Personal, Creator or Business: The right Instagram for your brand
Instagram is a vital marketing platform for many brands. Are you using the right account type?
The visual-first social media app boasts more than 3 billion users worldwide. More than half of Instagram users are between 18 and 34 years old.
If your brand is targeting a younger audience, Instagram likely is already part of your digital marketing strategy.
Dive deeper with our breakdown of Instagram's challenges and opportunities for small businesses, or see how it stacks up against Facebook for marketing your business.
When using the platform, you have the option to use a personal, Creator or Business account. Two of these are considered professional, while one is considered personal for obvious reasons.
Depending on your brand and needs on Instagram, it's important to understand what's involved with each type of Instagram account and whether you're using the right one.
| Account type | Best for | Notable perks |
|---|---|---|
| Personal | Individuals who want to stay private | Full music library, the only type that can be set to private |
| Creator | Influencers, artists, public figures building a personal following | Full music library, Creator Marketplace, Subscriptions, Live Badges, niche category labels |
| Business | Brands selling products or services | Meta Commerce Manager, Instagram Shop, physical address display, phone and booking buttons |
Personal Instagram accounts
About 80 percent of all Instagram accounts are personal, so it's the most commonly used type.
On a personal account, there are no analytics or advertising access, which means that you can't schedule posts, use Meta Business Suite to manage your Instagram presence or get third-party access to performance analytics.
In addition, personal accounts do not have contact buttons on the profile, gift card delivery stickers or the ability to add a link sticker to Stories that sends viewers to a website.
While all of those downsides likely are a no-go for your business, keep in mind that personal Instagram accounts have access to all music options in Instagram Reels and Stories and are the only account type that can be private.
Business vs. Creator Instagram accounts
Considering the likelihood (and best practice) that your brand is not going to use a personal Instagram account, then the question remains: Should your brand use Business or Creator instead?
Similarities
Business and Creator Instagram accounts do have a lot of similar features, including:
- Access to Instagram Insights
- A sorted inbox (Primary, General, and Requests tabs) to best manage a potentially high number of direct messages
- Saved replies and DM automation through Meta's messaging tools
- Shoppable posts
- Contact buttons on your profile
- Gift card delivery stickers
- Access to branded content features that enable collaboration with other accounts
Both are also completely free, and you can switch between them (or back to personal) at any time without losing your followers or existing content.
Differences
Of course, on the flip side, there are a couple of key differences between the two types of Instagram accounts.
Instagram Business accounts are intended for brands that are making money or selling something. They connect directly with Meta Commerce Manager for a full Instagram Shop and product catalog, and management can happen through Meta Business Suite from a desktop computer if you wish.
Instagram Creator accounts are intended for influencers, who are individuals who have a sizeable, engaged following. (Find out more about influencer marketing.)
Creator accounts have access to the full trending-audio library on the platform, plus tools like Creator Marketplace (for finding brand partnerships) and Subscriptions (for monetizing exclusive content directly).
Business accounts only have access to the commercially licensed music library, which is smaller and skews away from the trending sounds that tend to drive Reels discovery.
Business and Creator accounts also have different profile categories. For example, a public figure using a Creator account could choose from "chef," "writer" and so on, but a brand using a Business account could choose from categories, such as "bakery" or "advertising agency."
While both account types offer the ability to show contact information on your profile, only the Instagram Business account can include a physical location address, and its contact and action buttons (like phone and booking) are more prominently displayed and better integrated with Meta's broader business tools.
Therefore, the decision between using a Business or Creator account is typically a straightforward one. Most businesses opt for the Business account, while individual influencers, artists, and public figures tend to be better served by a Creator account.
Changing your Instagram account type
Need to change your Instagram account type or not sure what type you currently have?
Open your Instagram app, go to your profile and tap on the three-line "hamburger" menu button in the top right. Go to "Settings and privacy," and select "Account type and tools."
You'll see the option to switch your account type there. The options available will be what you aren't using currently. For example, if you have a Creator account, you'll only see the options to change to a Business or personal account type.
Switching itself is instant and free, and you won't lose your followers or content in the process. That said, it's still worth settling on the account type that actually fits your brand rather than bouncing back and forth, since your inbox sorting and creator- or business-specific tools reset each time you switch.
Looking to get a jump on your Instagram marketing? See our 16 tips.
While you're considering your Instagram account type, think about your digital marketing process. Is it everything you want it to be? DailyStory features automation, audience segmentation and more. Schedule your free demo with us today.