Instagram bloggers are the 21st-century movie stars, kind of. The glam and glitter of the top influencers’ lifestyles are so fascinating that everyone wishes to be in their place. But as you can guess, bloggers don’t make money out of thin air: the glittery Instagram page is just the tip of the iceberg. But what lies beneath? What exactly should one do to be a star on Instagram? And is it even possible for “ordinary” people who weren’t born with silver spoons in their mouths?
We’ll tell you all the secrets and explain how to monetize Instagram in 2025. We can’t promise you stardom, though — but a decent income is quite an attainable goal.
TL;DR
Here is what you need to know about Instagram monetization:
- There are only two types of Instagram monetization: monetizing the content you put out there or using your account as a vehicle for your products or services.
- You need to be a proficient content creator and have exceptional communication skills to succeed. Plus, setting up a professional profile is a must.
- Most monetization options imply having at least 1K followers to your account (the starting point for nano-influencers).
- An Instagram account can bring in a sizable income — but in order to earn a lot, you’ll most likely need to work on it full-time.
- To monetize Instagram, you can use in-platform tools such as Instagram subscriptions or Live badges. Other ways of monetization include working with brands to produce sponsored content or selling your own products.
- Your actual income will depend on a number of factors, and these can often be unpredictable. So, it’s essential to hedge risks and make sure you have your bases covered just in case.
This, of course, is a quick overview — keep reading to get important details about monetization and insights. Yes, there are benchmarks, conditions, and things you need to know about.
What is monetization on Instagram?
Instagram monetization is the process of drawing monetary profit (directly or indirectly) from the content you publish on Instagram.
There are only two types of Instagram monetization:
- Monetizing the content you are already putting out there on the social network.
- Using Instagram to promote or sell products and/or services you produce.
In this article, we’ll zoom in on both types and share the best ways to monetize your Instagram in 2025.
First, let’s take a look at these impressive statistics.
- 68% of marketing specialists say Instagram is important for their influencer marketing campaigns in 2024.
- The influencer marketing industry is projected to grow to approximately $32.55 billion by the end of 2025.
- In 2025, Instagram remains among the leaders of all social media channels when it comes to influencer marketing.
- 49.2% of marketers budgeting for influencer marketing planned to increase their influencer marketing budgets in 2025.
Can anyone monetize an Instagram account?
If you’re a regular person with neither a big name nor a vast number of followers, is monetizing your Instagram account still feasible?
It is. Despite a popular belief that one needs millions of followers to become a social media influencer, this is largely untrue in 2025. According to the Influencer Marketing Benchmark report 2025 by Influencer Marketing Hub, over 75.9% of Instagram influencers are nano-influencers (with 1,000–10,000 followers). Marketers prefer them because they usually show better, more efficient results. For example, small-scale influencers seem more authentic and trustworthy. They often curate a community around their blogs, and they don’t require big budgets like some huge Instagram stars.
That means, if you have at least 1K followers (the starting point for nano-influencers), your chances of securing a deal with a brand are already quite high.
But wait — why are we only talking about influences? And is it strictly necessary to be an influencer to monetize an Instagram account? Read on to find out.
What do you need to get monetized on Instagram?
From setting up your professional account to proactively promoting it, here are the essential conditions necessary for Instagram monetization.
Condition #0. Set up an Instagram creator/business account
To do that, follow these three steps:
- Switch your account to “Professional” in your account settings.
- Pick a category depending on what best describes the nature of your activity on Instagram.
- Choose your account type (“Creator” or “Business”). There are some slight differences between these types that you might want to consider, but the general recommendation is to opt for “Creator” if you plan to monetize your content and/or build a personal brand, and for “Business” if you intend to promote a business and sell products.
- Fill out your profile information, add contact information (email, phone number, website URL), and (optionally) add Stories Highlights. Tip: You can choose not to display your contact information if you handle all your conversations in Instagram messages or for privacy reasons.
Feeling confused? Here’s a video step-by-step guide on how to set up an Instagram creator/business account from social media expert Jerry Potter.
To share more information, redirect traffic from Instagram to other platforms, and get data for website analytics, you can also add an Instagram link in bio through popular tools like Linktree or Linktree alternatives. Additionally, you can link your professional Instagram account with your Business page on Facebook if you plan to share content between platforms and use Facebook to work with your professional Instagram profile.
Condition #1. Be a good content creator
After setting up your profile, you can start posting professional content to engage your followers and get new ones. What you need to be aware of, however, is that the competition is enormous with so much content of different types out there. That means you’ll need exceptional content creation skills to stand out from the crowd.
The good news is, you can learn to be a better content creator — either by taking online courses and workshops, self-educating, or simply practicing regularly. If you’re a business owner promoting your products or services, you can even outsource some tasks — for example, editing your Instagram reels and stories, or proofreading your copy.
Condition #2. Deliver content regularly
You have to put out your content regularly to keep your followers and engagement rates. Coming up with a mind-blowing reel and then disappearing altogether for a couple of months is not an option. Then again, posting content, especially of average quality, on an hourly basis can lead to no less disastrous consequences. So, the general rule is to stick to several posts a week and a few stories frames every other day until you determine the ideal cadence by analyzing your followers’ activity.
A benchmark for your Instagram content
Data from a 2025 Instagram Benchmark Report by Social Insider shows:
- To get more reach growth, keep to 6 to 13 Stories per day — that’s the sweet spot.
- On average, brands create 20 posts per month, so you can keep to 1 post every 2-3 days.
- Carousels and reels are the best tools to keep your audience engaged. Reels have an average engagement rate per post of 0.50% and most comments, while carousels are on top with 0.55% engagement rate per post and the highest numbers of saves.
Condition #3. Be an expert in something
While being an expert in a certain field is not always considered necessary for bloggers, expertise is essential for monetizing an Instagram account because you need something to consolidate your audience around.
Topics most popular on Instagram include beauty, fitness, and traveling, but you should only choose them if you’re actually an expert. Alternatively, you can monetize your knowledge in a professional field: marketing, language learning, healthcare, or whatever you have a proven track record in. And if you’d just rather be a lifestyle blogger, keep in mind that they are also experts in a way: their area of expertise is creating an exciting reality show out of their daily experiences.
Condition #4. Be consistent
Not sure what you’re best at yet? Allowing yourself time to test the waters and determine your niche is perfectly normal. But once you make up your mind and start working toward monetizing your account, being consistent is a must.
Put simply, you cannot be a beauty blogger today, a fitness trainer tomorrow, and a gardening expert next Sunday. Such inconsistency will confuse your followers, and they won’t trust you as an expert in any of these topics at all. The only exception is lifestyle blogging — however, your content strategy still has to stay focused, as well as your online image. On Instagram, you can’t allow yourself to be “all over the place”.
Condition #5. Have a fan community
While all the above is important, monetizing an Instagram account is still virtually impossible without enough dedicated followers — your fan community, that is. The good news is, you don’t need millions of subscribers to thrive.
So, how much is “enough”? As mentioned earlier, a starting point for nano-influencers is 1K followers; for micro-influencers, it is 10K. Have over 50K (100K according to some sources)? Congratulations, you are a macro-influencer, and the sky’s the limit. Have fewer than 1K? Then, it’s a good idea to grow the number before proceeding with monetization.
Tip: follower quality matters most
Apart from the follower count, the quality of your follower base should also be a priority. These days, marketers can easily figure out how many of your subscribers are active, and how many of them are only there for the count. That means 1K active, engaged subscribers give you better chances of securing a deal than 10K dead weight.
Not trying to secure a deal with a brand? You still need active subscribers who can potentially be your customers, right? So, make sure your follower base is clean and avoid ‘gray’ methods (mass following/liking/viewing, etc.).
Condition #6. Be proactive
Last but not least, just having a large number of followers or producing tons of stellar content won’t get your account monetized. To make money on Instagram, you need to proactively promote your account, seek out monetizing opportunities, try different options, and constantly watch the trends to know what works best at the moment.
To begin with, you can study the list below and choose the options that suit you best.
How to monetize Instagram: 8 best options for content creators and experts
Now, you’re equipped with enough knowledge to start monetizing your Instagram account. So, here are the 8 ways you can try in 2025, from paid subscriptions and sponsored ads to selling your own products.
In-platform Instagram monetization tools
As a social network committed to supporting its content creators, Instagram offers several ways to monetize content using its own built-in monetization tools.
Paid subscriptions
Instagram Subscriptions is an in-platform monetization tool allowing creators to earn money by offering paid access to unique content for their most loyal fans.
The feature originally introduced in 2022 works in a similar way to other popular platforms — for example, Patreon. For a recurring monthly payment, subscribers can watch exclusive live videos, view stories, and gain access to other gated content the creator shares on Instagram. Still, there are currently considerable limitations for creators, like you need to be 18+ and have 10K+ followers to access the tool.
Best for:
- Proficient and disciplined content creators who can produce quality content quickly in sufficient quantities.
- Content creators with a large number of loyal fans.
- Content creators with sufficient experience in live streaming.
- Full-time content creators who can devote enough time to their Instagram accounts.
Not a good fit for:
- Inexperienced content creators who are just starting out.
- Business owners whose main focus lies outside content creation.
- Part-time content creators who have other major commitments.
What about the money?
Content creators can choose the monthly fee they want to charge within the range determined by Instagram: from $0.99 to $99.99.
Badges
The Instagram Live badges feature was first introduced in 2021 as an incentive for content creators who do live streams on Instagram. These badges allow viewers to “tip” bloggers during live broadcasts to support them and help them reach their goals.
However, not all creators are eligible for this monetization option. To access badges, you have to be over 18 years old, have 10K+ followers, and comply with the platform’s policies and guidelines. Moreover, badges are currently only available in select countries: the US, the UK, some EU countries, and some countries in Latin America.
Best for:
- Content creators, influencers, and business owners with expert knowledge of their subject and exceptional live-streaming skills.
- Content creators, influencers, and business owners with a big loyal fanbase.
- Content creators, influencers, and business owners with clear, measurable goals.
Not a good fit for:
- Content creators, influencers, and business owners who don’t enjoy going live on Instagram.
- Lifestyle bloggers who cannot share anything viewers might find useful or entertaining (like lectures or live shows).
- Content creators who need a stable, predictable income from their Instagram account.
What about the money?
Subscribers can buy badges worth $0.99, $1.99, or $4.99, which might not seem much. However, one subscriber can buy many badges for up to $250 during one broadcast.
Creator marketplace
Instagram’s Creator marketplace is another in-platform monetization tool that helps creators connect with brands in the wake of the platform’s native Affiliate program’s demise (more on that later).
With this tool, creators to be discovered by brands, set up a portfolio, manage their brand preferences, add branded content interests, and more. In 2025, Meta continues to improve it with AI features, better discovery, and streamlined tools for campaign management.
Instagram Shops
Instagram Shops allows creators and businesses to sell products directly through their profiles by tagging items in posts, Stories, and Reels. Your followers can browse a dedicated “Shop” tab, view product details, and complete purchases without leaving the app.
However, not all accounts are eligible for Instagram Shops. You must have a business or creator account, comply with Instagram’s commerce requirements, connect your account to a supported ecommerce platform (like Shopify), and operate in a country where the Instagram Shops feature is available. Plus, keep in mind that some categories, like services or digital-only goods, may be restricted, so it’s mostly suitable for physical products. The good news is that you can sell your own merch!
Best for:
- Content creators, influencers, and business owners with a strong visual brand (and products that photograph well).
- Creators with an engaged audience that is likely to purchase branded merch or recommended products.
- Businesses with an existing online store.
Not a good fit for:
- Creators without physical products (or those whose offerings don’t fit Instagram’s commerce eligibility list).
- Accounts with low engagement or limited brand trust.
- Creators in countries where the Instagram Shops feature is not supported.
What about the money?
You keep the profit from each sale. Take note that before 2025, in some countries (like the U.S.), followers could complete the purchase in the app, and Instagram collected checkout fees. But as of 2025, this feature is mostly phased out. That means that everything you earn (through an external website) is yours to keep.
Other ways to monetize Instagram
If in-platform Instagram monetization tools are insufficient or unsuitable for you (which is often the case), you can try other popular ways to monetize your Instagram account. Here they are.
Influencer marketing
Influencers vs. content creators: What’s the difference?
Before we move on, let’s get this one straight: social media influencers are not quite the same as content creators. Content creators are users who post content online, while influencers are content creators who have 1K+ followers and earn money through content posted online. However, when it comes to monetization, most options imply having at least 1K followers, so the actual difference is subtle.
Additionally, there is another category of content creators active on social media: business owners. These are content creators who own a business that makes money through creative content posted online. To avoid confusion, we’re not discussing business owners who use Instagram for promotion only (without actually selling anything through the platform) in this article.
Instagram influencers make up only a fraction of all content creators on this social media. However, this might be the fraction with the highest earning potential — and the most convenient “working schedule” as well.
The reason is, Instagram influencers earn money through brand deals. So, in the best-case scenario, they can negotiate financial conditions and determine when to take deals and how often. On the downside, securing brand deals calls for a proactive approach — that is, for constantly sending out pitch emails. Moreover, producing quality content in-between deals is also a must in order to retain follower numbers and engagement rates.
Here’s what a typical Instagram influencer sponsored ad looks like:
Best for:
- Content creators with at least 1K followers and high engagement rates.
- Content creators with great business communication skills.
- Content creators with marketing and advertising skills.
Not a good fit for:
- Content creators who don’t have enough followers yet, or whose engagement rates are currently low.
- Content creators who have objections to advertising other brands’ products or services.
- Business owners.
What about the money?
Instagram influencers’ earning capacity largely depends on the tier they currently belong to (i.e., the number of followers they have). According to a report by Podacstle, nano-influencers can earn on Instagram between $100—$2,000 per sponsored post, while micro-influencers can charge from $2,000 to $8,000 in 2025. Of course, famous influencers with a large follower base can charge $45,000+. And if you are Leo Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, you can count on $2-3M per post. The lesson? Well, it’s great to be a soccer (football) legend.
Affiliate marketing
Before, Instagram had its own in-platform affiliate program for creators, but it was laid to rest in August 2022. Luckily, there’s nothing to stop you from landing affiliate deals without Instagram as a mediator: you can still use affiliate programs and networks or proactively approach businesses via email.
Because affiliate marketing is a form of partnership where you typically earn a commission from businesses for each product sold (or, in some cases, for each lead received), it lowers the risk for brands as compared to influencer deals. That’s why affiliate marketing is a perfect way to monetize Instagram for content creators who know their audience well but are not necessarily fully-established influencers. If you are not sure what option to choose, we have a list of high-paying affiliate programs.
Here’s a typical example of an affiliate post from a beauty influencer. The unique code in the caption helps affiliate partners to track where their customers come from and award commissions. You can also add codes and links to your videos or even feature them in your profile description.
Best for:
- Content creators and influencers who know their audience’s interests and preferences well.
- Content creators and influencers who want to monetize Instagram but don’t want to make content creation their full-time job.
Not a good fit for:
- Content creators who need a stable and predictable income from their Instagram accounts.
- Content creators who have objections to promoting other brands’ products on their accounts.
- Business owners.
What about the money?
Affiliate marketing is growing globally. Even in 2023, 25% of brands worked with bloggers on affiliate deals. However, the commissions bloggers get vary greatly depending on the niche and the specific company. In some cases, commissions can reach 80% — for example, in the online dating niche. There is also evidence that affiliate marketing can be quite lucrative in the media — for example, an Insider article mentions a blogger making $5000 per month through affiliate deals.
Selling your own products
If you or your company produce physical products, you can sell them right from your Instagram account, without redirecting your customers to any outside platforms. This is called social commerce, and it’s a big global trend. That’s why many businesses have their online shops on Instagram.
But since there is a list of requirements a business has to answer to be able to sell directly on the platform, you might prefer to simply provide a link in your bio, redirecting your subscribers to your online shop outside of Instagram.
For example, celebrity influencer and business owner Victoria Beckham prefers to sell her products online using LikeShop, a popular link in bio tool:
Best for:
- Businesses selling physical products.
- Businesses with target audiences on Instagram.
Not a good fit for:
- Businesses selling non-physical products or physical products that are not popular on Instagram.
What about the money?
As you determine the price of your products yourself, your earning potential is only limited by the number of sales you can hit. However, various taxes may apply, depending on your location, type of product, etc.
Teaching, coaching, and consulting
If you are good at some trade other than content creation, you can monetize your knowledge and expertise by showcasing it on your Instagram account and becoming an “expert-type” blogger. That’s the way many teachers, coaches, and other professionals choose — and it brings great results, too.
The downside is, this way of Instagram monetization is indirect. That is, the content you post mainly serves a promotional purpose, “warming up” potential customers till they purchase your products or services — typically, online lessons, courses, or consultations. On the bright side, that doesn’t mean you can’t use the in-platform monetization options we mentioned earlier — plus you can sell physical products, too.
Here’s how education blogger Krystal L. Smith is making the most of her Instagram account:
Best for:
- Professionals with expert knowledge and outstanding results.
- Freelancers, contractors, and business owners looking for ways to promote their work.
Not a good fit for:
- Content creators without expert knowledge on any subject other than creating their own content.
- Professionals lacking self-presentation skills.
- Professionals who are too busy to devote enough time to their Instagram accounts.
What about the money?
The exact sums are difficult to calculate due to many variables. However, it is safe to say that being a prominent Instagram blogger enables experts to earn significantly more than they would without a blog. For those who are just starting out, profit is typically moderate, but ‘star’ bloggers have a very high earning potential.
How much can you earn from monetizing an Instagram account?
Whichever way to monetize your Instagram account you choose, you’ll need to put in some work before it pays off. But will the outcome be worth the effort? More precisely, how much money exactly can you earn on Instagram?
First off, time and effort invested in Instagram accounts usually do pay off. But the exact sums depend on what type of monetization you opt for, how many followers you have, how much time and effort you put in, and other variables.
Typically, in-platform monetization tools bring less profit than other monetization options, such as being an influencer or an “expert-type” blogger. However, top creators can earn considerable sums provided they work hard plus have exceptional skills and a loyal fanbase.
According to an Adobe 2023 report, an average content creator makes $61 per hour, which is approximately $122K annual income for full-time content creators. However, this report is not platform-specific, so it includes data for content creators across multiple platforms. For Instagram influencers, numbers vary depending on the influencer tier they belong to. Actual numbers depend on a lot of factors (often unpredictable), so there are both mind-blowing success stories and miserable failures in real life. That means you can end up on any side of the spectrum — so it’s essential to hedge your risks before deciding to invest time and effort into monetizing your Instagram account.
FAQ
Let’s go over some commonly asked questions to sum it up.
Can you monetize an Instagram account?
Yes, but in general, you need to turn your account into Business or Creator.
Do you need a lot of followers to earn money on Instagram?
Actually, no. You can become a nano- or micro-influencer with a relatively small follower base — from 1K followers.
How much can you earn on Instagram?
That depends on how big your follower base is. Typically, nano-influencers can earn $100—$2,000 per sponsored post, while micro-influencers charge from $2,000 to $8,000 in 2025. The larger your base, the more they are engaged with your content, the more you earn.
How can you monetize your Instagram account?
There are numerous ways to do that: sponsorships, courses, selling your merch and products, paid subscriptions, and badges. You can also use affiliate marketing or influencer marketing.
Final thoughts
Instagram is a great place to start a blogging or influencer career. But as with any other platform, it requires a lot of input, creativity, and work to get noticed. The good news is you don’t have to become a huge celebrity to make money from the platform. In the 2020s, brands prefer accounts with a smaller but engaged follower base — so you can always leverage that.
Build an amazing community, post consistently, have fun with your content, show your skills, knowledge, and style — this is what you need to monetize your Instagram account!
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