Instagram long-form video: what Features are
Features are Instagram’s long videos: horizontal, up to 90 minutes, and aimed at podcasters, comedians and other creators who make long shows. Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, announced them on 26 October 2026 in a video with Tessa Lyons, Instagram’s vice president of product, about “why we’re investing in longer videos, which we’re going to call Features, and how they fit with Reels, Series, Live and TV.”
Reels can lead to them: creators in the test can cut reels from a long video, and each reel links viewers to the full one. TechCrunch reports that Instagram is testing this as “Clips as Reels.” Features show up in the feed and in Explore, and they play in Instagram’s TV app as well as on phones.
Who can post a 90-minute video
Only creators in Instagram’s test, for now. Instagram tried Features in Brazil first, and on 26 October 2026 it started a small test with select creators in the US. It hasn’t said how creators get into the test or when everyone will have Features. In Mosseri’s words: “It’s early, and we’re testing and listening to feedback as we go.”
Reels haven’t changed: Instagram’s help center still lets a reel run up to 20 minutes, so that’s where every other long video goes.
If you already have long videos, from a podcast or a YouTube channel, they’re the first thing to try when Features reach your account. Until then, short vertical clips are how new people find you, so cut your long videos into reels of 3 minutes or less.
How to post a long video on Instagram now
Post it as a reel, in one clip or several that add up to 20 minutes. The length decides who sees it, because the help center adds: “Reels over 3 minutes won’t be recommended to new audiences.”
| Your video | What to post |
|---|---|
| Up to 60 seconds | A reel, or one story |
| Up to 3 minutes | A reel. Instagram can recommend it to people who don’t follow you |
| 3 to 20 minutes | A reel for your followers, and a clip of 3 minutes or less to reach new people |
| 20 to 90 minutes | A Feature, if you’re in the test. Otherwise, clips or parts |
| Over 90 minutes | Clips, or the video in parts |
Instagram plays a video of up to 60 seconds as one story and breaks a longer one into several stories. Scheduling tools post through Instagram’s API, which takes a reel of up to 15 minutes and 300 MB. For the sizes of every format, see Instagram reel size and Instagram sizes.
Horizontal video on Instagram
A horizontal video uploads as a reel, since reels accept any shape from 1.91:1 to 9:16, but it plays as a band across the middle of a vertical screen. Crop the reel to 9:16 instead: the free resizer does it in your browser and never uploads the video. If you film for both, frame wide and keep the speaker in the middle third, so the vertical crop still works.
Features are horizontal by design, made to play on a TV as well as a phone. Instagram hasn’t published a size for them. Horizontal video is usually 16:9, and 1920 × 1080 is what I’d export until Instagram says otherwise.
Do Instagram Features pay?
Not through ads, so far. Instagram hasn’t announced an ad revenue share for Features. A Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch: “It’s too early to share a long-term monetization model, but we’re exploring ways for creators to earn from brands, fans, and Instagram, including performance-based incentives.”
Brand deals still work: Tessa Lyons told The Hollywood Reporter that creators with sponsors “can bring that content with those placements and that branded content” (quoted by 9to5Mac). And in his interview with Colin and Samir, Mosseri said that if creators don’t get “a sufficient amount of value, whether it’s dollars or something else, out of posting Features, they won’t post Features” (reported by Net Influencer).
Turn a long video into reels
The free resizer crops a clip to 9:16 in your browser without uploading it. Reel Maker, on the paid plan, turns a clip of up to 3 minutes into a reel with subtitles and can publish it to Instagram.