Blurry Instagram Stories (Here’s Why & How to FIX It!)

Last updated on January 31st, 2023 at 08:24 pm

Instagram is among the most popular photo-sharing platforms in the world today.

It has a daily active user base of over 300 million people. It’s too bad that users complain about blurry Instagram Stories.

Blurry Instagram Stories

If your pictures look distorted, blurry, warped or just plain degraded in Instagram stories, then there’s a solution for you. 

This article will cover the reasons for the blurry Instagram stories and put across fixes to the problem. 

 

Overview of Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories is a feature that differs from the main Instagram posts that show up in your feed.

A major feature of Stories is that it is time-limited. This implies that after 24 hours, it disappears. 

Through the regular use of Instagram Stories, you can cleverly share exciting daily happenings in your life without congesting up your feed.

Instagram stories feature also has graphics and filtering tools, allowing you to be more artistic with your pictures. You can also use Stories to highlight things that are important on a different channel.

So let’s analyze why Instagram Stories is Blurry and How to fix it.

 

Why Instagram Stories is Blurry and How to fix it

Below are the reasons why your Instagram story is blurry and how to solve it.

 

Instagram Server may be Down

The first step to fixing Instagram Stories’ blurry issue is to find out if Instagram is the source of the problem.

This should be done before tapping options on your device or application settings.

Watch out for updates on Instagram’s official social media platforms on Twitter and Facebook, and check if there are complaints from other users.

You can also use outage monitoring tools like downdetector to receive status reports about server issues.

If Instagram servers are faulty, then it could be a possible reason for the blurry Instagram Stories.

There is nothing you can do at this stage but exercise patience and look for official updates. 

 

Outdated Instagram App

Although this is not directly related to the blurry Instagram Stories issue, it’s good practice to regularly check if there is an update to an application on the Play Store or App Store.

If your app is outdated, it may likely be incompatible with the platform, causing all sorts of issues.

At times, updates are sent out by Instagram developers to clear up bugs or glitches that have been discovered. 

 

Wrong Image Format

It is noteworthy that Instagram Stories has a specific picture format.

If your picture is not of the proper size, Instagram will compress or trim it. This may be the cause of a warped or blurry image.

It’s a good idea to resize your image before uploading it on the platform. 

The aspect ratio of Instagram Story images and videos is set to 9:16. Media files are usually capped at 1080×1920 pixels by Instagram.

That is the standard. Ensure you use a photo editing tool that has cropping templates for multiple aspect ratios and select 9:16.

Also, set your video size to at least 600 x 1067. This delivers superb quality while using up less bandwidth. 

It won’t be a problem if your image resolution is higher than 1080×1920. This is due to the fact that it will be automatically scaled.

However, if the image has a lower resolution, it will be resized, resulting in poor quality. 

Also, if the source of your image is of low quality, the result won’t be any better.

So configure your camera application to the best quality and set the aspect ratio to 9:16.

You will notice an increase in quality. Your image size shouldn’t be bigger than 1MB, so watch out for that.

 

Upside-Down Stories

There is a report of a minor bug by some users. According to them, some images are upside-down or inverted after being uploaded to the platform.

We don’t know the reason for this, but the solution is to simply post the picture upside down from the start, so they are properly placed after uploading. 

From our experience, this glitch occurs when a single image from a photo grid is upside down, so ensure the picture is properly placed in your camera app before uploading.

This should rectify the issue. 

 

Deactivate Data Savings Options

Media files (such as videos, pictures and animation) require a lot of data usage. Thus, some mobile device users have activated some sort of data limit or restriction.

The Instagram app has a “data saver” that automatically reduces the quality of images and photos when shown on your feed.

This helps users to consume fewer data.

If your Instagram feed is filled with poor-quality or blurry images, then toggle off the data saving option or change your internet connection to Wi-Fi. 

To toggle off the data saver, do the following:

  • Navigate to settings
  • Click on “Account” and select “Data Usage.”
  • Deactivate the “less mobile data” option.

 

Ensure your Pictures are high quality

If you don’t like the quality of your Instagram Story, you can always edit the settings to post bigger, higher-quality pictures.

The effect will be the same whether you are using mobile data or a WIFI connection. Note that the video will have a lengthier uploading process.

To activate high-quality uploads, follow these steps:

  • Navigate to Instagram settings
  • Click on Account.
  • Select Data Usage.
  • Activate high-quality uploads.

 

Upload the Picture to Another Social Media Website or Share it with a Friend. 

As we have stated earlier, the blurriness of an Instagram story may originate from its source.

One way to find out is to share the picture with a friend and get feedback from them if it appears blurry on their device.

If this is the case, then the source material is the cause of the blurry Instagram story. 

Alternatively, you can upload your picture to a different social media site like Snapchat.

If the picture displays well on Snapchat but does badly on Instagram, then the problem may be from the latter. 

 

Fresh Photo

A quick method of finding out if the issue is only affecting older pictures on your device or images retrieved from an old backup is to upload and share an entirely different photo on your Instagram Stories.

If it fails to work, then there’s a high chance that your camera hardware might malfunction or your camera quality is bad, or you need to fix the settings of your camera app.

 

Review Your Device’s Camera Settings

If your most recent pictures are blurry, then the cause of the issue may be your camera app or the device camera itself.

So make sure your camera lenses are clean and devoid of scratches. 

Also, review the quality settings in your camera app. Set it to the best possible quality.

 

Use the Instagram Camera to Take Pictures

There is a camera feature that lets users take pictures directly from the app.

If your pictures or videos are blurry on Instagram, you can try making use of the camera in the Instagram app instead of your device camera.

This will give you some confidence that the resolution will be excellent and result in no loss of quality during the upload process. 

While this implies that you won’t get the original source of the picture, it’s still of a superior quality to a blurry image in your Instagram Story. 

 

Switch to a Different Network Connection

There are reports that poor network connections can negatively affect the quality of your Instagram upload.

A good solution to this issue is to change your network connection and try once more. 

 

Uninstall and Install the App

Mobile apps are pieces of technology, and they can develop faults on their own.

It may be a good idea to uninstall and install it from the Google Play Store.

This will clear out any bugs or glitches embedded in the cache and give you access to the app’s most recent version. 

 

Blurry Instagram Stories FAQs

 

What caused my Instagram Story to get Blurry?

A major reason for blurry Instagram stories is a poor network connection. This is due to the fact that they are not completely loaded.

It’s not just that; while posting your media files to Instagram Stories, the app will instantly lower the video quality. 

 

How do I rectify blurry Instagram stories?

The best solution to blurry Instagram stories is to update your app to the most recent version in the respective app store.

While Instagram allows automatic updates, you may have to manually update the app.

 

Is there a tool for improving my video quality?

The best tool for improving video quality is the PowerDirector app. It is available on PlayStore and Apple Appstore.

It has a rich array of features, allowing you to make changes to the video speed, add special effects and use filters, borders and masks. 

 

Conclusion

No one likes seeing blurry Instagram stories. It can be really frustrating. Our aim for creating this article is to alleviate these problems. 

We hope one of these techniques will assist you in fixing your blurry Instagram stories. 

If any of these strategies have helped you, share them with your followers on social media using the button below.

Also Read:

Harrison Acha is a Digital Marketing Expert, Seasoned Blogger, Facebook Marketing Expert, Writer, SEO Expert, and Digital Content Creator. Have been in the IT industry for more than a decade, and helping both tech and non-tech professionals become more productive and less frustrated with technology. Follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

PrimeGate Digital is a Result Driven Blog that strives to go beyond ‘Conventional Digital Marketing’ through digital innovation and performance marketing. We have experience working with world class brands and products.

 

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