CaptionsA caption speaks to the people who already follow you. Hashtags speak to the people who do not yet. Treat them as two jobs: the caption is for people, the hashtags are for search. When you write the caption first and add tags after, both do their work.
A routine that works
- Write the caption as if hashtags did not exist.
- Add two to five hashtags that describe the photo honestly: the place, the subject, the occasion.
- Put them after the caption, separated by a blank line, or in the first comment if you prefer a clean caption.
- Check that each hashtag is spelt right and that none means something you did not intend.
Relevance beats size
A huge hashtag with millions of posts moves fast and your photo disappears in minutes. A smaller, specific hashtag such as the name of your town plus the subject gets seen by the people who actually look for it. Pick a mix of one broad and a few specific tags.
How many?
Platforms change their advice, and some now say a small number of relevant tags is best. Instead of following a number from an article, test: post with three tags a few times, then with eight, and see what your own reach does. Our limits section shows the maximum the apps allow, which is not a target.
CamelCase for readability
Write #FreshChaiMorning, not #freshchaimorning. It is easier to read and screen readers can read each word separately. It also avoids accidental words, such as the famous cases where lower-case tags read as something rude.
Tags we cannot choose for you
Do not use a hashtag just because it is popular and unrelated. It is against most apps' spam rules and it makes your post look careless. Ready lists by topic and festival are in the hashtag finder, once you know what your post is about.
Questions people ask
Should hashtags go in the caption or the comment?
Either works. In the caption they are part of the post. In a comment, the caption stays clean. Choose one way and stay with it so your feed looks consistent.