If you’ve ever used Instagram, then you’re probably familiar with the concept of Instagram Stories and the value it can add to your account! For those reading who haven’t used it before, let me explain; Instagram Stories is an extra feature that can be added to your existing Instagram account. It is VERY easy to use and allows you to share pictures and 15-second videos. The story will disappear after 24 hours, giving room for a new one in its place. You can have up to 10 stories running at any time.
Table of Contents
Best Apps For Instagram Stories
- InShot
InShot Instagram Stories App
This video and photo editor app is one of the best apps to create Instagram Stories. This brilliant app provides a plethora of easy-to-use design features to help you create beautiful Instagram Stories.
The InShot video editor has a range of features and allows you to trim, cut, split, crop, or merge videos. It also provides various video backgrounds, filters, and effects. You can also add music and sounds to your videos, with an option to fade music in and out. There is an option for speed control using which you can make slow-motion or fast videos. You can also manage a video’s aspect ratio to make it fit different platforms.
The app also comes with text, stickers, emojis, and other design effects that can be added to both photos and videos.
InShot is a great app for amateurs and professionals alike. With so many video and photo editing features, this app has everything you need to create Instagram Stories.
Key Features:
Speed-control, blur, split, and merge tools for videos
Video converter
Collage maker and photo editor
Option to add music to videos
Filters, effects, texts, icons, and other photo and video enhancement tools
This app is available for both Android and iOS devices and is one of the highest-rated apps on both platforms.
- StoryArt
StoryArt Instagram Stories app
This is one of the highest-rated Instagram Story editing apps on both the Play Store (4.7 stars) and Apple Store (4.8 stars). This app is very easy to use, as it provides a huge variety of preset templates that you can directly use to create your Instagram Stories.
Apart from the templates, it also provides myriad options to add design effects. You can add text with varying fonts, filters, themes, and other design effects.
The app can be downloaded for both Android and iOS devices.
Key Features:
200 plus free templates
20 plus themes
Weekly template additions
- Unfold
Unfold Instagram stories app
This Instagram Stories editor has some free and some premium features. The app provides minimalistic, elegant templates for creating beautiful Instagram Stories. It supports both photo and video stories and has plenty of design options for each.
The app doesn’t require users to set up an account. You can simply download the app and start creating and sharing high-resolution Instagram Stories.
Key Features:
25 free templates, 60+ premium templates
5 plus font types and advanced text options
Supports both photo and video formats
Find this app in the Android as well as iOS app stores.
- Canva
Canva
Canva is a popular photo editor that you can use to create beautiful photos with text overlay and other effects for your Instagram Stories.
This graphic design app has one of the highest collection of templates that you can use to craft engaging Instagram Stories. The app also has a huge collection of stock images that you can use as a background image for your Instagram Stories.
Apart from these features, Canva also offers various photo editing features including fonts, text, filters, etc. The app can be used to create and share images to multiple platforms.
Key Features:
60,000+ templates
Over 1 million background images
Design tools like design grids, photo vignette, photo blur, and photo enhancer
A large collection of stickers, badges, icons, frames, and textures
Canva is available for both Android and iOS devices. You can also use Canva on your desktop.
- Adobe Spark
Adobe Spark App
Adobe Spark Post and Video apps are great for creating Instagram Stories. The Spark family of apps allows users to add video clips or combine pictures to make a video Story. It can also be used to add effects to pictures. There are several sounds, fonts, animations, and other design effects that you can add.
The app is easy to use and does not require any design expertise. You can add effects from a huge collection available on the app. For video Stories, sounds can be added either from the app collection or from your own phone. The app also has a myriad of themes available for different types of Stories and messages.
The app supports Android, iOS, and desktop platforms.
Key Features:
Creates animated video posts
Beautiful typography options
Multiple text cutouts, layouts, and text effects
Millions of stock photos to choose from
Cloud backup allows easy syncing
- PhotoGrid
PhotoGrid
This is a simple, easy-to-use app to make picture or video collages for your Instagram Stories. PhotoGrid has several templates, specifically for Instagram Stories, that you can choose from.
It has a lot of filters, stickers, fonts, and photo effects that you can use to create customised images. The app also provides photo editing features like clipping an object from a picture or removing the background. It also has some beautifying features to add or remove makeup in selfies and profile shots. And it has a selfie camera with which you can take selfies and it will automatically beautify the images.
PhotoGrid can also be used to create memes for Instagram Stories. Additionally, it provides the option to add GIFs to those memes.
You can download the app for both Android and iOS devices.
Key Features:
300+ photo collage templates
Makeup and beautifying feature for profile shots
Real-time selfie camera and video recorder, along with smart face filter
60+ filters
Over 90 different backgrounds
- Typorama
Instagram stories app
If you are looking for an app that lets you quickly add fun and attention-grabbing text over your Instagram Story images, look no further than Typorama.
It lets you create beautiful typographic designs with ease. All you need to do is select a background and start typing your message. The app has a wide variety of typographic layouts with different font and typeface options to choose from.
Apart from the advanced text tools, this app also provides several photo editing features. From filters and overlays to image correction options, it has everything you need to polish your background images.
This app is currently available only for iOS devices.
Key Features:
Over 50 typographic styles
100+ fonts and typefaces
Advanced text styling tools
Hundreds of quotes to use for your Stories
Thousands of stock images to choose from
Gradients, shadows, and distortion features for text enhancement
- Microsoft Hyperlapse
Microsoft Hyperlapse Instagram stories app
This is an app that lets you easily and quickly create time-lapse videos that you can share on your Instagram Stories.
You can use this app to either create time-lapses or modify the speed of your existing videos. The recording time limit for time-lapse videos is 20 minutes. For changing the speed limit, it can increase the speed by up to 32 times of the normal speed.
Key Features:
Directly record time-lapse videos on your phone
Modify existing videos to attain 1x to 32x of the normal speed
Supports high-resolution videos
- CutStory
CutStory
This iOS app lets you create a series of 15-second videos for your Instagram Stories by cutting a long video.
One of the key challenges faced while posting video Stories is that an Instagram Story needs to be shorter than 15 seconds. This app solves that problem and creates a continuous stream of 15-second videos that you can directly post as Instagram Stories.
Key Features:
Cuts long videos into 15-second clips fit for Instagram Stories
Supports all video formats
- 8mm
8mm app instagram stories
This is a vintage camera app that lets you record videos in a retro 8mm camera fashion. This is a good app to create Instagram video Stories with a retro touch.
The app also provides you with the option to add effects to existing videos from your gallery.
Currently, the app is available only for iOS devices.
Key Features:
7 types of lenses, such as Clear, Flickering Frame, etc.
12 types of retro and aged films including the 1920s, Noir, and Sakura
2 free and 3 premium themes
Jitter button to copy the frame shakes of the retro 8mm cameras
Best free apps for instagram stories 2021
Apps for Instagram Stories #1: Over for Text Graphics That Stand Out
Whether you’re sharing tips, inspirational quotes, or want to add a creative twist to your campaign, Over is a great app for Instagram Stories that lets you overlay text and graphics onto your photos and videos!
Over has a “gazillion” photos, fonts, graphics, templates and tools to choose from to help you create high-quality, on-brand content.
Using Instagram Stories templates is one of the easiest ways to upgrade your stories, and Over makes it easy to add a little movement to your perfectly on-brand content.
Over’s stock video library has tons of different animations you can choose to bring some life to your creation.
Whether you pick a template or start from scratch; the options are seemingly endless. Their loyal community even has a #bestofover hashtag to help you find inspiration from other creators if you’re ever feeling stuck!
Looking for a step-by-step guide? Watch this video to learn how to create stunning Instagram Stories for your feed — tune for free to see just how quick and easy it can be:
Feeling inspired? We teamed up with Over to share the 10 graphic design trends that will be HUGE on Instagram in 2021 — it has everything you need to get ahead of the curve!
Free download: iOS & Android
Apps for Instagram Stories #2: Storyluxe for Eye-Catching Content
The latest Instagram Stories template app catching users’ eyes is the new Storyluxe app.
The app is packed with a wide variety of dynamic Instagram story templates, including the polaroid & instant film templates, neon, floral, and many more. It’s known for having the most current and creative templates out there:
ICYMI: We’ve teamed up with Storyluxe to create a brand new set of Instagram Stories templates — designed specifically with our users in mind!
To get started, just select a template from one of the packs and add your photos and videos.
Next, you can enhance your story with Storyluxe’s filters, background textures, and colors to fit your Instagram aesthetic.
Free download: iOS ($2.99/month for a premium subscription)
Ready to take your Instagram Stories to the next level? Just click below to download the Storyluxe app and access the templates:
Instagram Stories Templates by Later
Get your free Instagram Stories templates in the free Storyluxe iOS app today!
GET THE TEMPLATES
Apps for Instagram Stories #3: Unfold for Clean & Minimalist Templates
Using Instagram Stories templates is one of the easiest ways to upgrade your stories content!
By using a set of templates for your Instagram Stories, you can create cohesive content that aligns with your brand as a whole.
If you aren’t comfortable creating or using templates in Adobe Photoshop, you can create templates on your phone using the Unfold app for Instagram Stories.
Unfold exploded onto the scene this year with its library of clean and modern templates. It’s now one of the most popular template apps for Instagram Stories!
You may recognize Instagram Stories with filmstrip, Polaroid and minimalist borders from your favorite Instagrammers’ posts:
@collagevintage
A firm favorite with Later’s Content Marketer, Jill Warren, Unfold has everything you need to make your stories stand out:
“From crisp clean frames to cute layered polaroids, there’s a template for every brand to get creative with. And the best thing is it’s seriously easy to use, so you don’t need to be a professional designer to make your stories look next-level good,” Jill says.
Plus! You can preview your story with “Story mode”, giving you a chance to see how your stories will appear on Instagram before hitting “post”.
If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to give your Instagram Stories a more cohesive-look, Unfold is about to become your favorite app!
Free download: iOS & Android
Apps for Instagram Stories #4: Seen: Stories Maker for Dynamic & Animated Stories
If you’re looking to add profession-level animations to your Instagram Stories, Seen is full of slick and seamless transitions!
With Seen, you can easily create slides that have smooth, animated and engaging transitions between each 15-second post — so your audience will be hooked in and less likely to tap away from your posts.
Plus, Seen has animated text options that help bring your posts to life, making even a simple product photodynamic and super-engaging.
Free download: iOS (Note: Premium membership is required to unlock certain templates and transitions).
Apps for Instagram Stories #5: Later to Schedule Your Instagram Stories Content
Posting regularly on Instagram Stories is key to building an audience and increasing your views, and you can plan your stories just like you would plan other social posts in your content calendar.
Now instead of coming up with new stories daily, you can add your photos and text directly to your Instagram Stories scheduler!
By scheduling your content in advance, you can make sure you’re posting consistently and staying top of mind with your followers.
Plus, it gives you an opportunity to take a bird’s eye view of your stories design and content — so you’ll never share an off-brand post again!
Conclusion
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