How to download Instagram Reels

Public Reels and video posts, at the vertical quality Instagram actually stores, without an app or a login.

3 min read

In shortCopy link from the ⋯ or share menu, then paste itPublic accounts only — private posts cannot be reached by anythingInstagram re-encodes to roughly 1080p, so that is the ceiling

Instagram makes saving deliberately awkward: there is no download button, and the copy-link option is buried in a menu. The link itself is all you need.

Getting the link

On the Reel, open the share or ⋯ menu and choose Copy link. In a desktop browser the address bar works just as well. Either one is a page address, not the video — finding the media behind it is the job of the downloader.

What can and cannot be reached

Public posts work. Private accounts, close-friends Stories and anything behind a follow request do not, and no tool can change that without credentials, which are never asked for here. If the link does not open in a logged-out browser window, it will not download.

Quality and framing

Instagram re-encodes uploads to about 1080p vertical, so the listed rung reflects what the platform stored rather than the creator's master file. The full frame is kept, nothing is squared off for the grid, and no watermark of ours is stamped on top.

Put it to use — paste a link and see the quality list.Open the Instagram downloader