Captions For Instagram When You Haven T Posted In Awhile

Instagram is an image-first social platform. If your photos and videos aren't up to scratch, you'll have a hard time finding success.

But even great images and videos can fall short of expectations if you're a slouch in the Instagram captions department. The words that accompany your graphics are a key component of building a brand on the network, and especially forming a connection with fans and followers.

The best Instagram captions can add context to your posts, show off your brand's personality, entertain the audience and/or compel people to take action.

Captions can be up to 2,200 characters in length and include up to 30 hashtags.

That said, most captions are nowhere near that long or stuffed with that many hashtags. No matter the length, the important thing is for your Instagram captions to grab attention and be easy to read and follow.

Here, you'll find 264 Instagram captions you can model or just copy-and-paste directly into your own Instagram posts. At the end of the list, we'll also provide a few tips for writing effective Instagram captions of your own.

Bonus: Download a free checklist that reveals the exact steps a lifestyle photographer used to grow from 0 to 600,000 followers on Instagram with no budget and no expensive gear.

264 good Instagram captions for any type of post

Short Instagram captions

Short Instagram captions are the way to go if you want followers to see your whole caption without having to tap More.

All the things
Bucket list
But first, coffee
Coming soon
Days like these
Don't quit your daydream
Dream big
Girls just wanna have fun
Go big or go home
Good vibes only
Laughing on the inside
Launch day
Let's get it started
Like a boss
Limited edition
Nailed it
New look
Normal is boring
Opening soon
Show your sparkle
Small pleasures
This just happened
Times like this
Weekend vibes
Why not me?
Wild and free
Work hard play hard
Yes or no?

This example from Vancouver-based pizza shop Grano proves that sometimes, two words are just enough:

Pizzeria Grano two word Instagram caption

One-word Instagram captions

Want to go even shorter than short? Try a one-word caption. You may want to boost these captions with an appropriate emoji.

Amazing
Attitude
Awesome
Awkward
Balance
Blessed
Blessing
Bliss
Boom
Bravo
Brilliant
Classic
Crescendo
Cutest
Dreamer
Dreaming
Dreams
Dreamy
Epic
Escape
Everything
Explore
Exploring
Extra
Fabulous
Fave
Fearless
Feelings
Feels
Fierce
Fire
Flawless
Focus
Foodie
Forever
Friyay
Goals
Gold
Grateful
Gratitude
Hangry
Honestly
Honesty
Hustle
Hustling
Ideal
Inspiration
Inspired
Inspo
Jangled
Jealous?
Justified
Legend
Legendary
LOL
Magic
Moments
Mood
Natural
Newbie
No
Nostalgia
Notorious
Obsessed
Oddball
Original
Perfect
Perfection
Progress
Quest
Random
Ready
Reflections
Respect
Saturdaze
Serendipity
Sisterhood
Sparkle
Speechless
Sundown
Surprise
Tasty
Thankful
Throwback
TGIF
Unforgettable
Vibes
Wanderlust
Whatever
XOXO
Yearning
Yes
Yesterday
Yowza
Zany
Zap

Funny Instagram captions

Funny Instagram captions might not work for every brand, but when the time is right, a little humor can be just the thing to inject some life into your Instagram feed.

Cake is the answer, no matter the question
Everything happens for a raisin
If you don't have anything nice to say, just post on Instagram
In my defence, I was left unsupervised
It may look like I'm not doing anything, but in my mind I'm pretty busy
I've been on a diet for a week and all I lost was 14 days
Let's taco 'bout it!

Spring Instagram captions

As the weather starts to improve, Instagram comes alive with flowers and sunshine. Here are some captions to add some pizazz to le printemps.

April showers bring May flowers
In like a lion, out like a lamb
It's gonna be May
Make hay while the sun shines
May the fourth be with you
Raindrops on roses
Spring cleaning
Spring fever
Spring forward
Spring has sprung
Spring is in the air

Earls Restaurant "warmer days ahead" spring Instagram caption

Summer Instagram captions

Perhaps the most Insta-worthy season, summer offers plenty of great photo ops—and the captions to match.

Bluebird days
Dog days of summer
Feelin' hot hot hot
Good day sunshine
Girls just wanna have sun
Gonna be a bright, bright sunshiny day
Here comes the sun
My place in the sun
Nothing but blue skies
Soak up the sun
Summer daze
Summer lovin'
Summer nights
Summer vibes
Summertime
Sunlight is the best disinfectant
Sunshine is the best medicine
The livin' is easy

Fall Instagram captions

As you've already seen, seasonal Instagram captions can help you keep things fresh throughout the year. Here are some great options for fall.

After the rain
Autumn leaves
Back to school
Fall back
Fall for fall
Leaf peeping
November rain
Pumpkin spice season
Sweater weather
Turkey time
Under my umbrella

Winter Instagram captions

Snow, lights, the holidays—winter is full of special moments to capture for the 'Gram.

Bonus: Download a free checklist that reveals the exact steps a lifestyle photographer used to grow from 0 to 600,000 followers on Instagram with no budget and no expensive gear.

Get the free guide right now!

A snowflake is winter's butterfly
Baby, it's cold outside
Keep calm and winter on
Let it snow
The weather outside is frightful
The winter of our discontent
Winter is coming

Look at this adorable snowy caption from Lee's Donuts:

Lee's Donuts snow Granville Island Instagram caption

Beach Instagram captions

From sunny summer days to moody winter storms, beaches provide loads of material for Instagram content.

All the best drinks come with umbrellas
Beaching
Beachy keen
Catch a wave
Happy place
Life's a beach
Resting beach face
Sail away
Sun, sand, sea
Sun's out, guns out
Surf's up
The ocean is the best hair stylist
Toes in the sand
Vacation mode
Vitamin Sea
We dream in colors borrowed from the sea
Where it's at

Birthday Instagram captions

Whether it's your birthday or you're wishing a happy birthday to a fellow Instagrammer, birthdays are a great excuse to celebrate on Instagram. Not your birthday? You could also celebrate the anniversary date of a product or business.

All about the cake
Another trip around the sun
Cake day
Candles just want to get lit
Fire hazard
Happy, happy birthday, baby
Next-level wisdom achieved
One year wiser
(S)he's a jolly good fellow
Sweeter than a cupcake
Too many candles

Instagram captions for selfies

Ah, the ubiquitous selfie. Love 'em or hate 'em, you've got to caption 'em.

A selfie a day keeps the doctor away
Beast mode
But first, selfie
Confidence level: No filter
First I drink the coffee, then I do the things
Just me
I'm kind of a big deal
I speak fluent sarcasm
Life is too short to be boring
Living my best life
Me, myself, and I
Messy hair don't care
Personality cannot be added with a filter
Ready for my closeup
Some days are better than others
Swiped right
There's always a wild side to an innocent face
Why hello there
Woke up like this
Work it
Worth it

Instagram captions for couples

If your significant other tends to share your Instagram space, check these Instagram captions for couples.

Always on your team
Couple goals
Everything I do, I do it for you
Just us
"Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies." – Aristotle
Love you to the moon and back
Partners in time
P.S. I love you
The best bad influence
You make my heart sing
You're my lobster

Instagram caption quotes

Sometimes, someone else's words perfectly capture everything you want to say.

"All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt." – Charles M. Schulz
"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." – Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams." – Henry David Thoreau
"I can accept failure. Everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying." —Michael Jordan
"If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude." –Maya Angelou
"If you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain." – Dolly Parton
"It's kind of fun to do the impossible." – Walt Disney
"Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans." – John Lennon
"Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game." – Babe Ruth
"Nothing is impossible, the word itself says I'm possible!" – Audrey Hepburn
"Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory." – Dr. Seuss
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." – Eleanor Roosevelt
"The only impossible journey is the one you never begin." – Tony Robbins
"The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary." – Vidal Sassoon
"The road to success is always under construction." – Lily Tomlin
"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." – Walt Disney

East Van Roasters coffee quote

Hashtags for Instagram captions

We've got a whole blog post explaining how to use hashtags effectively in Instagram captions, but here are 10 popular hashtag picks to try, along with the total number of postings for that hashtag.

#travelgram (123.3 million)
#goodmorning (117.1 million)
#streetphotography (78.43 million)
#foodstagram (69.98 million)
#naturelovers (65.67 million)
#entrepreneur (64.40 million)
#outfitoftheday (52.83 million)
#sundayfunday (50.80 million)
#momlife (50.18 million)
#positivevibes (48.72 million)

6 helpful Instagram caption tricks

Here's everything you need to know to create your own original Instagram captions that work.

1. Know your audience

The better you know your audience, the easier it is to tailor your Instagram marketing strategy to their needs and expectations.

Instagram demographics tell us that the largest group of users is 25 to 34 years old, and that women very slightly outnumber me on the network. But those are the broad strokes. In order to create the best Instagram captions for your audience, you need to understand who's following you and seeking out your content.

How old are they? Where do they live? What sorts of jobs do they have? What do they do outside of work? Our post on social media audience research can help you figure this out.

To further define your audience, it's a good idea to create audience personas. This helps make sure you think of your audience as real people with real preferences you can speak to.

Once you know who you're talking to, you can answer questions that will inform what you put in your captions:

Will my audience understand this reference?
Are emojis and netspeak appropriate to use here? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Do I need to add more context to this post?
What hashtags does my audience follow?

This example from bidet producer Tushy showcases the brand's good understanding of their following. This type of edgy humor wouldn't necessarily sit well with other audiences:

Hello Tushy edgy humour caption

2. Identify your brand voice

If you haven't identified your brand voice as part of a broader social media marketing strategy, ask yourself: 'What are the qualities and values I want my brand to embody?' Make a list and use it to shape your voice.

You might also try jotting down a few adjectives that describe your business and use those to find the right tone. "Bold," "curious," and "authoritative" might make sense for a travel brand, for example.

In general, Instagram users don't expect a formal or serious tone. Of course, it depends on the industry and audience, but you should strive to keep things light, use humor where appropriate, and show personality.

3. Place the most important words at the beginning of the caption

If you want your entire caption to display "above the fold," stick to 125 characters or fewer. After that, followers will have to click More to see the rest of your text.

So, don't bury the lead. If you're going to use a longer caption, make sure to put the most important and attention-grabbing info right upfront. Put any @mentions and hashtags at the end.

In this example, it only makes sense that information about the giveaway is front and center. After all, that's what this post is all about, and the bold intro helps grab the audience's attention.

Social YVR gift voucher giveaway

4. Use hashtags wisely

Use hashtags that are relevant to your post and target audience. Don't use so many that they crowd your copy and make it difficult to read.

If you want to use several hashtags but don't want to clutter your caption, group your hashtags in one "paragraph" at the end of your post.

5. Ask a question

Asking a question in your Instagram caption is a sure way to spark engagement with your post. Engagement is a key component of the Instagram algorithm. It also creates a great opportunity to interact with your audience.

You won't likely want to ask a question in every Instagram caption, but this is a good strategy to employ from time to time. Just make sure that you monitor your comments and get engaged in the discussion your question sparks.

6. Use a call to action

If you want people to take a specific action after viewing your post, don't be afraid to say so. If you want people to visit your website, direct them to the link in your bio.

In this example from clothing brand Frank and Oak, the caption includes a call to action asking the brand's followers to post pictures using a branded hashtag.

Frank and Oak branded hashtag call to action

Interesting note: We recently ran an experiment and found Instagram posts that included the phrase "link in bio" in the caption slightly outperformed other posts.

Or if your post is shoppable, encourage users to check out the featured products.

Your call to action may be the most important part of your Instagram captions, so write it carefully, give it an edit, and maybe even do some testing to see what works best.

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