Instagram engagement rate: how to calculate it, and what counts as good
The engagement rate formula with a worked example, the other versions tools use, typical rates by account size, and what pulls the number down.
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By Rachel, Blogger and tech enthusiast3 min readUpdated 2026-09-25
The formula
The usual Instagram engagement rate is the likes and comments a post gets, divided by your follower count, as a percentage.
Engagement rate = (average likes + average comments) ÷ followers × 100.
A worked example: an account with 2,400 followers whose recent posts average 96 likes and 12 comments has 108 engagements per post. 108 ÷ 2,400 × 100 = 4.5%.
Average at least your last 6 to 12 posts, and leave out anything boosted with ads or posted in the last day, which is still collecting likes. There is a free calculator that does this at socialarrives.com/tools/instagram-engagement-rate-calculator.
The other versions you will see
Engagement by reach divides engagements by the number of accounts that saw the post, instead of by followers. It is more accurate, but only the account owner can see reach, in Insights.
Some tools add saves and shares to the engagements. Those matter for reach, but again only the owner can see them.
The follower-based version is the one everyone can work out for any public account, including a competitor's, which is why it is the most quoted. When you compare numbers from different tools, check they use the same version.
What counts as a good engagement rate
It depends on the size of the account. As rough ranges per post: under 10,000 followers, 2% to 6% is typical. From 10,000 to 100,000, 1% to 3%. From 100,000 to a million, 0.7% to 2%. Over a million, 0.4% to 1.2%.
Published benchmarks disagree with each other on the exact figures, so use these as a guide rather than a target. Compare yourself with accounts of your size in your niche, and with your own history, rather than with an overall average.
Why the rate falls as you grow
Big accounts attract more casual followers, who tapped follow once and rarely interact since.
Each post is also shown to a smaller share of followers as an account grows, so fewer of them have the chance to engage.
A falling rate while followers rise is therefore normal. A falling rate while followers stay flat is the one to look into.
What pulls the number down
Inactive followers. Accounts that no longer use Instagram stay in your follower count and never engage, so the rate drops as they make up more of it.
Bought followers do exactly the same thing. They raise the follower number and add nothing to likes or comments, so an account that buys followers without keeping likes in proportion shows a visibly low rate.
Posting more, but weaker. The rate is an average, so filler posts drag it down more than good posts lift it.
Mixing formats in one average. Reels, carousels and single images behave differently. Compare like with like.
How to raise it
Post fewer, better things, and end captions with a real question people can answer.
Reply to comments in the first hour. Early activity is what Instagram watches, and a conversation under a post invites more.
Look at your best five posts from the last three months and make more of what they have in common.
Keep followers and likes in proportion. A follower count that has run ahead of the likes is exactly what a low engagement rate looks like to anyone checking.
Common questions
How do you calculate engagement rate on Instagram?
Add your average likes and comments per post, divide by your follower count and multiply by 100. 108 engagements on an account with 2,400 followers is 4.5%.
What is a good Instagram engagement rate?
Roughly 2% to 6% for accounts under 10,000 followers, falling to around 1% or less for accounts over a million. Compare with accounts your size rather than with an overall average.
Does engagement rate include saves and shares?
In the most common version it does not, because only the account owner can see saves and shares. Some tools include them, so check which version a number uses before comparing.
Why is my engagement rate going down?
Most often because followers are growing faster than engagement, which is normal, or because inactive or bought followers make up more of the count. If followers are flat and the rate still falls, look at what changed in your recent posts.
Is engagement rate by reach better?
It is more accurate, because it only counts people who saw the post. But only the account owner can see reach, so the follower-based version is the one used to compare accounts.