Best IG Tools to Grow Your Audience And Following

Using the right IG tools can take your Instagram marketing initiatives to nauseous heights.

You can streamline your marketing campaigns, get more views and engagements, and get more sign-ups—all without you spending wads of cash.

TL;DR: Invest in the right Instagram tools. You won’t regret it.

In this guide, we compiled the best online tools to help you create Instagram-worthy posts, gain followers, and bring in more customers.

Let’s hop right in.

Table of Contents:

• IG Tools for Marketing And Campaign Management
• IG Tools for Scheduling
• IG Tools for Photo And Video Editing
• IG Tools for Ecommerce
• IG Tools for Reels
• IG Tools for Listening And Trendspotting
• IG Tools for Analytics
• IG Tools for Generating Hashtags
• IG Tools for Stories
• IG Tools for Finding Influencers
• IG Tools for Automation

IG Tools for Marketing And Campaign Management

Use a comprehensive marketing and campaign management platform to organize your Instagram marketing initiatives.

Use the platforms below to run campaigns from a central location, making your marketing workflows more streamlined and highly organized.

Below are some of the best Instagram marketing and campaign management tools:

1. Vista Social

Vista Social is a sophisticated, comprehensive, and easy-to-use social media management platform that’s much more affordable than other SMM platforms.

Despite having a long list of advanced features that are comparable (or better) than other big-name SMM platforms, Vista Social is very easy to use.

Vista Social can help you with:

• Publishing
• Engagement
• Analytics
• Social listening
• Review management
• Etc.

Vista Social provides everything top-tier SMM platforms bring to the table — for a fraction of the price. The affordable pricing structure makes enterprise-grade SMM accessible to everyone, from small businesses to marketing agencies that handle multiple social media client accounts.

Finally, Vista Social also offers a free plan that will allow you to experience the platform’s basic features without paying a cent.

Price: $3 per social profile per month (We don’t charge per seat.)

2. Hootsuite

Hootsuite is an SMM platform built to help you with every aspect of your campaign.

For Instagram marketing, Hootsuite’s “Composer” tool lets you improve your photos and perform minor edits on videos. The “Planner” tool will then let you schedule and publish posts straight from the platform’s dashboard.

Another advantage of Hootsuite is its collection of Instagram-specific add-ons or apps, expanding the platform’s functionality. Unfortunately, most of them require an additional fee upon installation. 

Price: Starts at $49 per month

3. SocialPilot

Apart from the usual planning and scheduling tools, you can use SocialPilot to automate first comments to posts. Instagram marketers typically do this to add hashtags while keeping post captions concise and meaningful. 

Of course, SocialPilot comes equipped with a detailed analytics tool that will help you turn data into actionable growth plans. 

Price: Starts at $50 per month

4. Buffer

Buffer makes it easy to publish Instagram posts and stories right on schedule. It can help you organize hashtags, schedule the first comment, and make data-driven decisions through in-depth analytics.  

The Buffer dashboard is also polished and intuitive, making it one of the best SMM platforms for Instagram marketing.

Price: $5 per social profile per month (For one user only)

5. Sprout Social 

Sprout Social has social media publishing, scheduling, engagement, and analytics features.

For Instagram marketing, Sprout Social can help you plan your posts and manage hashtags to maximize searchability. You can also engage followers by replying to comments, locating user-generated content, and responding to DMs in one place.

Price: Starts at $89 per user per month

IG Tools for Scheduling

The ability to schedule Instagram posts in advance is crucial for task bundling—a known productivity hack used by top-performing marketers.

Instead of logging in every day to add your content and hit the publish button, you can visit your social media marketing platform to add all your posts at once, then schedule them to go live on specific dates and times.

This increases your efficiency and focus.

Below are some of the best IG tools for scheduling posts.

1. Planable

Planable is a social media post planning platform designed for two things: scheduling and collaboration.

It features a compact content calendar that lets you visually and effortlessly plan your posts and stories. Teams can also use the interface to share feedback, collaborate, manage internal notes, and make approvals.

Planable is also one of the few Instagram scheduling tools with a decent mobile app.

Price: $12 per user per month

2. Hopper HQ

Scheduling posts on Instagram is one of Hopper HQ’s top priorities. 

As such, the tool is geared towards making this process a whole lot easier and faster. You can bulk upload your images, plan your posts, and set a schedule — all on a single page. 

Hopper HQ also allows you to integrate over 20 cloud storage accounts to speed up post creation. If a specific post needs some extra TLC, you can use their image editor to add filters, overlays, and more.

Price: Starts at $19 per month

3. Combin Scheduler

If you’re only after a basic scheduler, you can check out Combin Scheduler. 

The visual content calendar lets you plan, optimize, and schedule posts and stories within minutes. It also works as a standalone desktop app, which means you can access it anytime, even without launching your browser.

While the scheduler is free, Combin offers a handful of other premium features for paid accounts. This includes growth tracking, hashtag search, and follower management.

Price: Free

4. Preview

Preview is another free Instagram scheduler with one key advantage — scheduling Instagram Reels. 

The Reels Planner allows you to compose, optimize, and schedule Instagram Reels through the mobile app. Of course, you can also use it to schedule unlimited posts, edit photos, plan stories, and monitor analytics.

Price: Free

IG Tools for Photo and Video Editing

Some of the most viewed Instagram videos had very little to no editing. However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t edit your posts.

This is especially true if you’re looking to establish your brand image and you want all of your marketing materials to reflect your brand identity.

Below are some of the best IG tools for photo and video editing.

1. Canva

Canva is a 100% drag-and-drop visual content editing tool. All you have to do is combine premade visual assets, apply a few customizations, and save your file. 

To get your editing process off to a running start, you can borrow inspiration from thousands of customizable, professionally-made templates. There are templates for Instagram stories, posts, and Reels videos from Canva and third-party marketplaces.

Canva comes with a free plan with all the basic features you need to create and edit Instagram posts. 

But if you want to gain access to their premium features, you can use Canva Pro instead.

Price: Starts at $12.99 per month

2. Pixlr

Pixlr is a versatile design tool with two versions: “Pixlr X” and “Pixlr E.”

Pixlr X is a beginner-friendly design tool with basic features, like text overlays, image effects, and ready-to-use visual assets. On the other hand, Pixlr E is a more advanced version with a more elaborate toolset to play with.

You can use blur, heal, liquify, disperse, smudge, and a bunch of other features to create Instagram posts and stories.

Price: Starts at $7.99 per month

3. Snapseed

Use Snapseed if you’re an influencer or small brand who likes to do Instagram marketing on the go.

It is a free, user-friendly image editing mobile app that will help you turn regular photos into Instagram-worthy posts.

Snapseed lets you tweak anything, from an image’s saturation to its tonality, at a professional level. It also lets you add filters, noise effects, depth of field, and more.

Price: Free

4. KineMaster

KineMaster is a mobile video editing app with advanced features like transition effects, voiceovers, multiple video layers, and speed control.

Instagram influencers and brands can use KineMaster for free on any iOS or Android device. 

However, you need to get the paid version to remove the KineMaster watermark. 

KineMaster also provides a convenient way of sharing videos on Instagram. After editing your video, you can save and export it directly to your feed or stories with a few taps.

Price: $4.99 per month

IG Tools for eCommerce

Selling products is a lucrative strategy for monetizing your Instagram account. 

You can make it happen with the help of eCommerce tools for Instagram.

1. Shop Social

Using Shop Social is the quickest way to turn your Instagram account into a shoppable gallery. 

Simply connect your profile, tag your products, and import media straight from Instagram. Your online shop can then be easily integrated into your website with very little setup.

Price: Starts at $49 per month

2. Shopify

Shopify is a partner platform that works seamlessly with the features of Instagram Shopping. 

It’s a popular eCommerce platform that helps users set up shop, be it on their website or social media.

With Shopify, you can create a unified online shopping experience through Instagram shoppable posts and stories. Shoppable links can also be inserted in Instagram captions for eCommerce brands.

Price: Starts at $29 per month

3. Wishpond

Running contests and giveaways is a great way to cut through the noise and promote your eCommerce brand on Instagram.

With Wishpond, you can easily run, manage, and scale contests that Instagram users will love. This includes hashtag contests, photo caption contests, raffles, and more.

Price: Starts at $49 per month

IG Tools for Reels

Instagram Reels can help you inspire, entertain, and promote your brand using bite-sized clips that are widely discoverable on Instagram.

Check out the tools that can help you make the most out of Reels:

1. InShot

InShot is a lightweight but feature-rich mobile app for video editing. 

You can use it to add filters, voiceovers, music, text overlays, and stickers to personalize your Instagram Reels.

InShot is also capable of advanced video optimizations. You can adjust your video’s brightness, curves, resolution, contrast, and more.

Price: Starts at $3.99 per month

2. Clips

Clips is Apple’s built-in video editing app designed for iOS and iPadOS devices.

Sure, Clips doesn’t offer Instagram-specific resources, like a video template or an Instagram Reels mockup. But it lets you take advantage of proprietary technology found in modern Apple devices like Memojis and the LiDAR sensor.

You can use “AR Spaces” to liven up video backgrounds, add stickers, record 360° selfies, and more.

Price: Free

3. Funimate

Funimate is a simple video editing app that can help you create share-worthy clips for Instagram Reels.

With a single tap, you can add transition effects, text effects, stickers, audio, and AI-powered effects to any video.

Funimate also has an active community that users can participate in from within the app. There, users can share their creations, watch tutorials, and ask questions like how to post full Reels on Instagram Stories.

Price: $6.99 per month

IG Tools for Listening and Trendspotting

Social listening allows you to proactively take part in conversations, particularly those that involve your brand.

By scanning social networks for brand mentions, you can answer questions about your products or acquire leads with purchase intent. It will also help you understand how to trend on Instagram by analyzing brands with the most mentions.

1. BrandMentions

As the name suggests, BrandMentions is designed specifically for one thing: tracking brand mentions.

BrandMentions actively searches networks (not just Instagram) for mentions of brands, hashtags, and names — consolidating them in one visual dashboard. If you’re active on Instagram, this tool will help you stay on top of conversations and improve your social media engagement.

Price: Starts at $99 per month

2. Awario

Awario is another social media listening tool with a full set of features.

It can track mentions of your product, brand, promotional campaigns, and competitors across different networks, including LinkedIn and Facebook. You can also engage with mentions in real-time, so you can connect with leads or influencers while you’ve got their attention.

Price: Starts at $39 per month

3. Brand24

Brand24 is a powerful social listening and reputation management platform that agencies love, but it’s also affordable for individual users.

It features data-rich reports that will help you understand your audience on a user level. And in addition to social networks, Brand24 can also scan news sites, forums, and even podcasts for brand mentions.

IG Tools for Analytics

A lot of Instagram marketing platforms have analytics features out-of-the-box. However, they’re not always the most cost-effective option, especially for starting brands.

You can get the most value for your money with an analytics tool tailored for Instagram.

Here are some of the best Instagram analytics tools on the web:

1. SocialFox

Whether you’re running a small brand or a full-on Instagram marketing agency, SocialFox has a plan for you.

SocialFox is an Instagram analytics tool that will help you understand and engage your followers as well as track competitors. It monitors the performance of your Instagram content and delivers actionable Instagram insights based on what works.

Price: Starts at $9 per month

2. Analisa.io

Analisa.io is a unique Instagram and TikTok analytics tool built around the power of AI.

It’s capable of a number of interesting things, like dissecting your followers’ demographics, discovering top content in real-time, and more.

Analisa.io can also compile interactive, visual reports with individual sections you can export separately. This makes it significantly easier to make data-driven decisions to scale Instagram accounts. 

Price: Starts at $69 per month

3. Talkwalker

Talkwalker is another Instagram analytics tool that can help you develop a consumer-centric content strategy. It’s an AI-powered consumer intelligence platform that procures billions of consumer signals and engagement data. 

It can perform high-level tasks like sentiment analysis, social reporting, sentiment scoring, as well as basic analytics like follower analysis.

Talkwalker’s “Paid Social” feature also lets you analyze the performance of paid campaigns, be it on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. Some of its features include Instagram ad analytics, automated campaign reporting, and ad content ideation.

Price: Quote-based

IG Tools for Generating Hashtags

Hashtags are a huge part of the Instagram culture. They can help brands promote content to the right people while helping users find content about topics they care about.

If you want to reach more Instagram users, make hashtags a part of your strategy.

These hashtag analytics tools can help you do it: 

1. KeywordTool.io

KeywordTool.io is a keyword research tool normally used in SEO, which explains its cost.

It also has a hashtag search tool that can help you uncover potential hashtag ideas for Instagram marketing campaigns.

Simply type a seed keyword and run the search. Within seconds, KeywordTool.io will show you a list with hundreds of hashtag ideas.

Price: Starts at $199 per month

2. Hashtag Generator by Influencer Marketing Hub

Hashtag Generator is a free hashtag tool with a twist offered by Influencer Marketing Hub.  

To use Hashtag Generator, you can simply upload your image and have the tool suggest hashtags for you. If you’re not happy with the results, you can always run a hashtag search by entering any keyword.

Price: Free

3. Flick

Flick is a straightforward hashtag generator that will help you pick the perfect hashtag for your Instagram Story and posts.

Each hashtag search unveils key metrics, like the number of posts with that hashtag, the average likes, and so on. Profitable hashtags can be saved into collections, which you can also use to track campaign results.

Price: Starts at £10 per month

IG Tools for Stories

Instagram Stories engage users on a more personal level because they can feel more authentic.

Stories also leave a lot of room for creativity. You can add stickers, music, mentions, shoppable links, and various interactive elements.

These tools will help you create and share the perfect Instagram Story:

1. Simplified

Simplified is a cloud-based design tool that will help you whip up brilliant social media content in minutes.

The tool features a lot of professional-looking Instagram content templates that will deliver your message engagingly and authentically. It doesn’t matter if you’re trying to promote products or looking for the best questions to ask on Instagram Story feeds.

Price: Starts at $10 per month

2. Mojo

Mojo is a top-rated Instagram Story maker you can use to create animated content.

It has loads of easy-to-use features, from precision video editing to animated stickers. 

Mojo also has an active Instagram account where they share valuable tips. Users can also share feedback, get free views, and ask questions about general problems like “Instagram stories not loading” or “Instagram Stories gone.”

Price: Starts at $9.99 per month

3. Unfold

Unfold by Squarespace is a mobile app for creating eye-catching content for social media. 

If you’re familiar with Squarespace, you’ll know that Unfold is designed with usability and simplicity in mind. Speed up designs with the help of Instagram Story templates and tools like logos, stickers, and customizable color palettes.

Price: Starts at $12.99 per month

IG Tools for Finding Influencers

In the age of social media, brands can’t afford to ignore the importance of influencer marketing. 

Influencers allow you to reach a much wider audience, build your brand’s credibility, get free followers, and win qualified leads.

Here are some tools that will help you find the right influencers:

1. Pixlee

Pixlee makes influencer discovery and management easy with its cross-platform app.

In addition to finding influencers to promote your brand, you can also track their performance and monitor their activity feed.

Pixlee will also help you discover and collect top-performing user-generated content. If you want to learn how to find micro-influencers on Instagram so you can find more influencers to collaborate with, then you can check out Pixlee.

Price: Quote-based

2. trendHERO

trendHERO is all about finding the Instagram account of influencers and creators while also validating their credibility.

You can search for influencers by their followers, demographics, engagement rate, and recent posts. Within the app, you can also manage your influencer outreach and monitor analytics.

Price: Starts at $9.99 per month

3. HypeAuditor

HypeAuditor leverages the power of AI to help you through every step of influencer marketing on Instagram.

The visual platform can help you with influencer discovery, campaign management, and analytics. 

Small brands, however, may be forced to stick with the free version since HypeAuditor’s premium plans are a bit expensive.

Price: Starts at $399 per month

IG Tools for Automation

When it comes to Instagram marketing, time saved is money earned.

You can save a ton of time from repetitive tasks through Instagram automation. Below are the tools for the job:

1. NapoleonCat

NapoleonCat is a social community management platform with automation features that’ll free up your busy schedule.

Brands on Instagram will love the auto-moderation feature, which manages comments on autopilot based on set rules.

Price: Starts at $24 per month

2. Mobile Monkey

Instachamp by MobileMonkey is a Meta-approved platform for 24/7 automated answering service for Instagram DMs, Facebook Messenger, SMS and web chat. Instachamp features:

• Comment auto-responders: Instantly reply to comments on your posts
• Instagram story mentions: Direct message people who mention you in their Instagram stories
• Welcome greeting messages: Automated direct message replies
• DM inbox management solutions: Add multiple users and control mailboxes your arrival

Price: Starts at $59 per month

3. ManyChat

If you regularly engage your Instagram followers via direct messages, ManyChat will be a huge time-saver for you.

ManyChat is an Instagram direct message automation tool that allows you to create personalized conversation flows.

It uses a flowchart-based interface, so you don’t have to worry about coding when automating your DMs. The majority of your work comes from linking your Instagram account. 

Price: Starts at $15 per month

4. Inflact

Inflact is an automation tool designed specifically for Instagram.

You can use it to create auto-replies, streamline your lead generation, and maintain maximum engagement through built-in CRM features. It can also help you with other areas of your campaign, like scheduling, hashtag search, and Instagram insights.

Price: Starts at $37 for two weeks

Use Vista Social to Grow Your IG Audience and Followers

There are dozens of tools that can accelerate your Instagram marketing efforts. But with Vista Social, you gain access to just about all the features you need to run a successful Instagram marketing campaign.

The platform has Publishing, Engagement, Analytics, Listening, and Review features that brands can use to create winning Instagram marketing campaigns. It also lets you integrate countless other apps (aside from Instagram) so you can run all of your social media marketing campaigns from within Vista Social.

Below are other social media platforms supported by Vista Social:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Linkedin
• Pinterest
• Reddit
• Yelp
• Youtube
• Etc.

Sign up for a free Vista Social account or contact us if you have any questions.