You can change the background of an Instagram Story in several ways. For a text Story, you can choose another color directly with the color circle. When you share a post, you can often set a new background color with the drawing tool. If you want to use a photo, video or GIF as the background, the easiest options are using a photo from your gallery, the photo sticker or a design app like Canva, Mojo or Unfold.<\/p>\n
What Instagram allows depends on the type of Story you are making. A normal text Story, a repost, a shared feed post and a Story with a photo all work slightly differently. That is why you will find the easiest methods below, plus solutions if the background color does not change or if an option is not visible for you.<\/p>\n
The background is often the first thing someone notices when they open your Story. A calm color can make your text clearer. A photo in the background can make your Story feel more personal. A moving background can attract more attention, as long as it does not become too busy.<\/p>\n
A good background mainly helps with three things:<\/p>\n
You do not need to make it complicated. A simple background color with clear text often works better than a busy design with too many stickers, GIFs and different fonts.<\/p>\n
The easiest way to change your Story background is by using Instagram\u2019s text tool or drawing tool. This works especially well when you want to make a simple Story with text, an announcement, a question or a short update.<\/p>\n
Want your Story to look calmer? Choose a background color with enough contrast against your text. White text on a light yellow background, for example, is harder to read. Black or dark blue text on a light background often works better.<\/p>\n
If you have a photo or image in your Story, you can often use the eyedropper to pick a color from that image. This is useful if you want the background to match your photo, logo or brand style.<\/p>\n
Not every Story responds to this action in the same way. Sometimes Instagram fills the whole background, and sometimes it only adds a drawing layer over your image. Test it briefly before you post your Story.<\/p>\n
When you share a feed post to your Story, Instagram automatically places a background behind it. That color is often based on the colors in the post itself. Luckily, you can usually change that background.<\/p>\n
Your shared post usually stays as a sticker on top of the background. You can make that sticker bigger or smaller, rotate it or move it around. It is also worth tapping the post once, because Instagram shows different display styles for some shared posts.<\/p>\n
Instagram tests features often, and not every account sees exactly the same buttons. It also depends on the type of content. A shared reel, a memory, a link or a shared Story may behave differently from a regular feed post.<\/p>\n
Try this if the background does not change:<\/p>\n
Be careful with screenshots of other people\u2019s content. Ask permission if you clearly reuse someone\u2019s content, especially when it involves photos, art, business content or recognizable people.<\/p>\n
You can set a photo as your background in two ways. You can use the photo directly as the base of your Story, or you can add a photo as an extra layer with the photo sticker. The second option is useful if you want to combine a background photo with a product photo, selfie, logo or text block.<\/p>\n
This is the fastest method. The downside is that your background photo immediately becomes the full image. If you want to add another image after that, you need the photo sticker.<\/p>\n
On some Android devices, the photo sticker is not always visible in the same place. Do you not see it? Then you can copy the extra photo from your gallery and paste it into Instagram, or create your design first in an app like Canva<\/a>, Mojo, Unfold or Adobe Express.<\/p>\n Instagram is fast, but it is not always precise. If you want to create a Story with multiple photos, fixed colors, neat margins or a professional layout, a design app is often easier.<\/p>\nWhen is a design app easier?<\/h3>\n