Unless you are not living under a rock, you may have noticed the grid images on few Instagram profiles. Something like the following image. Looks cool. Right? This guy’s Instagram(@projectmajor) is awesome, you should check it out. But how do you make this kind of images?
Instagram grids are particularly useful for those who own businesses and want a cohesive brand image to be projected within their page to make that initial great impression. Here are a few examples of instagram grids that we have created.
While you can always use a professional tool like Photoshop to crop your image manually, it’s not the most efficient way for many people. Fortunately, you can easily achieve this grid layout by using third-party apps. Here are some of the best Instagram grid apps for Android and iOS. Let’s begin.
Also Read: 9 Best Video Editing apps for Instagram
If you have an iPhone, the easiest way to create grid images for Instagram is by using a Siri Shortcut.
From downloading Instagram videos to automatically start recording videos when cops pull you over, there are many useful things you can do with Siri Shortcut. Of course, splitting images for the Instagram banner is one of them. The shortcut, Split Image Equally is created by the Reddit user u/Joe_Soap and it lets you split an image into equal segments.
You just install the shortcut in the Shortcuts app using this link and run. It asks for the image and you can select any image from your Photos app. It then prompts you for the number of rows and columns. Instagram shows images in 3 columns, make sure you don’t exceed the number of columns(horizontal segments) or else the banner won’t look anything like you intended.
After the processing, the split segments of images are saved in the Camera Roll, you can access and upload to your Instagram. One more thing you should keep in mind while creating your banner. Start uploading your image from the bottom segments as the latest images are stacked on top.
Features
Pros: Quick and customizable
Cons: You have to manually upload each image
While using Siri Shortcuts to split your images is easy, you still have to manually upload it to Instagram and keep track of the order. Photo Grid solves this problem, it lets you create grids for Instagram with additional features like Stickers, text, emojis etc.
First, you select an image from the Camera Roll, then it prompts you to select a grid layout. You can create a grid of up to 5 rows on this app. After selecting the grid layout, it pulls up the basic editor where you can edit the final image before splitting the segments. You can apply filters, frames, add text, add artwork, logo, color etc.
The best part about this app is that you don’t have to guess the order of images to upload. It aligns the segments automatically and you can upload numbered segments. You can do this right from the app or you can save the images to your Camera Roll and do it by yourself.
Features
Pros: Easy to use Interface, inbuilt editor, numbered upload layout
Cons: Doesn’t work for long portraits, only supports up to 5 rows
Photo Grid is a simple app which will get the job done, it has all the basic features and only shows a few ads. The app is free and you can get rid of ads for $0.99 or buy the complete app with all the artworks for $4.99.
Install Photo Grid
The previous app works just as fine and Grids is another app that lets you create Grid layout images as well as dynamic Panoramas on your iPhone. Coolgram looks kind of dated with features like square image editor but trust me, it is pretty versatile. Creating Grids on Coolgram is really simple, Tap the Grid icon on the home screen, select an image, and choose a layout. You can upload directly or save the images to the Camera Roll.
The Panorama feature comes in handy when you wish to upload a horizontal or a panoramic image to your Instagram. It lets you split your image into equal parts and when you upload them as an album, you get a dynamic panorama without losing out the information. To make a Panorama album, go to the app, select an image, and choose the number of split images. You can generate up to 10 images which is the maximum number for an album on Instagram.
Features
Pros: you can rotate an image before splitting, upload directly from the app
Cons: you can’t get rid of the ads, no basic editing tools
Coolgram is free on the App Store and works great if you need a quick app to generate grids and panoramic albums. It only shows ads but no option to remove by paying which is the only downside with the app.
Install Coolgram for iOS
We’ve checked Instagram Grid apps for iOS from the list, Nine Grid Crop Tool is for Android and as the name implies it creates grid images. It is simple and just like the previous app you input an image, and it generates the grid layout images. You can save it on your Phone or directly upload it to Instagram.
Features
Pros: simple layout, quick upload with numbered tiles
Cons: limited grid styles
This app only supports three layouts 3×1, 3×2, and 3×3, which should be fine for most situations. The app is free on the Play Store and offers ads.
Install Nine Grid Crop Tool
The Play Store has so many poorly designed apps that finding a good app is a challenge. Stack is a great app which has a well-built interface. It lets you create grids and post directly from the app. It also lets you generate Panoramic layout from your existing images.
The Grid layout is simple, you select an image, choose a grid layout, and it generates the grid and you can upload or save the images. The panoramic layout is new and not many apps have this feature. It splits an image horizontally in up to 5 segments to create a panoramic album.
Features
Pros: Grid and Panoramic layouts
Cons: limited grid and panoramic layout
The app is free and only shows occasional ads which are fine but you can get rid of the ads for just $0.99.
Install Stack
These were my picks for best Instagram Grid apps and all of these work fine. Each of the apps is best for the OS its designed. Using Shortcuts can be a little intimidating as you have to manually figure out the sequence of images which the other apps eliminate by offering an inbuilt solution.
If you’re looking for inspiration, there are plenty of users who implement this very professionally like @projectmajor, @patrickjoust, and @dub3ra. These profiles are amazing to look at. If you have a better app suggestion that we missed, drop a comment below.
Read: 4 Ways to Upload to Instagram from Windows and macOS
Grids for Instagram Experience Instagram in beautiful way on desktop. Grids is a better way to browse Instagram on the desktop. Grids app makes Instagram viewing on desktops more fluid and interactive.
Features
Grids for Instagram (x64) v6.1 + Patch.zip (47.1 MB) Mirror
Grids for Instagram (x86) v6.1 + Patch.zip (42.8 MB) Mirror