Music for Instagram Reels: where to get tracks, how not to lose the audio and what is trending

Where to get music for Reels

There are three sources: the app library, original audio from other creators and your own recording. Our guide to making a reel covers filming and editing.

The library inside the app

The Music option sits in the tool menu on the left while you record. Instagram Help explains that you search the music library and choose which part of a track plays. The help page on reel audio requires every licensed track to carry its title and artist, and Instagram adds both itself. One condition applies: the library is meant for personal, non-commercial use.

Finding the song in someone else's reel is easy. Its name sits at the bottom, below the account name. Tap it to open the audio page with reels on that track and a Use audio button.

Original audio from other reels

Instagram Help defines original audio as sound a creator recorded while filming or in an uploaded video. Such recordings by other creators appear in the audio picker, credited to their authors. Sound from feed videos is available only through a remix of that video.

The Original audio label does not make someone else's song free. When Instagram detects licensed music in a recording, it updates the credit and moves the reel to that track's page. The person who posts is responsible for the music, as Meta's Music Guidelines state. Per Instagram Help, anyone can reuse original audio from a public account, while a private account prevents it. Turning off remixing does not change that.

Your own music and voiceover

Your own recording goes in through Audio in the editor, which holds Music, Voiceover and Sound effects. Drag the bar below each one to set its volume, so music under a voice stays quiet. A voiceover is recorded over the video by holding Record, and a slider moves its start point. Your own speech and melody belong to you, so no rights holder has to approve them. A reel with only your original audio also downloads with every sound intact.

Why audio gets muted or a reel gets blocked: copyright and platform rules

Recorded music is protected by copyright, and the rights holder decides who may use it. The U.S. Copyright Office FAQ names the plain route to permission: contact the owner directly. A credit line in the caption is not a license. On top of the law, Instagram's music guidelines and Meta's Music Guidelines list what raises the risk:

• Full-length tracks. The more full recorded tracks a video holds, the more likely it gets limited.
• Audio in place of video. A visual component is required, and audio should not be the main purpose.
• Commercial use without a license. It is prohibited unless you hold the right licenses.
• A reel as a music player. Such content gets blocked, and the profile may be deleted.

What a violation costs and how to restore the music

A reel loses its audio or gets blocked outright. Repeated infringement of other people's rights can get the account disabled. Older posts can go silent too: the help page on muted audio ties that to changes in agreements with rights holders. The replacement goes like this:

1. Tap Audio unavailable on the reel.
2. Tap Replace audio and confirm.
3. Pick a track from the library and its part, then tap Done.

The music guidelines let you dispute a mistaken claim through the notification. A fair claim is faster to settle with new music.

Music for a business account: what is available and where to find a missing track

The help page on library access says library music is intended for personal, non-commercial use. So certain business accounts and certain types of posts have no access. Licensed music may also be unavailable in some countries and regions. Instagram's replacement is Meta Sound Collection, with over 14,000 royalty-free songs and sounds. They are cleared for commercial use such as ads. The Sound Collection Terms set one boundary: the audio plays only inside Meta products.

Other routes to the music you need

• Your own voiceover. The owner's voice over quiet music from the collection needs nobody's approval.
• A license from the rights holder. Meta's guidelines allow commercial music with the right licenses.
• An open license. It works when it allows commercial use and syncing with video.

Downloading music for Reels: when it is legal and which licenses to look for

A downloaded track is legal in three cases: you bought a license, an open license covers your reel, or the file comes from Meta Sound Collection. A song ripped from a music video, a streaming app or someone's reel is not on that list. Downloading a reel to grab its music fails too: per Instagram Help, a reel with licensed or someone else's original audio downloads without it. Our guide to saving reels shows how to keep them within the rules.

Open licenses: what to check

Creative Commons builds six licenses from four conditions. The letters in each name show which conditions apply. Check that name on the track page before you download:

The main trap is ND. The license text states that music synced in timed relation with a moving image always produces adapted material, and ND forbids sharing it. So ND music does not fit a reel, and NC rules out business accounts. The easiest case is plain BY: credit the creator in the caption.

Trending audio: how to spot a track on the rise inside the app

Instagram marks trends with an arrow next to the audio name, below the account name. The help page on trends also describes a list: profile, professional dashboard, Insights, Trending audio. It holds up to 50 tracks for public personal and professional accounts, and it works only in the US and in the mobile app. Meta's April 2023 update described the trends section as showing how many times each track has been used.

How to tell a rising track from a fading one

1. Open the page of a track with the arrow and note its reel count label.
2. Two or three days later, compare the label with your note.
3. Clear growth: film now. Barely moved: look for the next track.

Pick the music for the reel, not the other way around: it will not replace the picture. Our article on reels retention explains what keeps people watching. Unsure about a choice: test it on a trial reel.

Trending sounds for your niche: what the report shows

The in-app list shows what is trending across Instagram as a whole. The Trending Reels sounds report starts from a topic instead: a coffee shop, nail art, apartment renovation. It shows the sounds the platform offers for that topic and flags the ones Instagram marks as trending itself. You do not sign in to your account.

• Title, artist and duration.
• The trending flag where the platform sets it.
• How many reels use it, in the platform's own label.
• Trend rank and previous rank for original audio.

Instagram labels reel counts like 1.2M. The report keeps the label as is, without invented precision. The platform has no other official trend marker.

Common questions