The continuously expanding range of apps designed for Instagram Story provides an endless realm of creative possibilities. Despite the temporary nature of the content, its impact is far from fleeting. Instagram Stories offer social media marketers an invaluable opportunity to reach and engage with an audience of over half a billion users who avidly watch Stories each day.
Whether you’re a newcomer to Instagram Story or find yourself struggling to optimize your conversion potential, we’ve got you covered. In the following paragraphs, we will share our favorite apps for Instagram Story, carefully curated to help you craft visually appealing and captivating content that leaves a lasting impression.
1. VSCO
VSCO is widely regarded as the epitome of photo editing excellence, thanks to its extensive array of features. With VSCO, you gain access to professional-grade editing presets and meticulous tools for fine-tuning color, texture, light, and perspective. Even if you’re working with high-definition RAW photos captured by a professional camera, you can effortlessly import them into VSCO and make adjustments on the fly. This means that your Instagram Stories can maintain a visually appealing aesthetic, regardless of any imperfections in your phone photography skills.
Highlighted features:
- Complimentary presets (over 200 additional presets available for paid subscribers)
- Editing tools and textures
- Video editing capabilities, including color control
- Creating montages using videos, photos, and shapes
Price: Free, with premium features that must be purchased.
2. Unfold
Describing itself as “a storyteller’s toolkit,” Unfold is an Instagram Stories app that offers an assortment of templates for photo and text layouts. With these templates, every Story takes on the appearance of a captivating digital magazine. By utilizing this app, your Instagram Stories attain a unified and polished visual style, ensuring a consistent and professional aesthetic throughout your content.
Highlighted features:
- Choose from a diverse collection of over 200 templates, including both free and premium options.
- Unleash your creativity with advanced text tools that offer an extensive range of fonts and styles.
- Enhance your designs effortlessly with the built-in photo-editing tools.
- Gain exclusive early access to new templates by becoming a paid subscriber.
Price: Free, with optional paid premium features.
3. Patternator
Enhance your Instagram Stories with our app, designed to bring fun and animated backdrops to your stories. Utilize our extensive library of GIFs and whimsical images to create playful and engaging visuals. You can even add your own photo stickers to truly personalize the experience. With Patternator, you have the power to adjust the speed and movement of the cascading graphics, resulting in a delightfully immersive and customized video wallpaper.
Highlighted features:
- Access 23 pre-set animated templates and utilize intuitive tools to customize movement and layout according to your preferences.
- Export your creations as GIFs, videos, live wallpapers, or high-definition images, offering a range of options to showcase your content.
- Seamlessly share your animated stories directly to Instagram, making it effortless to engage with your audience and share your artistic creations.
Price: Free, with paid premium features
4. Life Lapse
Unleash your stop-motion creativity and become an Instagram sensation with Life Lapse! Bring life to any object with ease. Access 50+ tutorials within the app to create impressive stop-motion videos. Don’t miss out on the chance to win prizes by participating in the exciting Stop Motion Challenges!
Highlighted features:
- Blend images with transparent overlays for effortless shooting.
- Access video editing features within the app.
- Include music (exclusive to premium users).
- Utilize the interval timer and single-shot timer for precise timing.
Price: Free, with paid premium features
5. Storyluxe
Storyluxe is the ideal app for Instagram Stories that need a carefully curated atmosphere. With its extensive library of 700 templates, you can effortlessly replicate the appearance of film strips or creatively arranged photographs. Take it up a notch by incorporating dynamic neon elements to give your stories an extra dose of impact.
Highlighted features:
- Premium feature: Custom branding watermark.
- Themed templates: Choose from categories like “paper,” “collage,” or “tape.”
- Add text and patterned backgrounds.
- Export directly to Instagram Stories.
Price: Free, with paid premium features
Download: only on iOS
6. Motionleap
Indecisive between photos and videos? Motionleap combines the best of both by animating still images into captivating visuals. Infuse your creations with elements and overlays, while also having the flexibility to customize the movement by adjusting the speed.
Experience the magic of complete creative freedom! Move clouds, make hair flow with Beyoncé-esque wind effects, and more. The power is in your hands to bring your imaginative visions to life!
Highlighted features:
- Add moving elements to still photos with a user-friendly interface.
- Control movement, direction, speed, and style according to your preferences.
- Benefit from advanced features such as sky replacement technology and AI-powered water animation.
Price: Free, with paid premium features
7. WordSwag
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but what about a picture with captivating text? WordSwag is among the top Instagram Story apps, enabling you to effortlessly layer stunning typographic elements over your photos. Achieve a striking combination of visuals and text that will make your stories stand out.
Highlighted features:
- Enjoy access to over 80 different fonts and typefaces (available on the pro plan).
- Explore a vast collection of 1.3 million free backgrounds sourced from Pixabay.
- Elevate your text with stunning effects like foil, stamp, and watercolor.
- Enhance your stories with trendy frames and layouts that will captivate your audience.
Price: Free, with paid premium features
8. Boosted
If you’re searching for an Instagram Stories app that ensures your content stands out from the crowd, your search ends here. Boosted empowers you to create polished videos, whether it’s tutorials, Q&As, or any other type, using captivating video templates. Effortlessly incorporate text and music to elevate your content and make it truly captivating.
Highlighted features:
- Stylish video templates for a captivating look.
- Add branded filters, fonts, music, and colors.
- Combine multiple video clips seamlessly.
- Access Getty Images’ video clip library for professional content.
Price: Free, with paid premium features