Tap 'Boost post' (or 'Boost reel') under a post or Reel on a professional account, then choose a goal, an audience, a budget and a duration, add a payment method and submit. Meta reviews the ad before it starts running, and you'll need a business or creator account for the button to appear.
The step most people miss comes before any of that: some posts can't be boosted at all. If your Reel uses a popular song from Instagram's music library, the boost will usually be blocked, so it's worth choosing what to boost before you plan the ad around it.
What you need before you boost
- A professional account. Business or creator both work. If you're on a personal account, switch in Settings under Account type and tools. It's free.
- A post that meets Meta's ad rules. Your post becomes an ad, so it has to pass Meta's advertising standards as well as Instagram's normal rules.
- Audio you're allowed to promote. Original sound or royalty-free music, not a copyrighted track from the music library.
- A payment method. A card or another method Meta accepts in your country, added during the boost or beforehand.
- A clear goal. Know whether you want profile visits, website visits or messages before you start.
How to boost a post, step by step
- Go to your profile and open the post or Reel you want to promote.
- Tap 'Boost post' or 'Boost reel' under it.
- Choose your goal: more profile visits, more website visits or more messages.
- If you picked website visits, add the address of the page you want people to land on.
- Choose your audience. 'Automatic' lets Meta find people similar to your followers. Or create your own by location, age and interests.
- Set a daily or total budget you're comfortable with, and pick how many days the boost runs.
- Add or confirm your payment method.
- Check the summary and tap Boost post to submit.
- Wait for Meta's review. You'll get a notification when the ad is approved and running, or if it's rejected.
If a button or menu looks different in your version, search Instagram's settings or your professional dashboard for the word 'Ads'.
To check results later, open the post and tap View insights, or go to the Ads section of your professional dashboard. For a sense of what boosting tends to cost, see how much Instagram ads cost.
Which goal should you choose?
| Goal | Pick it when |
|---|---|
| More profile visits | You want new followers, or people to see the rest of your grid and your bio link |
| More website visits | You want people on a specific page, such as a product, booking form or sign-up |
| More messages | You sell through conversation: quotes, bookings, custom orders, local services |
Pick one goal per boost. If you want both followers and sales, run two separate boosts so you can tell which one worked.
The catch: music and ad rules
Reels and posts that use copyrighted music from Instagram's music library can't be boosted. The song is licensed for normal posting, not for ads, so Meta blocks the boost (Meta's business help explains this). If you plan to boost a Reel, use original audio, your own voice, or royalty-free music from the start.
Boosts also have to follow Meta's advertising standards, which are stricter than the rules for normal posts. Ads that commonly get rejected include:
- Before-and-after health or weight loss images.
- Copy that points at a personal attribute, such as 'Are you struggling with debt?' or 'Feeling lonely since your divorce?'.
- Some regulated categories, which need extra approval or aren't allowed at all.
If a boost is rejected, Meta tells you why. You can usually edit the ad or pick another post and try again.
If your boost is rejected
- Open the notification, or the Ads section of your professional dashboard, and read the reason Meta gives.
- Fix the part it points to: the image, the wording, the audio or the page you're sending people to.
- If you can't edit the post, pick a different post that doesn't have the problem and boost that instead.
- If you think the decision was wrong, look for the option to request another review on the rejected ad.
- Don't keep resubmitting the same ad unchanged. It won't change the result.
The page you link to counts too. If a website visits boost sends people to a page that's broken or doesn't match the ad, it can be rejected even when the post itself is fine.
Picking the audience
The audience step is where most of the decisions sit. 'Automatic' is a fair place to start if your followers are already the kind of people you want to reach. If you sell locally, build your own audience and set the location to the towns or radius you serve, so you're not showing ads to people who could never visit. For interest targeting ideas, browse this list of Instagram ad interests and pick a handful that match your buyers, not every loose fit.
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When to use Ads Manager instead
Boosting is the quick route. It's fine for a single post you want more people to see. Meta's Ads Manager is the fuller tool, and it's worth moving to when you need more control:
- Choosing exactly where the ad shows (feed, Stories, Reels, Facebook, or only some of these).
- Testing two versions of an ad against each other.
- Running ads that aren't based on an existing post.
- Tracking sales on your website with Meta's tracking code.
- Managing several ads under one campaign with one budget.
If you've boosted on Facebook before and you're not sure it worked, this look at whether Facebook boosts work for small pages covers the same thinking.
Which posts are worth boosting?
Boost a post that's already doing well with your followers. If it's getting saves, shares and comments, there's a good chance new people will like it too. Don't boost a post just because it's the newest one, or because it's struggling. Paying to show a weak post to more people rarely fixes it.
Where I'd start
If it were my account, I'd boost one strong Reel with original audio, set a budget I'm comfortable with, choose one goal, and read the results after a few days before putting more behind it. Start small, then repeat what works.
Frequently asked questions
Why can't I see the Boost post button?
You need a professional (business or creator) account, and the post has to be eligible. Posts using copyrighted music from Instagram's library often can't be boosted.
Can I boost a Reel with music from Instagram?
Usually not. Copyrighted music from Instagram's music library isn't licensed for ads, so use original or royalty-free audio if you plan to boost.
How long does Meta take to review a boost?
It varies. You'll get a notification when the ad is approved and running, or if it's rejected with a reason.
Where do I see how my boost did?
Open the post and tap View insights, or check the Ads section of your professional dashboard.
