How to Embed Instagram on Your Website (Post or Feed)

Instagram's own Embed option puts one public post, Reel or profile on your website. It has no setting for a live, self-updating feed, so for a feed you need a third-party widget, a Shopify app or your own build on Instagram's API. Below you'll find steps for the native embed, the live-feed options with the account requirements for an API build, the Shopify app choices and the limits Meta documents. Editor-specific placement steps for WordPress, Wix or Squarespace are not covered.

Embed one post or a live feed: pick the method first

Most guides treat these as one job. They are two, and the answer decides whether you need an app.

• One post, Reel or profile card: use Instagram's Embed option. It is free and needs no app. According to the Instagram Help Center, anyone can embed content from a public account, and the embed shows the account's username and a link back to it.
• A live feed that updates when you post: Instagram's help center lists embed codes for a single post or a profile only. A grid that refreshes itself comes from a widget or app that connects to your account.

My pick for a Shopify store: the native embed whenever you want one post or a profile card, on any page, and an app only when you want a feed that updates itself. Shoppable videos on product pages are a separate case, covered in the Shopify section below.

How to embed an Instagram post on your website

These steps follow Meta's Embed button documentation (updated June 30, 2026).

1. Open the post or Reel on instagram.com in a desktop or mobile browser. The Instagram Help Center says you cannot copy embed codes from the Instagram app.
2. Click the three-dot menu on the post.
3. Click Embed.
4. Tick or untick "Include caption", depending on whether you want the caption under the post.
5. Click "Copy Embed Code".
6. Paste the code into an HTML block on your page, then preview the page. Where that block sits differs by platform; this article does not cover the WordPress, Wix or Squarespace editors.

The Instagram Help Center says the same Embed option works for profiles, so you can place a profile card the same way from the profile page in a browser.

Check the preview before you publish. Meta's oEmbed documentation (updated May 15, 2026) says the embed HTML loads Instagram's embed.js script, which renders the post when the page loads. If your site editor strips scripts, the post will not display properly.

The native embed has few settings. Meta's oEmbed documentation says the embed is responsive, and the only size control is an optional maxwidth parameter for developers who call the oEmbed endpoint. Meta's embed docs list no column, layout, color, font or moderation settings. If you need those, you need a widget.

Why the Embed option is missing or an embed stops showing

The Instagram Help Center and Meta's oEmbed documentation list the cases where embedding does not work:

• The post or the account is private.
• The account owner turned off embeds. On a computer the setting is under More > Settings > Sharing and reuse > Website embeds, and in the iPhone app it is under your profile > Menu > Sharing and reuse > Website embeds, according to the Instagram Help Center. Switching an account to private also turns embeds off.
• The content is a Story. Meta's oEmbed documentation says Stories are not supported.
• The account is inactive or age-restricted, which Meta's oEmbed documentation also lists as unsupported.

When an owner turns embeds off, the help center says existing embeds on other sites may take some time to disappear. If a post you embedded from another account disappears from your page, check whether one of these cases applies before you change your code.

How to embed a live Instagram feed

Instagram has no native feed embed, so you have three options.

• A feed widget service such as Elfsight, Taggbox, Common Ninja, Juicer, EmbedSocial or Behold. You connect your Instagram account in the vendor's dashboard, choose a layout there and paste the vendor's code into your site. Grid and carousel layouts, styling and hiding individual posts are features of the widget, so check each vendor's own page for what it offers.
• A plugin for your platform: Smash Balloon on WordPress, or a Shopify app (see the Shopify section below).
• Your own build on Instagram's API. Meta's Instagram Platform documentation (checked September 16, 2026) lists two options. The Instagram API with Instagram Login is for Business and Creator accounts and needs no Facebook Page. The Instagram API with Facebook Login needs a Business or Creator account linked to a Facebook Page and adds hashtag search.

Meta's current Instagram Platform documentation no longer lists the Basic Display API, which many older widgets used to pull posts from personal accounts. If a feed on your site stopped updating, open the widget's dashboard and reconnect your account. The API options Meta lists today work only with Business or Creator accounts, so a personal account will not connect.

Instagram feed app options for Shopify

Shopify themes are built from sections and blocks, and a template can hold up to 25 sections, according to the Shopify Help Center. An Instagram feed app adds its own block or section, which you place in the theme editor like any other.

Instagram feed apps on the Shopify App Store include Elfsight Instagram Gallery, InstafeedX ‑ Instagram Feed (formerly Instafeed IG), MP Instagram Feed and GSC Instagram Feed. Prices and plans change, so check each listing before you install. We cover one of them in detail in our Instafeed for Shopify guide, and the account setup in how to connect Shopify to Instagram.

If what you want on the store is Reels that shoppers can buy from, a feed grid is the wrong tool. Storista imports Instagram Reels and TikToks, you tag products on each video, and you place the widget as a theme app block through Shopify's theme editor on product pages, collection pages or any other page. It does not mirror your whole Instagram feed: only the videos you select go into the Media Library. Automatic sync from Instagram is on the Starter plan and above. The steps are in how to add Instagram Reels to your Shopify store.

Where to place Instagram content on your site

Match the placement to the job.

• Homepage or footer: a feed grid works here as a sign that the account is active. For the footer setup, see how to add Instagram to your Shopify footer.
• Product pages: Reels that show the product in use, ideally with the product tagged.
• Blog articles and landing pages: a single native embed next to the text it supports.

Permission and credit for embedded posts

Instagram's embed handles credit for you: the Instagram Help Center says the embed shows the username and a link to the account. That covers showing a public post through Instagram's own tool. Instagram does not say it gives you the right to download the photo or video and reuse it elsewhere.

If you use a widget or your own API build, Meta's Platform Terms (last updated February 3, 2026) require the app to have the rights to the content it displays and to follow Instagram's Terms of Use. For customer posts you want to upload to your store or use in ads, ask the creator for permission in writing and keep their handle next to the post. Our guide to building an ambassador Instagram gallery covers collecting that content.

How to measure an embedded feed

Measure the embed with your own site analytics, such as Google Analytics, on the pages where it appears. Compare page views and conversion rate on those pages before and after you add it. Tracking clicks on the embedded posts themselves is not covered here.

Do not try to pull numbers from the embed itself. Meta's oEmbed documentation (updated May 15, 2026) says embed content and metadata may only be used for display on your site, and deriving analytics from them is prohibited. Instagram's own insights measure your account, not the embed on your site.

Your next step: decide whether you need one post or a live feed. For one post, open it on instagram.com in a browser and copy the embed code. For a feed on Shopify, open two or three of the app listings above and compare their plans against the pages where you want the feed.