Hashtags: They’re those little words preceded by a “#” symbol that were once a core part of social networking, allowing users to search and discover content related to a particular subject at the tap of a button. Remember when hashtags like #ThrowbackThursday and #NoFilter were everywhere? Fast forward to the present, and the landscape has changed slightly. Hashtags are still here, but they’ve grown up a bit. Now they’re less about chasing trends and more about discoverability. “Hashtags still play a key role in discovery, if you know how to use them right,” writes content creator Smexaminer.
If you’re a content creator wondering whether hashtags still matter, how to use them, or how many you should squeeze into a caption before it looks desperate, here’s what to know.
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At their simplest, hashtags are a sorting system for content. Add a # in front of a word or phrase – such as #makeupartist, #londonactor, or #behindthescenes – and Instagram turns it into a clickable topic. The tag links your post to every other one using the same phrase, creating a digital community of content. “They connect your posts to relevant audiences beyond your followers and help Instagram’s algorithm understand and distribute your content,” explains social media management company Sprout Social.
Think of hashtags as little signposts that help the Instagram algorithm understand what your content is about. They’re essentially digital labels: The correct hashtags will put posts on the right shelf for people to find. “Beyond reach and branding, using a fun, catchy hashtag can boost engagement and give you a quirky trend to share with your followers,” Ana Gotter writes for Snappa.
Once upon a time, hashtags were the Holy Grail of reach. In August 2007, “Chris Messina, Twitter’s 1,186th user, took to the social media platform to ask people what they thought about the idea of using a ‘hashtag’ to collate people and messages,” the Independent recalled of their origin.
Creators crammed up to 30 of them in every caption, hoping to land on the Explore page and rake in followers. Back then, the algorithm relied heavily on hashtags to decide what people saw.
And for a while, it worked. Hashtags meant discovery. Posts with the right mix could travel far beyond your follower list.
Credit: Kaspars Grinvalds/Shutterstock
But then Instagram got smarter. As the app evolved, so did the algorithm. It began looking beyond hashtags. It analysed captions, content quality, watch time, and engagement to decide what should show up in feeds. “Algorithms no longer rely solely on hashtags to surface relevant content – they’re now capable of understanding the context and intent of your post based on its metadata, caption, and user interactions,” explains the Business Tea.
Suddenly, hashtags were no longer the main event. Even Instagram’s CEO Adam Mosseri said hashtags don’t do much to boost reach anymore. In 2024, Instagram scrapped the ability to follow hashtags entirely.
Short answer: Yes, but not like they used to. Hashtags can still help your content reach people who are genuinely interested in what you do. “Algorithms still group content based on trending hashtags, [but] it’s not the only factor that gets your posts onto someone’s feed,” Deimante Lideikyte writes for The Good Marketer. But you should think of them more like keywords that amplify your message.
If you want to make hashtags work for rather than against you, follow these simple steps.
1. Choose hashtags that fit your content.
Relevance is everything. The days of copy-pasting 30 generic hashtags are over. Instead, mix it up with:
- Broad tags that describe your field (#actorlife, #makeupartist)
- Niche tags that pinpoint your audience (#londonvoiceactor)
- Community tags that connect you with like-minded creators (#lifeonset)
“A mix of broad and specific hashtags is the key to success,” Chloe West writes for Sprout Social. “While popular tags can boost your visibility, more specific ones can help you zero in on a more engaged audience.” Avoid posting random hashtags just because they’re trending.
2. Don’t use too many.
Instagram lets you use up to 30 hashtags, but most social experts now recommend keeping it simple. “Aim for three to five relevant hashtags per post, and don’t forget to include a mix of general and specific hashtags,” West writes. It is best to think about quality over quantity.
3. Decide whether to place them in the caption or the comments.
There’s no hard rule here. Hashtags in the caption or first comment work almost identically. It’s more about aesthetics. If you want to keep everything together, leave them in the caption. Socialinsider and Quuu analysed 650,000 posts and found that it varies as to whether Instagram hashtags work better in the caption or the first comment.
4. Rotate your hashtags.
Using the same set of hashtags on every post can make you look like a bot. Keep a few sets ready to rotate, depending on what you’re posting. One for your work content, one for personal posts, one for promotional campaigns, and so on. Switching things up keeps your reach fresh and avoids algorithm fatigue.
“[That] allows your pictures to reach a much larger audience,” says marketing expert Chase Dimond. “Just imagine if you are using the same 30 hashtags in every post. Your pictures will only be found if users are searching within those 30 hashtags. [By rotating your hashtags] you can drastically increase your pictures’ exposure rate, since now your pictures will be found under a larger amount of hashtags.”
5. Track what’s working.
Check your Instagram Insights to see which posts are getting the most reach from hashtags. If a certain tag consistently performs well, keep it. If others never seem to bring traffic, drop them. Hashtag strategy isn’t one size fits all, and “tracking hashtags is important to determine if a hashtag is working for your social strategy,” Jamia Kenan writes for Sprout Social.
6. Make hashtags part of a bigger picture.
Hashtags alone won’t get you discovered anymore, but they can still make a difference if you pair them with great content. Remember: Hashtags are the icing, but the content is still the cake. Hashtags can still increase reach, “but only as part of a wider strategy,” according to social media creative studio Evolve. “Content quality and engagement signals now matter more.”
Hashtags on Instagram are no longer the secret weapon they once were, but they’re far from irrelevant. Used incorrectly, they’re just digital noise, but they help your content land in the right places when used well.
Keep them relevant, don’t use too many, and focus hard! Remember: You’re trying to tell the algorithm who you are and what you stand for.