The number of Instagram users in the United States is expected to rise by 3.7% in 2024, to 138.5 million. This rise is forecast to continue, reaching 148.3 million by 2026. Given Instagram’s vast potential as a popular social media platform, there’s no doubt that business owners should capitalize on it to enhance their bottom line.

Creating an effective Instagram marketing strategy requires understanding everything from its user age demographics to engagement rates. Here’s a look at Instagram Reels’ engagement rates, segmented by the number of followers.

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Instagram Reels engagement rate by follower count

A recent analysis of Instagram Reels’ engagement rates reveals variations based on the number of followers an account possesses.

For instance, accounts with follower counts ranging from 100,000 to half a million demonstrate an engagement rate of 6.59%. In practical terms, this means that out of every 10,000 individuals who view an Instagram Reel published by an account within this follower range, approximately 659 engage with it. This engagement encompasses actions such as liking, commenting, sharing, saving, or a combination thereof.

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However, for users with follower counts ranging from one million to five million, the engagement rate for their Instagram Reels diminishes. In this category, only 615 out of every 10,000 viewers engage with a published reel, resulting in a lower Instagram Reels engagement rate of 6.15%. Despite the substantial follower base, this group experiences a comparatively reduced level of engagement.

The report shows that accounts with between five million and 10 million followers have higher Instagram Reels’ engagement rates, at 7.49%. Users with more than 10 million followers perform the best in terms of Instagram Reels’ engagement rates. At 8.77%, it’s 2.62 percentage points higher than the engagement rates of accounts with between one million and five million followers.

Instagram Reels engagement rate vs. TikTok engagement rate

The engagement rates of TikTok posts outperform that of Instagram Reels in every follower count group. TikTok profiles with between 100,000 and 500,000 followers receive an engagement rate of 9.74% (versus 6.59% for Instagram Reels). 

This rises to 9.81% for users with between half a million and one million followers. TikTok accounts with more than one million followers have an engagement rate of more than 10% for their posts.

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