Instagram is a very popular social media platform, in 2018 it reached one billion users monthly. It became more popular than Linkedin and Twitter.

For marketing professionals, influencers, business owners, and even individuals, using hashtags is very important, but the question is Does using hashtags increase engagement?

Keep reading to find the answer in the Hubspot’s new report;

Does Adding More Instagram Hashtags Make Your Post Popular?

While everyone is using it whether to share personal photos and videos or for your own business, everyone thinks that hashtags make your content more viral! actually, this is not true even though they are extremely popular over the last few years to the extent that made users are always searching for best practices and tips around using them.

Hashtags make your post is easier to find but not necessarily active.

Related Report: The 2020 Instagram Stories Benchmark Report | Rival IQ

According to 2019 findings, the results tell that using more hashtags actually decreases your average engagement rate. This may be surprising as they seem to go against what many Instagram experts say about using hashtags. There are a few possible explanations of this:

• The most influential and engaged Instagram users get a substantial number of likes on their content naturally, not due to the use of hashtags.
• These highly engaged posts impact our averages.
• Good content will receive high engagement on its own.
• Hashtags will not boost the engagement of mediocre content.
• People are using irrelevant hashtags.
• A lot of spammy content includes a high number of hashtags, causing Instagram users to ignore them.

A Figure Shows the Average Number of Engagement Vs. Number of Hashtags—2020 Data

The Relationship Between Using Instagram Hashtags and Engagement—2019 Data

It is better to use the right hashtags which are related to your post and to decrease the number of hashtags (not more than 5). Bear in mind that it is mostly about the content, not the hashtags.

Hashtags are only a way to make it accessible to others but your content will make them wait for your next post!

Related Report: 2020 Social Media Industry Benchmark Report | Rival IQ

List of the Top Hashtags on Instagram 2020:

1. #love
2. #photography
3. #instagood
4. #fashion
5. #art
6. #photooftheday
7. #travel
8. #nature
9. #picoftheday
10. #instagram
11. #beautiful
12. #style
13. #beauty
14. #fitness
15. #repost
16. #music
17. #happy
18. #model
19. #summer
20. #makeup

A Figure Shows the Most Popular Instagram Hashtags in 2020

A Chart Shows a List of the Top Hashtags on Instagram 2019

The Top 6 Tips to Use Instagram Hashtags: 

1. Do not use too many hashtags.
2. Irrelevant hashtags are spammy behavior.
3. It is important that your hashtag means what you think it means.
4. Save hashtags for future use.
5. Think about using brand hashtags.
6. Connect with your followers by adding emoji hashtags.