The Ultimate Guide to Instagram Hashtags (+ free 17 hashtag lists)

Have you ever fed a flock of pigeons? If you’ve done it, you’d have noticed that as you distribute more grains, the birds eat a few grains and fly away.

Then, a few birds appear out of nowhere and begin munching on the grains.

The new birds have probably received information of the treat that awaits them from the ones who’ve filled their tummies.

An Instagram hashtag is like a meeting point for pigeons feeding on grains. It provides you with the relevant information, trends, and patterns you’re looking for. 

But, the truth is, a lot of content creators on Instagram do not know how to find hashtags relevant for their posts.

So, in this post, we delve into how to find suitable Instagram posts, no matter what niche we are in. And, we’ve consolidated our glossary of 999+ Instagram hashtags at the bottom of this blog, so you know where to find a good hashtag for your next post.

Before we get into further details, let’s get the basics right. An Instagram hashtag is a word or a bunch of words beginning with a # sign.

If you’re American, you might call this a pound or number sign. Whereas other countries in the world refer to this (#) to as a ‘Hash’ symbol.

Hashtags help arrange posts according to different categories. Twitter was the first social media platform to introduce hashtags in their platform in 2007. Since then, several other platforms have leveraged it.

Now, let’s look at the process of creating hashtags.

As we learned above, Instagram hashtags allow you to separate posts into different categories inside the platform.

Here’s an example:

Let’s assume you want to find posts that are related to digital marketing. All that you need to do is go to the search bar on Instagram and type in #digitalmarketing. The search bar will supply you with a list of related hashtags.

As we learned above, hashtags allow you to separate posts into different categories inside the platform.

Here’s an example:

Let’s assume you want to find posts that are related to digital marketing. All that you need to do is go to the search bar on Instagram and type in #digitalmarketing. The search bar will supply you with a list of related hashtags.

When you hit ‘Enter’, you will land on a page for Instagram posts about digital marketing.

You can enter any search term as a hashtag and get results that are relevant to it. 

Let’s assume that you are a digital marketer and want to make sure that one of your posts pops up in this feed. 

All you need to do is add the hashtag “#digitalmarketer” to your posts. It will end up in this feed and will be visible to new visitors (Do bear in mind that it is difficult to rank for generic/highly competitive hashtags.)

Let us make it even more simpler

Consider the Instagram search bar as ‘Google’ and each hashtag page as a “Search engine results page”. Just like Google, the posts on this page will depend on a number of factors like:

1. Quality of posts
2. Number of likes, comments, shares, and saves
3. Number of followers of the account

And other factors determined by Instagram’s algorithms.

Choosing the right hashtags serves zero advantage when your posts aren’t good. You will only gain maximum juice out of your hashtags when your Instagram posts stand out from the crowd. You can use a professional tool or a free online graphic design software to help you create stunning Instagram posts in minutes.

Apart from quality posts and right hashtags, you also need to focus on the captions of all your posts. Add a pinch of consistency and you will get solid engagement on all your Instagram posts over time.

Today, Instagram boasts of a billion active users. As a result, hashtags have grown in number too. Moreover, with quantity comes variety. So, let us take a look at the different types of hashtags used on Instagram.

1. Branded Instagram hashtags

Branded hashtags feature names of your organization, product or service. Such hashtags are used every time you make a post about your social media handles. Some examples of branded hashtags are #nike, #picmaker, #Instagram, #LouisVuitton, etc.

Here’s an example of Louis Vuitton using their branded hashtag on one of their posts, featuring a member of the South Korean boy band, BTS.

Note: #BTS is also another branded hashtag on this post

2. Hashtags related to a product/service

This category is a subset of the first category. Although your products and services are offered by your brand, you can create separate categories for them too. Sometimes you can also choose already available categories for products and services.

For example, some of the product hashtags from Nike could be #shoes, #whiteshoes, #whitesneakers etc.

3. Community Instagram hashtags

This is a great way to index your posts among already well-established hashtags or communities on Instagram.

For example, if you are a musician, you can use hashtags like ‘#musiciansofInstagram’ to index your post among the community on international musicians.

Let’s go a step further and assume that you’re a musician in New York. You could also use a hashtag like ‘#musiciansofny’ to index your post on that page.

The other way brands can use this is by developing their own hashtag. Mindvalley, the brainchild of Vishen Lakhiani, an entrepreneur and motivational speaker, uses community hashtags on all of its Instagram posts.

Here are some community hashtags they consistently use on their posts.

• #mindvalleycommunity

• #mindvalleytribe

4. Custom campaign Instagram hashtags

These are custom hashtags created to track campaigns run by brands on Instagram. One example of this is #nationafriedchickenday by KFC.  Although this was not their brand hashtag, it was highly relatable to their core offering - fried chicken.

They used the hashtag to their benefit on all their Twitter and Instagram posts. Now, that’s what we call smart usage of hashtags.

On the other hand, Coca-Cola inserted #shareacoke into their famous campaign.

They used the hashtag to their benefit on all their Twitter and Instagram posts.

Now, that’s what we call smart usage of hashtags!

On the other hand, Coca-Cola inserted #shareacoke into their famous campaign.

5. Location based Instagra hashtags

These hashtags are based on certain locations in the world.

It can be anything like #newyork, #california, #italy, #india.

6. Event based hashtags

These are hashtags created for events and conferences organized around the world.

One good example of event hashtags is the ‘#olympics’ used during the Olympics. Based on the country in which they are hosted, these hashtags can be further split into multiple categories.

A good example was the Tokyo Olympics.

The hashtag‘#tokyoolympics’ was already trending two months before the scheduled start of the event.

7. Day-based Instagram hashtags

There is a list of hashtags that are based on days of the week.

Even though most people reject these hashtags, one look at their popularity may nudge you to think otherwise.

Here’s a small list of the hashtags for Monday.

Here’s another example of hashtags for 'Tuesday'.

With day-based hashtags, your opportunities are endless.

8. Month-based Instagram hashtags

After day-based hashtags, we have month-based hashtags.

Although each variant can only be used once in a batch of 30 days in a year, it's still beneficial.

It depends on how you apply your creativity to use these hashtags on your Instagram posts.

Here’s an example of all the hashtags that are based on ‘#january’

9. Special day hashtags

These hashtags are based on a special day in a year.

These could be anything like International Earth Day, April Fool’s Day, St. Patrick's Day, Thanksgiving Day, and even National Underwear Day. (Yes, we’ve got a special day to celebrate underwear at a national level!)

Here is an example of ‘#earthday’ used by Pinterest on one of their posts.

Apart from the above-mentioned way of categorization, here’s one more way to categorize Instagram hashtags.

While that looks at the function and internal meaning of a hashtag, here’s how you can do it differently.

1. High competition Instagram hashtags

Instagram hashtags that have more than 250,000 posts fall into the category of high-competition Instagram hashtags.

These are generic hashtags like #digitalmarketing, #marketing, and #sales.

Here’s an example page of a high competition Instagram hashtag:

This page has more than 15,549,561 posts, which puts it at the top of the competition.

2. Medium-competition Instagram hashtags

Medium competition hashtags are in the range of 85,000 to 250,000 posts.

#digitalmarketingtip is a good example of a medium-competition Instagram hashtag.

3. Low-competition Instagram hashtags

Any hashtag that has less than 85,000 posts is a low-competition hashtag.

#digitalmarketingspecialist is a good example of a low-competition Instagram hashtag. Newbies on Instagram can try to compete for such low-hanging fruit (assuming their posts are good enough).

Below is the FREE hashtag generator tool! Enjoy and let us know how it works for you in the comments.

Here's how to get started:

Step 1: Log onto All-hashtag.com

You can use this link to visit the website: all-hashtag.com.

Step 2: Enter your core topic

Once you are on the website, click on the ‘Generator’ tab.

You will land on the Instagram Hashtag generator page. On this page, enter your core topics into the search bar:

For example, if your search topic is sales, you can enter "sales" in the search bar and click enter. You will land on the results page for your search query.

Step 3: Copy the Instagram hashtags and paste them into a Google sheet

You can copy these results and paste them into your Google sheet.

Here’s how we created a Google sheet of relevant hashtags for our reference.

Step 4: Use different sets of Instagram hashtags for different posts

Once you have collected these hashtags, mix them up and use them in different posts.

The more hashtags you use, the more your 'test set' will increase over time.

Step 5: Test and analyze your results

Once you have put out posts with different hashtags, go to Instagram analytics and check the traffic you are getting from each set.

There are quite a few tried and tested ways to check the reach of hashtags on all your posts.

You can analyze your hashtag reach using Instagram’s built-in analytics tool.

All you need to do is set up an Instagram business account and you will be good to go.

Link to popular Instagram hashtags in 17 categories (Google sheet)

You can use this Google sheet to get various hashtags for your Instagram posts.

Here's a breakdown of all the categories inside this Google sheet, along with the top 25 hashtags from each category.

Tab 2: Top 99 Instagram hashtags of 2021

Here's the top 25 Instagram hashtags:

#follow4follow #amazing #sexy #red #model #design #friends #insta #bestoftheday #selfie #likeforlike #instagram #italy #paris #ootd #photographer #canon #architecture #follow #night #training #followforfollow #l4l #food #goals

Click this image to see the rest:

Tab 2: Top 100 Instagram hashtags of all time

Here's the top Instagram hashtags 25:

#love #instagood #fashion #photooftheday #beautiful #art #photography #happy #picoftheday #cute #follow #tbt #followme #nature #like4like #travel #instagram #style #repost #summer #instadaily #selfie #me #friends #fitness

Click this image to see the rest:

Tab 3: Top Instagram hashtags for Sales, Real Estate, Marketing, Digital Marketing

Top 25 sales hashtags for Instagram:

#sales #salesman #Salesforce #salestraining #salesfunnel #salestips #salesteam #SalesLife #salescoach #salesperson #salesmanager #salesk2 #salesrep #salesalesale #salespeople #salesjobs #saleswoman #salestrainer #salesmen #salespromotiongirl #salesfunnels #salesagent #salespro #salesdevelopment #salesleads

Top 25 real estate hashtags for Instagram:

#realestate #realestateagent #RealEstateInvestor #realestatelife #realestateinvesting #realestatephotography  #RealEstateBroker #realestatemarketing #realestateagents #realestatesales #realestateforsale #realestateexperts #realestateinvestment #Realestatemiami #realestatephotographer #realestateinvestors #realestatenews #realestatedevelopment #RealEstateTips #realestateagency #realestategoals #realestatemarket #realestatedeveloper #realestatephotos #realestatephoto

Top 25 marketing hashtags for Instagram:

#marketing #marketingdigital #marketingtips #marketingonline #marketingstrategy #marketing101 #marketingagency #marketingplan #marketingsocial #marketingmultinivel #marketingtools #marketingteam #marketinglife #marketingdeconteudo #marketingguru #marketingderede #MarketingIdeas #marketingcoach #marketingconsultant #MarketingStrategies #marketingtip #marketingadvice  #marketingblog #marketingmanagement #marketingautomation

Top 25 digital marketing hashtags for Instagram:

#digitalmarketing #digitalmarketingagency #digitalmarketingtips #digitalmarketingstrategy #digitalmarketingtraining #digitalmarketingstrategist #digitalmarketingtools #digitalmarketingconsultant #digitalmarketingexpert #DigitalMarketingThailand #digitalmarketingservices #digitalmarketinglife #digitalmarketingplan #digitalmarketingstrategies #digitalmarketingtip #digitalmarketingturistico #digitalmarketingcompany #digitalmarketingdubai #digitalmarketingblog #DigitalMarketingConsultants #digitalmarketingpanama #digitalmarketingblueprint #DigitalMarketingBusiness #digitalmarketingcourse #digitalmarketingnigeria

Click this image to see the rest:

Tab 4: Top Instagram hashtags for Finance, Fitness, Health, Travel

Top 25 finance hashtags for Instagram:

#finance#finances #financememes #financegod #financeandfelony #financeiro #financetips #financemarket #financeira #financebroker #financeworld #financecoach #financereading #financemanager #financefreedom #financefriday #financeavailable #financeblogger #financecars #FinanceGoals #financemajor #Financement #financeaccounting #financenews #financequotes

Top 25 fitness hashtags for Instagram:

#fitness #fitnessmotivation #fitnessmodel #fitnessaddict #fitnessgirl #fitnessjourney #fitnesslifestyle #fitnesslife #fitnessfreak #fitnessgoals #fitnessgear #fitnessfood #fitnessinspiration #fitnessgirls #fitnessbody #fitnesswomen #fitnessblogger #fitnessmodels #fitnesscoach #fitnessphysique #fitnessmom #FitnessTrainer #fitnesslover #fitnessaddicted #fitnessfreaks

Top 25 health hashtags for Instagram:

#healthy #health #healthyfood #healthylifestyle #healthychoices #HealthyEating #healthyliving #healthylife #healthybreakfast #healthyhair #healthybody #healthcare #healthiswealth #healthcoach #healthymind #healthyeats #HealthyDiet #healthandfitness #healthyrecipe s#healthandwellness #healthyskin #healthymom #healthfood #healthysnack #healthyhabits

Top 25 travel hashtags for Instagram:

#travel #Travelgram #traveling #Travelphotography #travelling #travelblogger #traveler #traveller #travelingram #traveltheworld #travelblog #travels #traveladdict #travellife #travelphoto #travelpics #traveldiaries #travelbug #TravelAwesome #travelpic #travelers #travelstoke #travelgirl #traveldiary #traveldeeper

Click this image to see the rest:

Tab 5: Top Instagram hashtags for Music, Love, Friends, Photography

Top 25 music hashtags for Instagram:

#music #musician #musica #musically #musicvideo #musical #musicislife #musicians #musicproducer #musiclife#MusicLover #musicallyapp #musicproduction #musicfestival #musicismylife #musicphotography #musicstudio #musicindustry #musiclovers #musicianlife #musicals #musicartist #musicvideos #musicaly #musicaltheatre

Top 25 love hashtags for Instagram:

#love #lovely #Loveit #loveyourself #lovelife #lovemyjob #lovequotes #loveyou #lover #loveher #lovehim #lovers# lovedogs #loveislove #lovefood #lovemylife #lovethem #Lovestory #lovewhatyoudo #lovecats #lovepuppies #lovenature #lovethissong #lovewins #loveofmylife

Top 25 friends hashtag for Instagram:

#friends #friendship #friendshipgoals #friendsforever #friendships #friendsforlife #friendstime #friendsnotfood #friendshipquotes #friendswithbenefit #FriendsLove #friendsinperson #friendsgiving #friendslikefamily #friendstrip #friendshipismagic #friendshipbracelet #friendsandfamily #friendstvshow #friendsday #friendsallovertheworld #friendsinbnw #friends4ever #friends4life #friendsarefamily

Top 25 photography hashtags for Instagra

#photography #photographylovers #photographysouls #photographyeveryday #photographyislife #photographylover #photographyislifee #photographylife #photographyart #photographyoftheday #photographyy #photographylove #photographyaddict #photographyskills #photographybook #photographyprops #photographydaily #photographyisart #photographyaccount  #photographystudio #photographyday #photographynature #photographysoul  #photographystudent #photographyworkshop

Click this image to see the rest:

Mistake #1: Keeping your profile private

A private profile is one of the worst things you can do for your hashtag strategy.

If your profile is private, Instagram won’t index your posts on any hashtag pages.

Let’s assume that you have included the following hashtags on your post: #marketing, #sales, #future.

Instagram will only index your posts on the following hashtag pages if your profile is public.

Here’s an example of a public profile.

With a public profile, you can view all it’s contents even if you aren’t following it.

Now, here’s an example of a private profile:

Even if this account uses 100 different hashtags on all their posts, it wouldn’t be indexed on the hashtag pages.

Mistake #2: Using banned hashtags on Instagram

Instagram has a number of banned hashtags you should stay away from.

These hashtags are banned because Instagram users have termed them to be spammy or irrelevant.

So, one rule of thumb is to insert your hashtag into the “Instagram search bar” and see if it has been flagged.

For example, you might think that ‘#alone’ is completely harmless. But, once you run a search on Instagram, you will find that this hashtag has been flagged for inappropriate use.

Adding too many banned hashtags on your profile may flag your profile as spammy.

Mistake #3: Being too generic with your hashtag approach

Hashtags like #digitalmarketing, #sales, and #marketing are QUITE generic.

These hashtags have a lot of followers and posts.

But, they also have strong competition at the top.

A good rule of thumb is to niche down and include hashtags that are highly relevant to your post.

Here’s an example of how Dain Walker, a Melbourne-based brand strategist uses a niche hashtag to his benefit.

Apart from generic hashtags like #marketing, #branding, Dain has also included low competition hashtags like #markeitngtips and #brandingdesign.

It's a solid strategy to have a mix of hashtags that are high competition — as well as low on competition.

Mistake #4: Being generic with your Instagram posts in general

A common mistake Instagram content creators make is being highly generic with their Instagram posts. Instagram is crowded and highly competitive.

If you’d like to be successful on Instagram, stick to a niche and post content related to that. Here are some examples:

Dain Walker sticks to posts related to branding, digital marketing, and content marketing.

Marcus Filly is a fitness trainer and sticks only to content related to fitness.

Don’t be generic with your content strategy on Instagram.

Pick a niche or an industry — and stick to it.

That’s the only way to grow in a highly competitive platform.

Mistake #5: Not having a consistent posting schedule

Creating content on a consistent basis is hard.

Coming up with new ideas every single day is a challenge.

That's when social media management tools come in handy. They allow you to follow top accounts in your niche and generate ideas from it.

You can also use these tools to plan posts beforehand and reshare old posts when you’re running out of ideas.

If you’re serious about your social media strategy, investments in such tools can give you long-term benefit.

Mistake #6: Not using location-based Instagram hashtags

Location-based hashtags can be really helpful for your reach.

It's true for businesses that operate on a local or regional level.

For example, if you’re a florist in New York, you can include hashtags like “#florist, #floristsofInstagram, #florist life”.

Since you’re a local business operating in New York, you can also include hashtags like “#newyork, #newyorkcity, #newyorkcity_Instagram” etc.

Add a mix of location hashtags to get the extra reach on your Instagram posts.

Mistake #7: Adding irrelevant Instagram hashtags

The most common (and ANNOYING) mistake on all social media platforms?

Spamming.

Instagram gives you the freedom to add 30 hashtags on every post.

But if you're unable to come up with 30 hashtags, you shouldn’t add irrelevant hashtags.

Many social media marketers recommend not using more than 11 hashtags per post — to avoid appearing spammy.

Don’t add more hashtags and reduce your post relevancy.

By adding irrelevant hashtags, you risk spamming your Instagram account.

Do you have a favorite hashtag for YOUR industry? Please let us know about it in the comments below!

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Additional Reading

• If you're looking for ideas to post on Instagram, then our blog on how to come up with the best Instagram post ideas is what you need. Some of these are common, yet a lot of Instagrammers aren't aware of it.
• Besides, if you're looking to write a guest post on our blog, visit our guidelines before you submit a draft to us.
• More than a billion people use Instagram daily. Here’re 7 ways to use Instagram Stories for your business and get more people to notice your brand.