Instagram is updating its algorithm to stop recommending photos and carousel posts from aggregator accounts, profiles built almost entirely on reposting other people's work, while giving original creators higher priority across Explore and other recommendation surfaces.
To understand why this matters, let's consider what has been happening for years. A creator produces something original and somewhere down the line, an aggregator account picks it up, reposts it with minimal credit, and ends up reaching twice the audience. The original creator gets a tag at best, while the aggregator gets the growth. The algorithm, indifferent to authorship, rewards whoever captures engagement, regardless of who did the actual work.
Instagram's new system addresses this directly by assessing accounts on a rolling 30-day basis. This does not mean that the platform is asking creators to pretend that cultural remixing does not exist, or that referencing and building on other content has no legitimate place in creative work. However, if the majority of an account’s posts within that window consists of reposts, it gets classified as an aggregator and its reach in recommendations takes a hit.
Original uploads, photo series, how-to guides, and visual stories all count as original content. Even posts that incorporate third-party material can qualify, as long as the creator adds something new of value, rather than just a caption restating what the image already says.
To learn more, click here.