Instagram is a powerful social platform with 2 billion active users- businesses, entrepreneurs, brands, influencers, and personal account users who are indulging in engagement, entertainment, and growing their reach. If you are looking to grow on this platform, choosing the right Instagram account is essential since Instagram isn’t just a social media app anymore.
Wondering which types of Instagram accounts help in growing your loyal following or help in building a profitable online presence? This article will guide you to understand what different accounts do and which one you should pick if you are confused and unsure about their differences.
In this article, you’ll learn in depth about the three main types of Instagram accounts, break down their key features, pros, and cons to help you decide which Instagram account is suitable for you.
What Are the Types of Instagram Accounts?
Instagram offers three major types of accounts for its users: Personal, Creator, and Business Accounts. It is tailored to suit different user needs whether you want to share personal stories, public posts, promote your products, connect with strangers, grow as a content creator and offer services, picking the right account type ensures you get the right tools and features offered on Instagram that align with your goals and help you grow on this platform.
- Personal Instagram Account
- Creator Instagram Account
- Business Instagram Account
Let’s learn about each account in detail below:
1. Personal Instagram Account
When you sign in to an Instagram account, you get access to a personal account by default. It’s designed for users who want to connect socially with friends, strangers, or gain followers, casually, or explore all sorts of content available on this platform.
Features of a Personal Instagram Account:
- Set your profile to private or keep it public
- Direct Message feature
- No access to analytics or insights
- You can watch explore feed, Reels, Live, and Stories.
- No in-built post scheduling tools access
Pros of Personal Instagram Account:
- You have the freedom to hide your activity status
- Offers high-level privacy and control options
- Ideal for users who don’t require measures or analytics for their activities or feed posts.
Cons of Personal Instagram Account:
- Offers restricted or limited professional features
- No access to metrics, insights, or post-performance data for your posts
- Can’t operate Instagram Ads directly
Best For:
- Casual Instagram users
- People who look for privacy and limited interactions with people
- Users who don’t want to grow as a brand or monetize their account
- Creator Instagram Account
The Creator Instagram Account is a professional Instagram is designed for content creators, influencers, vloggers, and public figures. This feature is curated for the influencer who wishes to grow their content economy.
Features of a Creator Instagram Account:
- Offers flexible contact options
- Access to Insight tools for post-insights
- Branded Content tools and features
- Follower growth and lost followers’ analytics
- Filtering DM into Primary, General, Requests, and Channels
- Can schedule posts by connecting to Creator Studio.
Pros of Creator Instagram Account:
- Comprehensive performance insights
- Complete control over notifications and messages
- You can run ads, collaborate, and tag brands in paid partnerships
Cons of Creator Instagram Account:
- Doesn’t give team access
- There is no option to set the profile picture to private
- Offers limited compatibility options with third-party scheduling apps
Best For:
- Public figures and artists
- Influencers and creators
- Bloggers or individuals growing a personal brand
- Business Instagram Account
The Business Account on Instagram is tailored for businesses, companies, organizations, entrepreneurs, and brands that wish to promote or market their products and services using an online presence.
Features of a Business Instagram Account:
- Supports all features of a Creator Instagram Account
- Integration of Facebook Business Suite
- Option to add business location, contact buttons, and hours.
- Detailed analytics and access to audience demographics
- Access to Instagram Ads Manager
- Offers third-party tools compatibility
Pros of Business Instagram Account:
- Encourages brand trust and credibility
- Complete advertising tools and marketing suite
- Advanced analytics and performance metrics
Cons of Business Instagram Account:
- Profile has to be public, you can’t convert the account to private
- Less personalized compared to a Creator account
- Requires you to consistently post and marketing strategy
Best For:
- Entrepreneurs, Coaches, and Consultants
- Businesses & brands
- Online stores, startups, and service providers
Comparison of Types of Instagram Accounts
| Features | Personal Instagram Account | Creator Instagram Account | Business Instagram Account |
| Suitable for | Casual users, private users, friends, and family | Content Creators, Influencers, and Public Figures | Businesses, Brands, entrepreneurs, and service providers |
| Profile Privacy | Can convert to a private account | Can’t turn to private, must remain public | Should be kept public |
| Branded Content Tools | Not available | Available for sponsorships & partnerships | Available with advanced brand collaboration tools |
| Promotions/ Ads | Ads Manager is not available | Limited option, only for boost posts | Complete access to Ads Manager and campaign tools |
| Monetization Features | Not eligible | Eligible for monetization features like badges, affiliate tools | Focused on marketing products/services, not direct creator monetization |
| Access to Insights | Not Available | Insights about Basic performance & follower growth | Detailed analytics and audience demographics |
| Contact Options | No professional contact information available | Email/phone/message options available | Add contact buttons, email, phone, and location |
| Business Info & Location | Not available | Not available | Can display business category, time, and location |
| DM Management | Basic inbox messaging is available | Filter messages into Primary and General folders | Filter messages into Primary and General folders |
| API & Third-party Tool Support | Not compatible | Limited compatibility | Full compatibility (analytics, scheduling, CRM tools) |
| Post Scheduling Tools | Not supported natively | Limited (via Creator Studio) | Supported (Creator Studio, Meta Suite, and third-party tools) |
| Music Library Access | Full access | Full access | Might impose some restrictions based on licensing |
How to Switch Between Instagram Account Types?
Instagram facilitates switching between different types of accounts- Personal, Creator, and Business. Follow the steps below if you want to switch:
Switch to a Business Account:
- Open your Instagram personal account by entering the details on the app or browser
- Visit your profile by pressing your profile icon.
- Tap the three horizontal lines (horizontal bars in the top right corner)
- Click on the ‘Settings and Privacy’ option.
- Tap on Account type and tools.
- Press on Switch to Business Account.
- Pick a category and fill out your business details.
Switch to a Creator Account:
- Open the Instagram app and go to your profile.
- Click on the three horizontal lines in the top-right corner of the screen
- Tap Settings and privacy.
- Scroll down the menu and click on the Account type and tools.
- Press on ‘Switch to Creator Account’.
- Follow the on-screen instructions given to complete the setup.
Switch to a Personal Account:
- Install the Instagram app and enter your email and password to open it.
- Click on your profile icon and press the menu icon on the top right
- Click on the ‘Settings and Privacy’ option.
- Select Account type and tools.
- Click on Switch to Personal Account.
- Confirm the switch to activate.
Note: You can choose to switch between Creator and Business accounts anytime, except that some tools or insights might change depending on the account type.
Which Type of Instagram Accounts Should You Choose?
Choosing the right type of Instagram account for your use requires a clear understanding of what’s your sole purpose of using it. We’ve got a quick way to help you decide:
- If you are planning to build a personal brand, gain engagement, grow followers, or want to collaborate with brands, a Creator Instagram account is the best.
- If you want to use Instagram to browse, learn, explore, connect with new people, and share your life with friends or strangers, then creating a Personal account would be perfect.
- If you wish to promote your business, advertise services, sell products, or run ads, the Instagram Business account is the most powerful option that offers free tools.
Do you need metrics and analytics?
If you wish to track your activities and understand what’s working and what’s not, analytics tools offered in the Business and Creator accounts can help you improve your strategy.
Do you want to run ads?
Instagram provides promotional tools and access to Ads Manager in the Business accounts to run ads and advertise your brand.
Do you wish to secure your data and keep it private?
The Personal accounts on Instagram allow you to switch the account to private to secure your shared data on special media, unlike creator and business accounts.
Pro Tip: You can switch between accounts anytime
Instagram users can switch between Personal Accounts, Creator or Business accounts as per their needs and even return to Personal account anytime.
Conclusion
Choosing the right Instagram account is crucial when choosing to build and growing on the social platform. Instagram offers several types of Instagram accounts based on your goal increase engagement, gain visibility and followers, or grow on the platform. You can choose this platform as per your need, whether planning to grow as an influencer, brand, run ads, learn from other creators, or share personal life with close friends, it supports your goal with built-in tools and features. Read this full article to learn which account aligns with your content planning, purpose, strategy, and target the right audience to help yourself grow.
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