Instagram has updated its algorithm to increase the frequency with which users are shown content from their friends. Instagram abandoned its traditional feed in favour of a more prioritised emphasis on relevance. The algorithm now prioritises Interest (a user’s propensity to care about the post), Recency (the post’s relative newness), and Relations (a user’s level of familiarity with the poster).

There is speculation that the new changes, which increased the frequency with which users saw posts from friends, may have reduced the exposure of their own content. Many Instagram users believe that the placement of Hashtags is a role, although Instagram has remained silent on the matter.

Caption War vs. Comment Controversy

At the moment, it looks that Instagram users may choose where to put their Hashtags based on personal preference; some like the Caption, while others favour the Comments.

Seventy percent of Instagram users include hashtags in the caption, while thirty percent include them in the comments, according to a recent Insta Story study conducted by the team at Preview.

Users who used hashtags in the Caption did so primarily to increase interaction with their posts, whereas users who included hashtags in the Comments did it primarily to improve the post’s aesthetics.

Hashtags in the comments area have been linked to shadowbans, although this has not been proven. Instagram influencers have conducted little research indicating that strategic placement of hashtags is crucial to the success of an account. In reality, there are a number of variables in Instagram’s algorithm that contribute to the shadow banning of user accounts. Rather, some Instagram celebrities have reported increased visibility and interaction after including hashtags in their comment sections.

In that case, how do you handle your Hashtags?

There doesn’t appear to be a correct answer. Your account management responsibilities will vary depending on whether you have a commercial or personal account. Try things out for yourself; that’s what I recommend.

If you want to keep your Instagram Caption looking nice, add all of your hashtags in the comments instead. Only three relevant Hashtags should be used in the Caption; any additional ones should go in the Comments.

Test out the following suggestions and see which ones work best for you to increase engagement: hashtags in the caption, hashtags in the comments, or a combination of the two.

How to Use Hashtags Effectively in Discussions to Maintain an Audience
If you’re the kind that uses hashtags in comments, do it right away so that your post doesn’t become buried behind a mountain of replies from your followers and others don’t see your Hashtags.

Guide to maintaining a clean caption, especially while including hashtags.
Here are a few pointers for including hashtags into your captions without sacrificing readability or visual appeal:

Dots below the centre line make a cleaner separation between the hashtags and the caption.
No more than three or four hashtags should be used in the caption.
For a cleaner appearance, keep some distance between the main Caption and the Hashtags.
Remember that the greatest method to attract more followers is to provide material that others will want to interact with, and to label that content with relevant Hashtags.