one of the most-used branded hashtags on Instagram (#vscocam), but their photography app is one of the most popular (and powerful) on the market.
In fact, when we recently asked a group of Instagram influencers what their favorite photo editing app was, VSCO came out as the clear winner!
How to use VSCO Cam: As far as editing goes, the filters VSCO provides are in a league of their own and won’t give your photos that cringeworthy, over-edited look that many other editing app filters do. Along with applying filters, you can adjust the photo’s elements including brightness, contrast, temperature, fade, sharpness, and more.
2. Snapseed
Whether you want to make a quick edit or something a little more advanced, Google’s image editing app Snapseed is simple, easy to use, and perfect for when you’re on-the-go.
How to use SnapSeed: After applying your filter from VSCO, pop the photo into Snapseed to use their unique tools like ambiance, selective adjust (to only edit a certain part of a photo), and their brush tool, which is perfect for making certain aspects of your photo brighter or more saturated.
3. Over
Whether you’re sharing tips, inspirational quotes, or want to add a creative twist to your Instagram marketing campaign, Over is a great app that lets you apply overlayed text and graphics onto your photos!
How to use Over: Over markets itself as an “easy app for creativity and design.” And that it is! Once downloaded, you can choose from 18 different fonts, a ton of different graphics, and easily adjust size, color, and placement to achieve the perfect look.
Free download: iOS & Android
Instagram Tools #2: Create a Beautiful Instagram Feed
What’s the first thing you notice when you visit someone’s profile on Instagram?
Their feed!
While having nice looking photos and videos is, of course, very important, building a consistent and beautiful Instagram feed is absolutely crucial if you want to attract more followers!
Need some help planning you feed? Here’s our favorite Instagram tool for the job!
4. Later’s Visual Instagram Planner
Later’s Visual Instagram Planner shows you exactly what your Instagram feed would look like with your scheduled posts, and let’s you easily rearrange or swap out photos to find the perfect balance for your Instagram feed.
Meaning? You can finally plan and design the perfect Instagram feed!
How to use it: Simply drag & drop your photos onto our Visual Instagram Planner, re-arrange them to see how they’ll look in your feed, and save to schedule them! It’s as simple as that!
Plus, the feature is now available on mobile too, so you can quickly plan your feed on-the-go!
Instagram Tools #3: Manage Your Instagram Contest
Hands down, one of the easiest way to quickly get more followers on Instagram is to host an Instagram contest.
And while you don’t necessarily need any Instagram tools to manage your Instagram contests (check out our foolproof Instagram contest formula here), the following apps can be really helpful!
5. WooBox
If you’re running an Instagram photo, video, or hashtag contest, WooBox’s dashboard makes it really easy to set age restrictions, track submissions, approve entries, and pick a winner.
How to use WooBox: Once you’ve connected WooBox to your Facebook account, you’ll get access to a dashboard with a ton of options for creating promotions, sweepstakes, UGC contests, and more.
Free download: web
6. Wishpond
Like WooBox, Wishpond’s app supports photo and hashtag contests on Instagram. But you can also use Wishpond to design a contest landing pages to highlight your prizes, approve or deny entries, and use the app’s analytics to keep an eye on your contest’s progress.
How to use Wishpond: Once you’ve created an account, you can build a “campaign.” Start by designating the hashtag you want to use for the contest. Once the contest is up and running, use the app’s analytics to keep an eye on its progress. You can see the number of conversions and viewers for the contest, and you can also view all of the entries and stop the contest at any time.
Starting at $49/mo: web (free 14-day trial)
Instagram Tools #4: Find Your Best Time to Post
It’s a mystery everyone wants to know: how does the Instagram algorithm work?
While we may not understand the intricacies of what makes the Instagram algorithm tick, we do know a few things about it. For example, when you post on Instagram can have a huge impact on how many people see your post.
And if a lot of people see your post, you’re way more likely to get on the Explore Page. Which is a great way to get more followers!
So how do you find your best time to post on Instagram? Well, we can think of two Instagram tools to help!
7. Instagram Insights
When it comes to analytics, one of the most straightforward tools is Instagram’s own analytics feature, Instagram Insights. The free feature provides a ton of valuable information on who your followers are, where they’re located, their gender, age, and even when they’re most active on Instagram.
How to use Instagram Insights: To get access to Instagram Insights, you need to convert your personal Instagram profile to a Business Profile. Once you’ve taken care of that, you’ll notice a “chart” icon at the top of your feed within the Instagram app. Tapping the icon will bring you to a page with a breakdown of your account’s analytics, including when your audience is most active on Instagram.
On the downside, in order to make use of this data from Insights, you have to create a spreadsheet and test you posting times until you find the best results.
Free download: iOS & Android
8. Later’s Best Time to Post
Later’s Best Time to Post feature makes it super easy to find out when you should schedule your Instagram posts for maximum engagement! After reviewing your historical Instagram data (the number of likes and comments your posts received) the feature will automatically calculate the top posting times for your Instagram account!
How to use Best Time to Post: To see your best time to post, you first need to enable it from your Later calendar settings. Your calendar settings can be found at the top right of your Calendar, it is a little gear icon. Select your calendar settings and toggle to enable your Best Time To Post optimization. Don’t want to see your best times anymore? You can also turn them off in your calendar settings.
Starting at $19/mo: available on web
Instagram Tools #5: Make Better Instagram Stories
There’s no question that Instagram Stories is a great place to show off your business’ personality.
But Instagram Stories can also be an amazing tool to get more followers!
In fact, if you create really great Stories that speak to a specific audience, there’s a good chance you can end up on the recommended Stories list at the top of the Explore Page.
Want to make better Instagram Stories? These four Instagram tools can help!
9. Storeo
Rather than recording several 15-second videos for your Instagram Stories (which can be surprisingly difficult!), Storeo lets you record or upload a single long video and then it slices it up into neat little 15-second packages for you!
How to use Storeo: Once you’ve downloaded the app, simply upload a video from your mobile device’s library or record a new one. From there, tap “Export” to slice your video into 15-second clips. You can either upload directly to Instagram Stories from the Storeo app, or download the video and post it manually.
Free download: iOS (upgrade for $9.99 to remove their watermark)
10. Boomerang
Instagram’s Boomerang app, introduced in 2015, snaps a handful of photos in quick succession, and then turns them into a GIF-like loop that plays forward and backward. It’s super easy to make Boomerang’s in Instagram Stories now, but if you want to create them ahead of time (and upload to Instagram Stories later), you can use the original app.
How to use Boomerang: All you need to do is tap the record button to stitch together a burst of photos to create a short animation that plays forward and backward!
11. Canva
Canva’s mobile app is fantastic for creating stunning social media graphics. But did you know that you can also use Canva to create amazing Instagram Stories?
Thanks to their library of Instagram Stories templates, Canva has become one of our favorite tools for designing unique, and eye-catching Stories!
How to use Canva: Once you’ve downloaded the Canva mobile app, you can browse their library of professionally created templates. Next, upload your photo and add a filter or text overlay. Once you’re done, tap “Save” and share away!
Free download: iOS
12. Pixelgarde
Have you ever wanted to post a photo or video to your Instagram Stories but couldn’t because it was older than 24 hours? That’s where Pixelgarde comes in. It’s a free app that lets you add, remove or change geotags, dates, times of day, and other metadata in your photos and videos.
How to use Pixelgarde: Select the photo or video that you want to post, and tap “Edit” and then “Change Date & Time.” Change the photo or video’s date to the current date and click “Done.” Now when you navigate to your Camera Roll, the photo or video will appear at the bottom!
Free download: web & iOS (upgrade for $1.99 to remove their watermark)
Instagram Tools #6: Find Better Hashtags for Your Posts
Hashtags remain one of the best ways to get more followers on Instagram.
But not just any hashtag will do!
You have to post with hashtags that have an engaged community behind them and are specific to your audience.
So how do you find these ultra-niche hashtags? Here are three Instagram tools to help!
13. Display Purposes
Finding hashtags that are relevant to your community can make all the difference, and that’s exactly what Display Purposes can help you with! All you have to do is type a few hashtags into the search console and Display Purposes will generate a list of relevant, suggested hashtags.
The best part? Generic, banned, and spammy hashtags are all filtered out, so you don’t have to worry about getting shadowbanned!
How to use Display Purposes: Simply open the webpage and type in a few hashtags that are relevant to your post. Display Purposes will then generate a list of 30 similar hashtags that are often used alongside the ones you entered.
Free: web
14. Focalmark
Like Display Purposes, Focalmark is a great tool for finding relevant Instagram hashtags. However, while Display Purposes selects relevant hashtags based on popularity, Focalmark uses both human research and a “ranking algorithm” to make ultra-relevant hashtag suggestions!
How to use Focalmark: Once you’ve downloaded the mobile app, simply select the content categories that are most relevant to your post. You can narrow down by topic, style, location, and camera type. Focalmark will then filter through thousands of hand-collected hashtags and rank them based on reach and authenticity.
Free download: iOS & Android
15. AutoHash
According to their website, AutoHash uses a computer vision algorithm to find the best hashtags for your Instagram photos. All you have to do is upload a photo and the algorithm will generate a list of relevant hashtags based on the objects in your photo.
How to use AutoHash: Download the app to your Android device and upload a photo. The app will then analyze the objects in your photo and show you any relevant hashtags.
Free download: Android
Instagram Tools #7: Display Your Instagram Posts on Your Website
If you get a lot of traffic to your website, why not turn those visitors into Instagram followers?
Seriously, though! If you want to get more followers on Instagram, displaying your Instagram posts on your website could be just the trick.
Here are two Instagram tools to help you do it!
16. Juicer
Juicer offers a super simple way to aggregate all of your brand hashtag and social media posts into a single beautiful social media feed on your website.
How to use Juicer: Once you’ve created an account, you can add all the accounts and hashtags you want to appear on your social media feed on your website (note: Juicer’s free plan only allows for 2 source accounts or hashtags). Next, just copy and paste the embed code onto any of you webpages! Or, if your website is hosted on WordPress, you can use Juicer’s WordPress plugin.
Free download: web
17. Feed Them Social
Much like Juicer, Feed Them Social is a tool that allows you to create and display amazing looking social feeds on your website, including Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and more.
How to use Feed Them Social: Simply download the WordPress widget and connect your social accounts (you can upload as many social feeds as you like!). Feed Them Social will then generate a shortcode that you can embed in the HTML of your WordPress pages (note: Feed Them Social currently only works with WordPress).
Free download: web
Instagram Tools #8: Send Instagram Users to Your Website
If you’ve ever used Instagram to make ecommerce sales, you’re probably aware of how difficult it can be to get your Instagram followers to visit your website.
The more seamless you can make the transition from Instagram to your website, the better your chances are of making a sale.
And if you make the transition really easy, you’re way more likely to grow your audience and create repeat customers!
Here are two Instagram tools that can help with this.
18. Linktree
Linktree is a free Instagram tool for optimizing your Instagram traffic. Using Linktree, you can direct Instagram followers to your blog, your portfolio site, and even your other social media accounts.
How Linktree works: After connecting Linktree to your Instagram profile, you’ll receive a single link to share in your Instagram bio. You can then personalize the look of your Linktree site, and add links and buttons to various webpages. Updating the links in your Linktree is as simple as copying and pasting them into your account, and rearranging them as you see fit.
19. Linkin.bio
Since Instagram only gives you one clickable URL (the link in your bio), it can be difficult to drive targeted traffic to your online store. With Linkin.bio, you can can add links to any of the Instagram posts you’ve published through Later, which helps direct your Instagram audience to the right content or products on your website.
How to use Linkin.bio: Lots of shoppable Instagram feeds start at $50/month, but with Later, it's free! Simply enable Linkin.bio from Later on the web, populate your Linkin.bio page by adding links to the posts that you schedule with Later, and add your Linkin.bio link in your Instagram bio!
Now when one of your followers clicks on the link in your bio, they’ll be taken to a web and mobile-optimized landing page that resembles your Instagram feed and displays your Instagram posts as clickable images!
Free: later.com/linkinbio (also available on iOS & Android)
Instagram Tools #9: Get Insights About Your Instagram
If you want to get more followers, you need to understand how your content performs.
The best way to do this? By diving into your Instagram analytics!
It’s a fact. If you want to truly understand your audience, optimize your content, and evaluate your overall marketing performance, you need to monitor your Instagram analytics.
Need some help? Here are two Instagram tools that can help you get more insights about your account!
20. SimplyMeasured
SimplyMeasured advertises its analytics tool as being the “end-to-end analysis of all your social media networks,” and this includes Instagram.
How to use SimplyMeasured: Analytics for your Instagram engagement, content, and trends can be accessed by requesting a demo. But for more in-depth reports and analytics, you need to create a paid account with SimplyMeasured.
Free demo: web
21. Later’s Instagram Analytics
With Later’s free Instagram Analytics, you can learn more about how your posts are performing and discover what types of content get the most engagement!
How to use Later’s Free Analytics: Log into your Later account and head to your Instagram account summary to view how many likes and comments each of your posts received in the last three months, including which posts were the most popular and the average number of likes and comments you receive per post.
You can also optimize your Instagram content to get more likes and comments by comparing which post types or photos are performing best, and applying those learnings to your Instagram marketing strategy!
Free download: available on web.
Instagram tools can be super helpful, whether you’re trying to improve your visuals, create a better looking feed, manage your Instagram contests, or even display your Instagram posts on your website!
But remember: One of the best ways to grow an engaged following on Instagram is to simply post to your feed consistently! It’s an amazing growth tactic!
Start scheduling your Instagram posts with Later today!
