How Hashtags Work to Boost Your Presence

If you post a photo of your sleeping dog and add the hashtag “#dog” in your caption, other users who search #dog may come across your photo and post, like it and comment on it, or even start following you. If you consistently add relevant and popular hashtags, you can keep your content at the top of search results, boost your chances of gaining likes and followers, and even land on Instagram’s Explore page.

While popular hashtags are always changing due to current events and new trends, here are some perennial favorites.

#Love

#Love remains one of the most popular and commonly used Instagram hashtags. People add #love to many types of content, and users search for it regularly. Instagram visitors are always receptive to beauty and positivity.

#Beautiful

With so many exceptional filters that can make an ordinary photo or video look extraordinary, #beautiful is a popular way to describe appealing photography or cinematography on Instagram.

#Summer

Summer seems to be everyone’s favorite season on Instagram. From beach pics to pink-and-orange sunsets, #summer accompanies stunning photography, beach scenes, and other fun summer activities.

#Cute

So, your dog is sleeping, and you think it’s pretty cute, right? Post a photo of your furry friend and add #cute. When Instagram users search #cute, they’ll find a trove of adorable animals, babies, and more cuteness.

#Me

Instagram is the top selfie site. Everyone looks good with a photo filter, and it’s easy to snap a random photo of yourself, add #me, and collect likes from your followers.

#Girl

Many young people like to post flattering photos of themselves. Adding #girl is a reliable way to generate positive feedback.

#TBT

TBT stands for “Throwback Thursday,” and many people enjoy finding old photos and posting them along with the #TBT hashtag. These blast-from-the-past posts are fun and universally popular.

#IGers

Users add #IGers to a variety of posts. Short for “Instagrammers,” people use #IGers to mark any photo they see as iconic or representative of their “brand.”

#Instagood

#Instagood describes any photo or video the poster feels is particularly well done. Adding #Instagood means you’re proud of your post.

#Instacollage

Some users get creative and combine more than one photo using another collage-making app before uploading it to Instagram. Adding #Instacollage indicates that the ensuing post is unique and creative.

#Latergram

Use #latergram when you post a photo or video at a later time instead of instantly.

#PhotoOfTheDay

The original #PhotoOfTheDay poster chose a popular photo from this tag group and included it in an online gallery, kind of like a contest. These days, people add #PhotoOfTheDay to indicate a photo of which they’re particularly proud.

#Instamood

Feeling sad, happy, angry, confused, or some other emotion? Take a photo or video representing your current state of mind and add #instamood to show people how you’re feeling.

#Tweegram

Many people use an app called Tweegram to simultaneously post an Instagram photo and tweet the photo on Twitter, where they can also enter a 280-character message. Adding #Tweegram indicates that you’re using the Tweegram app.

#iPhoneAsia

Instagram users in East Asia initially started using #iPhoneAsia on their posts, but many people in the U.S. also use this tag.

#iPhoneOnly

Since Instagram created its Android app, some have taken to using #iPhoneOnly to indicate that they used an iPhone to take their photo or video.

#LiveAuthentic

Many users love to add #LiveAuthentic to their posts when sharing a nature picture or displaying an artistic photo stye.

#VSCO or #VSCOCam

No, that’s not an internet acronym! VSCO is the name of top-rated photo-editing app users love to work with before posting photos to Instagram. VSCO fans like to let their followers know they used VSCO on their Instagram posts, so they add the #VSCO tag.

#[City Name]

If you want to generate more interest from local followers, try tagging your posts with the nearest large city. For example, if you’re near Austin, Texas, add tags such as #austin or #austintx.

More on Hashtags

If you’re using multiple hashtags in your Instagram caption, try separating them from the actual caption, so it doesn’t look cluttered and hard to read. Type out your caption and then make multiple line breaks, placing the hashtags at the end. Some users put periods at the start of their line breaks to help guide the viewer’s eyes down toward the hashtags. To keep up with current hashtags, visit Top-Hashtags and check out what’s new and trending.