Article Contents
Wondering how you post on your Instagram from your computer?
We all know how much we love taking selfies with our smartphone. Sometimes, however, we just can’t quite seem to get the angle that we want.
Instagram is the kind of social media platform to showcase those memorable experiences you have through photos and videos. This means that you want to make it spontaneous, using your smartphone when the mood is right. There’s an issue, though.
If you are hoping to have thousands of Instagrammers looking at your content, you need to produce the best content. It needs to be engaging and beautiful at the same time. Unless you have the latest in smartphone technology, you’re going to have a tough time competing against big influencers that have all the time in the world to spend eight hours editing every photo through Photoshop before they publish it on their Instagram.
There’s a dirty little secret that’s going around, and Instagram doesn’t want you to know it: there are so many big brands and influencers out there that consistently deliver great content online by taking pictures on their camera and then editing them on their computers before uploading them to their profile.
While this is totally possible for you to do as well, Instagram certainly doesn’t make it easy.
Why Should You Upload Onto Instagram From Your Computer?
Because Instagram wants you to stay in the moment and be candid with your content, they don’t make it easy for you to upload photos and videos from your desktop. It’s a deliberate move that they’ve made, they encourage people to use their website through their app instead. They don’t want you to spend hours on your computer interacting with them.
However, this doesn’t mean that there are a lot of ways to get around Instagram’s rules. However, you could also be wondering why bother trying to upload from your computer anyway when you could just do it from your smartphone?
The answer is surprisingly simple – because you want to stand out.
By editing your pics on your computer before you publish them, you can give your pictures an added edge that helps you to stand out from the crowd. Having photos that are well edited can be the difference between your Instagram account looking professional, and looking average.
You can use this difference to build trust in your existing and potential followers, show people that you are somewhat of an expert in your niche, and stand out from the millions of photos that are uploaded to Instagram every day.
With all this being said, let’s take a look at how to upload to Instagram from a Mac or PC.
-
Change Your Browsing Agent
Before you get put off by some technical computer tutorial, don’t stress.
Changing your browser agent is actually one of the simplest ways to upload to your Instagram from a computer. You don’t even need to download any additional software – plus, it’ free. The only issue with it is that you can’t use it with gallery posts or videos – it has to be a single photo post.
The easiest option for this hack is Google Chrome. You will be able to do this either with a PC or Mac.
- Go onto Chrome and log into your Instagram account.
- Right-click anywhere on your homepage and click on the ‘inspect’ option that the bottom of the list. The inspect option will give you a big list of code on the right-hand side of your screen, which will include a little icon that looks a bit like a tablet. When you hover over the tablet icon, a red box will come up that says toggle device toolbar. Click on this.
- At the top of the page, just beneath the search bar and your bookmarks, you’ll see a tab that’s called ‘responsive.’ There will be an arrow next to it. Click on the arrow, and there will be a number of options that will come down. Select any of these options.
- Once you’ve decided on the device that you want to be pretending to use, refresh your page, and you’ll see that your computer screen now looks exactly like your smartphone. It will also include an option to add an image, just like with the app.That’s all there is to it.
-
Use the Safari Browser
If only all internet browsers were as good as Chrome – however, they’re not. If you’re someone who uses Safari more than they do Chrome, then you may want to try it out on Safari instead.
- Go to the Safari tab at the top, and click on the preferences option. Make sure that you’ve already opened and logged into your Instagram account in Safari before you do this.
- While you’re in preferences, click on ‘show develop menu’ in the menu bar. This should be right at the bottom of the preferences list.
- When you choose the develop tab, this will come up with many different options. You want to click on the user agent that will have an arrow next to it. You will be given a bunch of options again, and you’ll want to choose the ‘Safari iOS – iPhone’ option.
- Just like with Chrome, this is when you’ll want to refresh your page to start making your browser believe that it’s your smartphone, not your computer. Your Instagram page should again look like it’s on your smartphone, and you’ll have the option to add an image.
-
Use a Computer Emulator
If you don’t like the idea of changing up your browser completely, don’t stress – there are other options.
A computer emulator is a third party piece of software that will let your computer imitate similar systems. If you’re wondering how to upload to Instagram from your computer, an emulator can do what we were doing within Chrome or Safari and trick your computer into thinking that it itself is a smartphone. This will all be done on your desktop.
All you need to do is track down the emulator that you think looks the best, and download it.
While there are a number of great options available, we think that Blue Stacks seems to be a particular favorite. It’s worth noting here though that you’ll need a Google account to use it.
So, what’s the best thing about using a third party software like this one? It means that you can upload and publish photos to your Instagram whenever you want to, wherever you want. You can even use their software to edit photos and share them to other social media websites too. BlueStacks means you don’t have to reconfigure your internet browser to look like Instagram – it’s all done through their software on your desktop.
The only thing we would consider a disadvantage with these guys is that you can’t share one post to multiple social media accounts at once.
-
Use a Scheduling Platform
If you don’t want to change up your browser too much and you don’t want to use third party software, then there is a further, final option that you could check out.
A scheduling tool means that you can post directly to your Instagram without actually doing it through the app on your smartphone. The biggest issue with this option, though, is that if you want to use a high-quality app in place of Instagram, you’re probably going to have to pay for it. However, if you want to build a really successful Instagram account, this investment could end up being worth it. After all, having a consistent schedule for posting can help your brand build merit and credibility with your audience.
Interestingly, it wasn’t that long ago that Instagram didn’t let scheduling apps work with their platform. However, a recent update allows you to do so, which means that you aren’t at risk of being shadowbanned.
Scheduling apps are not only great for posting on Instagram regularly, but they also allow you to edit your photos, so you can do everything within their easy to use platform.
Top Tools for Instagram Growth & Engagement
| Rank | Tool | Type | More Info |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seek Socially | Growth Service | Visit |
| 2 | Nitreo | Growth Service | Visit |
With a scheduler you can start to schedule your Instagram posts straight away, depending on what times of the day suit you best. This means that you don’t just learn up to upload photos from your computer – you learn how to attract more followers to your Instagram, too.
