SAN FRANCISCO, January 29, 2026, 01:12 PST
Instagram experienced an outage Tuesday morning, with over 2,800 users reporting issues by 11:39 a.m. Pacific, according to Downdetector. The bulk of the complaints focused on the mobile app. (GV Wire)
This outage hits hard since Instagram is a key platform for creators, small businesses, and brands relying on it to connect with customers, generate sales leads, and run marketing campaigns. Even brief disruptions can wreck carefully timed posts and urgent promotions.
This comes as social apps cram in more video and shopping features, making any downtime harder to miss. Instagram is battling for eyeballs and ad dollars against rivals like ByteDance’s TikTok and Snap’s Snapchat.
By early Thursday, Downdetector’s Canada page reported no current issues, with complaint numbers dropping back to normal. The latest breakdown showed most problems stemmed from app issues (65%), followed by posting or publishing glitches where users couldn’t upload content (19%), and login difficulties (16%). (Downdetector)
Downdetector’s Poland page shows no ongoing problems at the moment but highlights app issues as the top complaint recently, making up 73% of reports. Login troubles come next at 21%, with feed problems trailing at 6%. (Downdetector)
DownForEveryoneOrJustMe reported an Instagram outage on Wednesday, lasting roughly 37 minutes. The site also noted other disruptions on Tuesday. (Downfor)
Outage trackers depend on reports from users and often can’t distinguish between a widespread platform failure and problems limited to certain regions, devices, or mobile networks. A surge in reports might also point to trouble with a single feature, such as posting, rather than a complete outage.
If these issues persist or stretch out, the fallout grows fast for users managing customer support, storefront links, or paid campaigns via the app. The exact cause of Tuesday’s outage remains unknown.
Instagram, a Meta Platforms property, ranks among the top photo and short-video apps globally. For businesses relying on it as both a storefront and communication channel, uptime and reliability are crucial.
