Does Adding Music To Instagram Posts Help? The Final Verdict (2025)

Instagram first rolled out the ability to add music to photo posts in late 2022 and fully introduced it to all accounts in early 2023. This built-in feature allows users to put songs on Instagram static images as simply as ABC. Since then, the reaction has been mixed. While some users immediately embrace the innovation, others seem hesitant or even annoyed with unexpected BGM. So, does adding music to Instagram posts help? In today’s article, we will discuss this topic in depth. Stay tuned for our expert opinions and best practices to make this feature work.

Does Adding Music To Instagram Posts Help? Take What Users Say

Recently, we came across an interesting thread where people debated whether adding music to Instagram static image posts made them want to swipe quicker, especially when they didn’t want the sound on or didn’t like a specific song. 

And there was a battlefield of opinions in the comment section. Let’s see what people were talking about this. 

The music lovers

Supporters said adding music to Instagram posts can evoke more emotion and make photo content more interesting. Some reported receiving positive feedback and more views. Many of them saw this feature as another avenue for creativity where they picked out songs that matched their photos and shared their music tastes.

The noise cancelers

The fence-sitters

Interestingly, some users seemed indifferent to this controversial topic. They didn’t care what viewers thought or how their posts performed. The important point to them was if they enjoyed a song and felt a strong connection to it. They believed the effectiveness of adding music to Instagram posts mainly depended on the song quality and relevancy to the content. 

Does Adding Music to Instagram Posts Help? Our Verdict 

Does adding music to Instagram posts help? Our short answer: It depends.

It’s contingent on multiple factors, including your audience, content, song choice, business goals, and social trends.

However, you can always test it to see if adding music does work for you. Don’t hesitate to try new things if you want to succeed in this dynamic digital space. Especially, if you are a content creator or business marketer and reject anything new, you are losing opportunities to those ready to embrace changes.

According to Instagram’s @Creators, 60% of users view Instagram Stories with sound on. It’s predicted that more people will turn on the volume while browsing Instagram feeds thanks to the rise of video content. 

Pros And Cons Of Adding Music To Instagram Posts

Adding music to your Instagram posts is not a magic bullet. While it can be a powerful extra tool for boosting engagement and enhancing static photos, it can have potential downsides.
Here are some pros and cons you should be aware of.

The pros of adding a song to Instagram posts

• Trend capitalization: Adding trending music to Instagram posts may help you win the algorithm’s favor and boost your visibility on the platform. Your posts may appear higher on the feed and search page. You may also gain extra reach when people tap an audio tag to explore other posts that contain the same track.
• Increased engagement: Instagram feed photo posts with well-curated music added can stop people from scrolling past and compel them to pay attention and engage with your content. This will significantly boost your engagement rate. 
• Enhanced storytelling: Adding music to Instagram posts can be extremely helpful when you are telling a story. It can trigger different emotions and moods. For example, blues music can immediately set a mood of sadness, and make your story more touching and emotional.
• Richer content experience: Music adds more dimensions to static photos, making even simple images feel more engaging and dynamic. It helps you deliver a richer content experience with little effort.
• Easier to create: While video marketing is a prominent trend for businesses, it can be costly to make for solopreneurs and small-sized companies. By adding music to Instagram photo posts and combining multiple photos in a carousel, you can create a similar experience of watching videos for users while saving time and budget.
• Stronger brand voice: Music can boost human memories. By adding perfect music that reflects your brand, you can leave a lasting impression of your business on consumers’ minds. Make sure you choose suitable songs to maintain consistency for your brand voice.
• Meme complementary: Bring your hilarious memes to the next level by adding funny music tracks. Research shows viral memes can boost brand recall and engagement. 

The cons of adding music to Instagram posts

• Distraction: If the added music doesn’t align with your content or is too loud, it can distract viewers from your content and message.
• Irritation: Using songs that fall out of your audience’s taste can make them swiftly scroll past your content. 
• Quality reduction: Does adding music to Instagram posts reduce quality? Yes, it probably does. Some Instagrammers believe the music feature reduces the quality of the photos shown on feeds. This may be because Instagram uses a lower bitrate to ensure smooth browsing.

How To Add Music To Instagram Posts, Reels, Stories, And Carousels? (2025)

Now that you already know how adding music to Instagram posts can help you improve their performance, do you know how to add music on Instagram? Here, we’ve outlined the step-by-step instructions on this.

How to add music to Instagram feed posts?

To add music to your static photos, follow these steps:

• Access Instagram and create a new post.
• Select and upload photos.
• Select a music track to add to your post. You can tap one of the tracks below the photo or click Browse to search for more tracks. 
• Next, you can adjust the duration of the post or trim a snippet to add to your photos. 
• Tap the check icon and click Next. Follow the usual steps to add a caption and refine your post. 
• Click Share to publish the post.

How to add music to Instagram stories?

Adding music to Instagram stories is pretty straightforward. Here’s a quick guide:

• Open the Instagram app and create a story.
• Tap the music icon at the top right of the screen.
• Choose a track you want to add.
• Drag to choose the segment of the song you want to add. 
• Tap on suggestions on the screen to customize the music sticker. You can show the music only, enable lyrics, or just add a simple player icon to the story.
• Click Done, and tap Your Story to launch it.

How to add music to Instagram reels?

Here is how to add music to your Instagram reels:

• Open Instagram and create a reel.
• Select or record a video, then tap Next. 
• Tap the music icon and select a track to add to your video.
• Drag to choose the specific part for your reel. 
• Tap Next, add captions, tags, etc. 
• Finally, hit Share to publish your reel.

How to add music to Instagram carousels?

Adding music to Instagram carousels is like feed posts. You put the song on the carousel before publishing it:

• Open Instagram and create a post.
• Tap Select multiple and choose up to 20 photos to upload, then tap Next.
• Select a song from the suggestion below the carousel or tap Browse for more options. 
• Tap the song you want to add. 
• Drag to trim a certain segment of the track, then tap the check icon.
• Tap Next.
• Add captions, locations, tags, etc.
• Hit Share to publish your carousel with added music in the background.

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Best Practices For Adding Music To Instagram Posts In 2025

These are fundamental steps to use the music feature on Instagram posts. However, as we’ve said, adding music to Instagram posts can make or break your content success. 

Here are the best practices to ensure this feature works for you.  

• Consider audience preferences: Consider your audience demographics to guess what songs or genres they may like or dislike.
• Choose the music that matches: The songs added to your posts should match your brand and be relevant to your content. Think of the mood you need to stimulate. This will help improve user experience, boost engagement, and ensure consistency for your brand. 
• Use trending audio: Don’t forget to take advantage of trending music and sound on Instagram and other social platforms to get favored by the algorithm and captivate people’s attention. To see trending songs and sounds, go to your Instagram profile, tap Professional dashboard > Tips and resources > Trending audio.

• Keep it short: Don’t make the duration too long and challenge users’ attention spans. Add the catchiest music part instead of using the whole song.
• Test and analyze: Carry out A/B tests by posting similar content with or without music, or with different tracks of different music styles. Measure performance and analyze results to know what works best for you.  
• Stay updated with industry reports: Last but not least, keep yourself updated with industry reports from veteran experts and digital marketing firms. 

Conclusion

Ultimately, there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question: does adding music to Instagram posts help? The best way to know if this feature works for you is to do experiments and let the results speak for themselves. Take your audience as your lighthouse when creating content and selecting music to ensure engaging and effective posts. Follow GDT Agency for more handy Instagram tips and make your content shine.

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