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Many public Instagram Reels have a Download button. The saved video includes an Instagram watermark and the creator’s username; Reels with licensed music are saved without that audio. This guide covers Instagram’s own features and other ways to save public posts, carousels and your own videos, along with the platform’s terms.
The quick answer
- Public Reel, on your phone: Share → Download. Free, but watermarked, and licensed music is muted.
- Public post or Reel, no watermark: paste the link into Cobalt. No account or install; the link goes to Cobalt’s server.
- Your own account, or many posts: Instagram’s Download your information for your own content, yt-dlp for batches and logins.
Private accounts you don’t follow are out of reach for every tool. We have matching guides for X (Twitter) and TikTok.
Why the file comes out stamped, silent or not at all
Instagram’s Download button appears only on public Reels in the app, and only where the creator allows it. The saved file carries an Instagram watermark with the creator’s username, and Reels with licensed music are saved silent, keeping only original audio (Instagram Help).
On a computer, instagram.com has no download option at all, not even for Reels. Much of the rest is served only to logged-in sessions, so anonymous tools hit a login wall or a rate limit. Third-party tools fetch the stream the player uses, which has no overlay and keeps the full audio mix.
Official options and terms
Instagram’s own tools are free and need no third-party site:
- Download (Reels): Share (the paper-plane icon) → Download. Available worldwide since late 2023, with the watermark and music rules above.
- Save: the bookmark icon adds a post to your collections. Nothing is written to your device, and the post vanishes if the creator deletes it.
- Download your information: Accounts Center → Your information and permissions → Download your information. Your own posts, Reels and Stories arrive as a link, usually within a few days, without the Reel watermark.
- Stories archive: with archiving on, your own Stories stay under Your activity → Archive, and you can save each one to your camera roll.
Instagram’s Terms forbid accessing content in an automated way without its express permission, and every downloader does that. So using one can breach the Terms even when no copyright is infringed; the usual result is a temporary action block. Save only your own content, content whose owner permits it, or Creative Commons material. We are not lawyers.
The Terms and copyright in detail
Two separate rulebooks apply. This is a plain-language summary, not legal advice.
- Instagram’s Terms. No collecting information or accessing content by automated means without express permission, and nothing that interferes with the intended operation of the service. Persistent abuse can lead to a suspended account.
- Copyright. The person who made the video owns it. Private copies are treated differently from country to country, but re-posting, editing it into your own content or using it commercially without permission is infringement almost everywhere.
- When in doubt. Use Save or share the post instead of copying it.
Tools and their limitations
| Tool | Type | Best for | Watch out for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instagram’s own Download | Built in | Public Reels on your phone, no setup | Watermark with username; licensed music muted; Reels only; creators can disable | Free |
| yt-dlp | Command line | Batches, Stories and Highlights, login-gated posts | Terminal only; needs cookies for much of Instagram | Free |
| Cobalt | Online, open source | A public post or Reel link, clean file | Public content only; the link goes to Cobalt’s server | Free |
| Clipmoth (our product) | Windows app | Instagram, TikTok, X, YouTube with buttons | Windows only; our Chrome extension does not cover Instagram | Free 10/day · $9.99 one-time |
| “Reels downloader” sites | Online | Same fetch as Cobalt | Pop-ups, fake buttons; own watermark reported on some | “Free” |
Here is how yt-dlp and our Windows app differ in setup and everyday use.
| yt-dlp (command line) | Clipmoth for Windows | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free, unlimited | Free 10/day · $9.99 one-time |
| Setup | The binary plus a separate ffmpeg install on your PATH for HD | One installer, ffmpeg included |
| Use | Type commands and options (-f, --merge-output-format …) | Paste the URL, pick a quality. Download queue; MP3 is one switch |
| Updates | Run yt-dlp -U yourself | The engine updates itself |
| When it fails | Read the English error output | The reason is shown in plain words (unsupported, login needed, region-locked …) |
| Best for | Fine-grained options, scripts, cookies and proxies; Mac and Linux | Windows users who want to click, not type |
- Online: Cobalt is open source, ad-free and needs no account, while the many “reels downloader” sites do the same fetch behind pop-ups, and some have been reported to stamp their own logo.
- Command line: yt-dlp handles Reels, feed videos and carousels, plus Stories and Highlights you can already see when you give it your login cookies.
- Desktop apps: Clipmoth is our own product; weigh that as you read. Its Windows app lets you paste a URL and choose the download quality, but it cannot get past DRM, logins, age gates or regional blocks.
- Browser extensions: they read the page inside your logged-in session, which is the automated access the Terms describe; we have not tested any and name none.
Install yt-dlp from the official instructions. Instagram refuses many anonymous requests, so give it your browser login:
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser firefox "https://www.instagram.com/p/ABC123/"Firefox is the easier browser here; recent Chrome on Windows encrypts cookies in a way yt-dlp cannot always read. Add --sleep-requests 2 for batches, or --playlist-items 2 to take only the second item of a carousel.
On iPhone, Cobalt’s file lands in Files → Downloads; tap Share → Save Video to move it to Photos.
When it doesn’t work
- “Login required” or a 401/403 error: Cobalt cannot help; yt-dlp with
--cookies-from-browserusually can. - Rate limit or empty result: wait several minutes instead of retrying in a loop.
- Saved Reel is silent: Instagram’s button dropped the licensed music by design. A third-party fetch keeps the full mix.
- Only the first carousel item: use Cobalt’s picker, or let yt-dlp fetch the whole post.
- yt-dlp error on a public post: run
yt-dlp -U. Instagram changes its pages often, and most breakages are fixed in the latest release.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my downloaded Reel have a watermark?
Instagram stamps every Reel saved with its own button, including Reels from your own account. A different logo means the downloader site branded the file.
What quality do I get?
Instagram re-encodes every upload and serves renditions up to 1080 pixels wide, so no tool gets the camera original. Run yt-dlp -F on a link to list the renditions on offer.
Can I save public Stories without logging in?
No. Instagram requires a login to serve Stories even when they are public, so Cobalt cannot fetch them; yt-dlp with cookies can.
What about long videos and old IGTV posts?
Instagram folded IGTV into regular video posts and Reels. Every tool fetches them the same way, whatever the length.
Download from more than Instagram
Clipmoth is our own downloader. The Windows app supports YouTube, TikTok, X, Instagram and over 1,000 sites, with options for 4K video, playlists and MP3.
The Chrome extension saves video playing on websites such as news sites and online courses, including HLS and DASH streams. It does not support YouTube.
Both offer 10 free downloads a day. Premium removes the limit in both for a one-time payment of $9.99, with a 14-day refund policy.
Get the Windows app Add to Chrome (for video on regular websites)