How to Hack the Instagram Reels Algorithm in 2025

Finding viral success on Instagram Reels isn’t all luck: it’s strategic, data-driven, and heavily geared towards engagement. As a creator, if you want to reach new audiences and build your following consistently, you’ll need to understand how this algorithm actually works inside and out.

Whether you’re a passionate creator or a small business, knowing how to optimize your content for Instagram Reels (and every other major social platform) is one of the most effective growth tools available today.

Here’s how we cracked the code and how to make the Instagram Reels algorithm work for you this year:

What is Instagram Reels?

Instagram Reels is one of the latest innovations in the social media space, notably taking inspiration from TikTok’s addictive short-form video site.

With over 2 billion monthly active users on Instagram, this marked a major turn in discoverability for both new and existing Instagram creators alike. By creating short-form video content for Reels, they had access to an entirely new part of the algorithm – one that could accelerate their growth massively.

How does the Instagram Reels Algorithm work?

Although most social media platforms tend to keep their inner algorithmic workings lock and key, Instagram has actually been the most transparent of the top five. Instagram’s CEO Adam Mosseri has gone on the record multiple times to clear up myths surrounding the algorithms workings, even going as far as describing exactly what signals they use to rank your content.

Our experts at Advanced Creative Media have analyzed this article as well as every signal that Instagram has put out publicly to bring you the best guide on how to hack the algorithm in your favor in 2025.

How to Hack the Instagram Reels Algorithm in 2025

Hacking the algorithm in your favor means you’ll need to pay extra close attention to these three steps:

The Quality Check

Before you can get the algorithm to push your content, you’ll need to make sure your content is eligible to be pushed in the first place.

Instagram itself has published its minimum expectations of “good quality content”, notably focusing on the following parameters:

• Vertical 9:16 video

• High-quality resolution of the video

• Not recycled from other apps (ie, no logos or watermarks)

• No border around the video

• Cannot have the majority of the video covered with text

If your reels don’t meet this criteria, your reel will still get some push to your followers, but will likely not make it out into the For You algorithm. Make sure your reels meet their minimum criteria before publishing.

The Content Hack

Now that we've ensured that our content meets the eligibility requirements in order to obtain reach, we have to focus on the largest piece of the puzzle: the content itself.

Let's be honest here. If your content sucks, it's not going to be shared by anybody.

So our first real step to obtaining fame is figuring out a content style that works both for yourself as a creator and for your target niche. We highly recommend you focus on the following:

Hook Viewers Within the First 2 Seconds

One of the hardest parts of good content nowadays is "stopping the scroll". Attention spans are shrinking, and in today's endless doom-scrolling culture, captivating attention from the get-go is crucial to success.

We highly recommend considering the following when creating your hook:

• Use bold, unexpected visuals or movement right at the start of the video

• Add on-screen text that explains the value of the video (include emojis for extra points)

• Ask a provocative or controversial question

• Pose a relatable scenario, or perhaps the opposite (whichever is more captivating)

Craft your Story with Watch Time and Replays in Mind

Now that you have your audience hooked on, you've got to keep them there. Instagram's algorithm sees replays as a strong signal of value. If a viewer re-watches your reel, the algorithm is more likely to push it to others.

Expert tip:

• Create loops! Making the end of your content seamlessly lead back to the beginning is a simple easy way of tricking viewers into watching multiple times.

Make it Shareable

Arguably, one of the most important factors in successful content is how shareable it is. If a video inspires you to send it to your friends, then that video has nailed the virality factor.

Most of this will come naturally with simply making good, relatable content; however, adding a call to action somewhere within the video has proven to also help with shareability.

The Algorithm Hack

Now that we’ve got our content optimized for success, we’ve got to focus on how it will be presented to Instagram Reel’s algorithm. According to Instagram, the most important signals that get your reel in front of your audience are:

• Their activity on Instagram: what reels they’ve liked, saved, reshared, commented on, and engaged with.

• Their history of interacting with you, the poster: It’s likely they’ve never interacted with you prior, but the more interactions they do have with you, the more likely it is that you’ll re-appear on their For You.

• Information about the reel: Audio and visuals within the video are major signals to Instagram about what the content’s actually about. This, combined with how popular the reel is, creates a signal that helps your content get pushed.

• Information about the reel’s creator: Popularity signals like follower count or engagement rate help Instagram understand whose reels are likely worth pushing more than others, as well as who you associate with, so you get pushed together.

• Publish date: Instagram favors recently published reels.

All of this information combined helps Instagram rank your reel and push it out to the correct audiences. The more accurate information you provide to IG, the more likely your reel performance will increase.

Using a Focus Keyword

To help Instagram understand your video better, we recommend you include a focus keyword in your content. By focusing on one word that describes your content, you’ll help Instagram better understand who to push this content to.

You should include your focus keyword in a few areas:

• Within your content itself (if you use titles or on-screen captions)

• Your caption

• In your hashtags

• As alt text

• In your audio’s title (if applicable)

Using a keyword or two effectively will communicate to the algorithm exactly what your content is about, and from there, it can determine who to feed your content to.

Don't Focus Too Heavily on Hashtags

If you're still relying on hashtags to get your videos seen, it's time to swap strategies.

Hashtags have fallen far from the top priority in terms of the social media chain. With social platforms focusing heavily on becoming the new search engine, nailing your SEO (search engine optimization) is significantly more important than how many hashtags you can use per post.

This isn't to say hashtags are entirely dead (despite what some may say on LinkedIn). You just need to think of them in a different light.

Instead of using 5-7 hashtags per post and focusing on generic keywords, benchmark other creators in your niche. See what hashtags they are using, and incorporate them into your own. Focusing on hashtags that include your target keyword is also beneficial, as the more areas you include your keyword, the more likely it is that your video will perform higher.

Don't Chase the Algorithm

The Reels algorithm can be frightening initially, but it's important to note it's not something you're trying to fight - it's a system that wants to push your content. By focusing on creating the best content possible and communicating clearly to the algorithm what your content is about, you will maximize your chances of being pushed further to new audiences.

We help creators just like you navigate social media growth with data-backed strategies, on-trend content planning, and help you get the brand deals you deserve. If you think you're ready to scale your audience and turn content into profit, let's talk here!