Drafts live only in the Instagram app on your phone, and each type has its own place. Post and carousel drafts show up when you tap + and choose Post. Reel drafts sit in a Drafts tile on the Reels tab of your profile. Story drafts are in the Story gallery and are kept for 7 days. Instagram.com has no drafts at all (Pallyy).
Find post and carousel drafts
- Tap + (Create). In the newer layout it’s at the top left of the Home screen; in the older one it’s in the bar at the bottom (Sprout Social).
- Choose Post.
- Your drafts appear above the photos from your camera roll, or under a Drafts tab next to Recents.
- Tap a draft, then Next to keep editing or share it.
Find Reel drafts
- Go to your profile.
- Open the Reels tab.
- Tap the Drafts tile and open the Reel you want to finish (Metricool).
Find Story drafts
- Tap + and choose Story.
- Tap the gallery icon at the bottom left.
- Your drafts are at the top of the gallery.
A Story draft is deleted after 7 days (WERSM). Instagram doesn’t state an expiry for post or Reel drafts.
Save a post or Reel as a draft
- Post: after you edit, tap the back arrow and choose Save draft. The option only appears if you changed something.
- Reel: tap Save draft at the bottom left instead of Share (iGeeksBlog).
Delete drafts
- Posts: tap +, Post, then Manage next to your drafts. Tap Edit or Select, pick the drafts, tap Done and confirm with Discard.
- Reels: open the Drafts tile, select the drafts and remove them.
- Stories: open the draft and tap the X, or use Select in the gallery (NapoleonCat).
Drafts can disappear
Most guides say drafts are saved on the phone and not backed up online. Logging out, deleting the app or clearing the app’s data can erase them, and logging back in doesn’t bring them back (Metricool). Pallyy says post drafts usually survive a switch to a new phone, but other guides say they don’t move, so don’t count on it.
To keep a Reel safe, save it to your camera roll before you leave it as a draft. Instagram lets you save a reel to your camera roll before sharing it (Instagram Help). If you’re about to clear Instagram’s cache or storage, see how clearing the cache works and post or save your drafts first.
The Edits app has its own projects
Instagram’s video editing app, Edits, launched in April 2025 (Instagram for Creators). It keeps your work in its own Projects tab. Projects are stored per device, not per account, and they stay in Edits after you post the video (The Two Lauras).
New to Reels? Start with how to make a Reel on Instagram. If you’d rather plan posts ahead than keep drafts, see how to schedule posts on Instagram.
FAQ
Can I see my Instagram drafts on a computer?
No. Instagram.com doesn’t support drafts. Meta Business Suite has a separate Drafts section for posts you prepare there.
Why did my drafts disappear?
Common causes are logging out, reinstalling the app, clearing its data or moving to a new phone. Story drafts are also deleted after 7 days.
Can I edit a post after I share it?
You can change the caption afterwards, but you can’t swap the photo or video you posted.
Do drafts sync between my phones?
Guides disagree, and most say no. Treat drafts as stored on one phone.