Whether you have an Android or an iPhone, a recent Instagram update made it possible to quickly and easily add line breaks within your captions — without having to copy over your text from another app.
Being able to add those kinds of breaks is important. Not only does it allow you to space things out the way you want them to appear within Instagram's feed, it also helps make your posts easier to read and understand.
Plus, it can allow you to hide long lists of hashtags that many people use to help boost their visibility. While those can be helpful, they can also be something of an eyesore, and line breaks solve that problem.
For those who aren't familiar, here's what you need to know about using the new option, what to do if it isn't yet available to you, and more tips for formatting your Instagram posts:.
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How to put spaces in an Instagram post caption
If you have the new option to add line breaks within the app, the process is simple: You just need to hit the "enter" or "return" key and format it as you'd like it to appear, creating the rest of the post as normal.
However, if you aren't yet able to use the line-break option, it may be worth updating your app. If that doesn't work, though, there is still a way to add those line breaks to your posts. Here's how:
1. Open your notes app of choice, and create a new note.
2. Add your text, then select it and hit "Copy."
3. Open Instagram and log into your account, if needed.
4. Create and edit your new post, but don't publish it yet.
5. For the caption section, long-press on the blank space and select "Paste."
6. Remove any periods from the last sentence that precedes each line break.
Your text should then copy over, including your formatting. Post it.
Once posted, double-check that the formatting's been done correctly. If it hasn't, delete the post and try again.
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Formatting tips and tricks
Formatting can drastically change how your followers perceive and interact with your posts, so knowing different techniques is essential as a creator. Again, if you don't have the new invisible line-break option, or you just want to try something different, here are some tricks you should add to your Instagram game:
Create line breaks using symbols
You could use a specific symbol of your choosing on the lines where you don't wish text to appear. By doing so, you give the old version of the app something that acts as a placeholder and thereby gives you the overall effect of having line breaks. But the symbols you use, of course, will still be visible. So while it's a better option that relying on huge chunks of text, it's not perfect.
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Hide hashtags with periods
As mentioned earlier, hashtag groups are commonly found at the end of captions, which can help the reader focus on what's important: Your message. However, if you don't have a long caption ahead of it, those groups can still be distracting. To get around this, you may choose to use a period placed on each line break to visually differentiate between the caption and the hashtag group.
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Try a dedicated space maker tool
If you've tried your usual note-taking apps but still aren't getting the line-break effect you desire, a dedicated tool, like TextSpacer.com, can be a solid option. With that site, you'd create and format your post as desired within the site, then click "Copy" and paste it into your Instagram caption.
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Devon Delfino
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