Some of the widespread questions creators ask or get requested: “Is my engagement price good?”
The reality is, it depends upon what number of followers you might have. A 5% engagement price means one thing very totally different for an account with 500 followers in comparison with one with half one million.
That’s why we analyzed greater than 27 million Instagram posts from 273,000 accounts to see how engagement charges shift as creators develop. The result’s a transparent image of what “good” seems to be like at each stage — from lower than 1,000 followers all the best way as much as 1 million or extra.
On this article, we’ll break down the typical engagement price by follower tier and share what the numbers really imply in follow.
⚡If you wish to discover extra metrics like attain, posting frequency, and development price, try our Instagram benchmarks web page.
🔢 The typical Instagram engagement price
Earlier than we get into follower tiers, right here’s what the typical account seems to be like on Instagram right this moment. These numbers offer you a fast benchmark for the “typical” account.
Median engagement price: 4.3percentAverage posting frequency: 17 posts per thirty days (~4 posts per week)Common follower development price: 3.3% per monthMedian attain per submit: 242
From right here, the true perception comes from seeing how these averages shift relying on follower measurement.
🧮 Find out how we calculate engagement charges in What’s Engagement Charge?
🪜 Tier-by-tier breakdown of engagement charges
Listed below are the engagement charges to count on at every follower tier on Instagram from nano to mega accounts.
0 to 1K followers: Construct the behavior of consistency
Engagement price: 5.2percentPosting frequency: 13 posts per thirty days or ~3 posts per weekGrowth price: 5.1% per monthMedian attain per submit: 33
Engagement charges are excessive at this stage as a result of the individuals following you’re probably pals, friends, or early supporters. However the true unlock isn’t within the numbers — it’s in making a rhythm that units you up for sustainable development.
So if you happen to’re simply beginning out, your focus ought to be much less on group administration and extra on constructing the self-discipline to submit recurrently. Our analysis has discovered that extra posts equal extra development. Particularly, posting between 3 and 5 instances weekly can greater than double follower development price, in comparison with posting one or two instances weekly.
🟢 Do that: Concentrate on constructing the behavior of posting. Decide a manageable cadence (round three posts per week is the typical right here) and deal with it as follow. Use this stage to experiment with codecs, captions, and concepts with out the stress of efficiency.
📖 Be taught extra concerning the impression of posting frequency in your development in How Typically Ought to You Put up on Instagram in 2025? What Information From 2 Million Posts Tells Us
1k to 5K followers: Begin scaling consistency
Engagement price: 4.6percentPosting frequency: 16 posts per thirty days or ~4 posts per weekGrowth price: 2.5% per monthMedian attain per submit: 185
When you’ve constructed the behavior of posting, this stage is about scaling that consistency. You’re beginning to attain past your fast circle, and a drop in engagement price is pure as your viewers diversifies.
What issues most right here is displaying up usually sufficient for brand spanking new followers to acknowledge and keep in mind you. One of many main features at this follower tier is that the extra you submit, the extra attain you’ll obtain on every submit.
🟢 Do that: Goal for round 4 posts every week (the typical on this tier) and begin paying nearer consideration to what codecs or matters spark probably the most attain. Small optimizations at this stage compound shortly into regular development.
5k to 10K followers: Optimize your content material combine
Engagement price: 4.1percentPosting frequency: 20 posts per thirty days or ~5 posts per weekGrowth price: 2.6% per monthMedian attain per submit: 507
At this stage, you’ve moved previous the early-experiment section and into actual momentum. Engagement charges dip barely, however your attain is climbing — every submit now lands in entrance of tons of of individuals. Consistency is anticipated, however what separates regular development from actual traction is what you submit.
Reels get probably the most attain on Instagram, pulling in 39% extra attain than carousels and an enormous 122% greater than single-image posts. In the meantime, carousels get probably the most engagement, incomes 12% extra engagement than reels and 114% greater than single-image posts.
🟢 Do that: Determine which codecs (Reels, carousels, single-image posts, Tales) drive probably the most engagement and attain, then lean into them. Maintain testing, however begin making strategic selections about the place to double down so your effort and time scale together with your viewers.
📖 Be taught extra about which Instagram codecs carry out finest in Information Exhibits Instagram Reels are Finest For Attain — However Not Engagement
10k to 50K followers: Double down on what works
Engagement price: 3.7percentPosting frequency: 23 posts per thirty days or ~5–6 posts per weekGrowth price: 2.3% per monthMedian attain per submit: 1,073
By this level, you’ve discovered some traction — sure content material varieties or themes are constant hits together with your viewers.
Engagement charges are nonetheless above the Instagram median, and your attain has crossed into the 1000’s per submit. The problem right here is much less about determining what works and extra about doing extra of it with intention.
🟢 Do that: Look again on the posts which have pushed probably the most engagement and attain, then systematize the way you create and share them. Construct repeatable codecs (like recurring sequence, templates, or hooks) so you’ll be able to keep momentum with out reinventing the wheel each week.
50k to 100K followers: Improve quantity strategically
Engagement price: 3.6percentPosting frequency: 31 posts per thirty days or ~1 submit per dayGrowth price: 1.7% per monthMedian attain per submit: 3,090
At this stage, your account has momentum, however sustaining development requires extra output.
The typical posting frequency right here jumps to every day — displaying that creators with bigger audiences keep prime of thoughts with their audiences by displaying up constantly.
Engagement charges at this tier maintain regular, and attain continues to rise into the 1000’s.
🟢 Do that: Transferring towards every day posting will help you keep aggressive, nevertheless it doesn’t imply it’s best to sacrifice high quality. Repurpose your strongest codecs, experiment with variations, and suppose when it comes to sequence or themes that preserve your viewers coming again with out burning you out.
100k to 500K followers: Construct methods for scale
Engagement price: 3.5percentPosting frequency: 47 posts per thirty days or ~1–2 posts per dayGrowth price: 2.2% per monthMedian attain per submit: 7,127
At this stage, attain begins to scale dramatically. Your common submit is touchdown in entrance of greater than 7,000 individuals. However with larger visibility comes the demand for a gradual stream of content material.
Many creators on this tier are posting greater than as soon as a day, and those who develop sustainably are inclined to have workflows, templates, and even small groups in place to maintain the engine operating.
🟢 Do that: Batch create content material, repurpose prime performers throughout codecs, and contemplate enlisting assist (editors, designers, or collaborators) to keep up each consistency and high quality. The main focus shifts from simply creating to managing a repeatable course of.
500K to 1M followers: Increase attain deliberately
Engagement price: 3.7percentPosting frequency: 101 posts per thirty days or ~3+ posts per dayGrowth price: 1.5% per monthMedian attain per submit: 37,400
When you’re right here, each submit has huge attain — tens of 1000’s of individuals on common. And engagement holds regular, however the scale means every like or remark represents 1000’s of interactions.
🟢 Do that: Amplify what you’re already doing with partnerships, collaborations, and cross-promotion. Experiment with traits strategically — not chasing each one, however leaning into people who align together with your area of interest.
1M+ followers: Shield and nurture engagement
Engagement price: 5percentPosting frequency: 98 posts per thirty days or ~3 posts per dayGrowth price: 0.8% per monthMedian attain per submit: 107,224
Crossing the million-follower mark comes with a paradox. Development slows to lower than 1% per thirty days, however your baseline viewers is huge. Every submit reaches over 100,000 individuals on common, and apparently, engagement charges tick again as much as round 5 %. The problem shifts from rising quick to sustaining high quality, connection, and belief at scale.
🟢 Do that: Prioritize content material that builds loyalty slightly than chasing self-importance metrics. Use tales, lives, and feedback to remain accessible, and deal with collaborations or sponsored content material with care — the extra you keep belief, the longer your affect lasts.
Why engagement charges change as accounts develop
Engagement isn’t static. As accounts develop, the best way followers work together with content material modifications.
Smaller accounts usually see larger engagement charges as a result of their audiences are tight-knit. Folks know the creator personally or really feel extra immediately related. A like or a remark feels pure in these smaller communities.
Nevertheless, as follower counts climb, engagement charges sometimes dip. As an alternative of a 5% engagement price on just a few hundred followers, bigger accounts would possibly see 3% to 4%. However that “smaller” proportion may nonetheless equal tens of 1000’s of interactions per submit.
So don’t examine your engagement price to somebody in a totally totally different tier. The actual perception comes from seeing how your account stacks up in opposition to others of the same measurement.
That’s the place the benchmarks turn into most helpful — and why we’ve damaged the info down tier by tier.
What these benchmarks imply for you
The information makes one factor clear: Instagram development isn’t linear.
Engagement charges dip and rise, posting frequency ramps up, and follower development slows as audiences get greater. However throughout each tier, there’s a constant theme — the creators who preserve displaying up are those who preserve shifting ahead.
What “good” seems to be like depends upon your measurement.
For smaller accounts, it’s about constructing the behavior of consistency.For mid-sized creators, it’s refining your content material combine and doubling down on what works.And on the larger tiers, development is much less about chasing numbers and extra about sustaining methods, attain, and belief at scale.
In case you take away just one factor, let it’s this: you don’t want to match your self to accounts far greater than yours. Essentially the most helpful benchmark is the one which matches your follower vary.
🤔 Curious how your account stacks up? Discover the total dataset — together with engagement, attain, posting frequency, and development price by follower tier — with our Instagram benchmarks instrument.
