Instagram's draft feature lets you save unfinished posts, Reels, and Stories to edit or publish later. This is perfect for when you need more time to perfect your content, research hashtags, or wait for the right moment to share. But when your draft gallery gets cluttered, it's time to clean house.
What Are Instagram Drafts?
Instagram drafts are unfinished posts you've saved within the app. They preserve all your edits including filters, captions, hashtags, and location tags. You can save drafts for regular posts, Reels, and Stories, though Story drafts automatically expire after 7 days.
How to Save Drafts on Instagram
Saving a draft is straightforward. When you're creating a post and need to step away, Instagram will prompt you to save your progress.
- 1.Open Instagram and tap the plus (+) button to create a new post
- 2.Select your photos or videos and make your edits
- 3.When you're ready to exit, tap the back arrow
- 4.Choose "Save Draft" when the prompt appears
Note that Instagram only shows the "Save Draft" option if you've made some edits to your post, like adding filters, captions, or other adjustments.
How to Access Your Drafts
Finding your saved drafts depends on what type of content you're looking for:
For Post Drafts:
- Tap the plus (+) button
- Select "Post"
- Switch to the "Drafts" tab at the top
For Reel Drafts:
- Tap the plus (+) button
- Select "Reel"
- Your drafts will appear in the drafts section
For Story Drafts:
- Swipe right to access Story camera
- Tap the gallery icon
- Select the "Drafts" folder
How to Remove Drafts on Instagram
When your draft collection becomes overwhelming, here's how to clean it up:
Removing Post Drafts
- 1.Tap the plus (+) button and select "Post"
- 2.Switch to the "Drafts" tab
- 3.Tap "Manage" in the lower right corner
- 4.Tap "Edit" to enter selection mode
- 1.Select the drafts you want to remove by tapping on them
- 2.Tap "Discard" to delete the selected drafts
Removing Reel Drafts
- 1.Go to your profile and tap the Reels tab
- 2.Find your draft Reels (they'll be marked as drafts)
- 3.Tap the three dots menu on the draft you want to delete
- 4.Select "Delete" or "Discard"
Removing Story Drafts
- 1.Swipe right to access Story camera
- 2.Tap the gallery icon
- 3.Go to the "Drafts" folder
- 4.Tap and hold on a draft, then select "Delete"
Important Things to Know About Instagram Drafts
- Device-specific: Drafts are saved locally on your device and don't sync across multiple devices
- Account-specific: Drafts are tied to the Instagram account you created them on
- Auto-deletion: Uninstalling the Instagram app will delete all your drafts
- Story expiration: Story drafts automatically delete after 7 days
- Post publishing: When you publish a draft, it's automatically removed from your drafts section
When to Keep Drafts
While cleaning up drafts is important, sometimes it makes sense to keep them:
- Content you plan to post in the near future
- Posts that need minor finishing touches
- Seasonal content you'll use later
- Multiple variations of the same post for comparison
Regularly reviewing and managing your Instagram drafts helps keep your creative space organized and makes it easier to find the content you actually want to publish.
