Instagram Stories are a great way to share short-form visual content with interactive elements like stickers, effects, text animations, emojis, and more. One of the most demanding features of Instagram Stories is “Music”, which allows you to add short audio clips from popular songs to go with your story.

To add music to your stories, simply tap on the Sticker icon from the top-right corner of your story, and search for Music. You’ll find a “For You” tab, and a “Browse” tab, both offering popular song clips to add to your Stories. When a story is published with Music, the selected song clip plays in the background along with the story.

But sometimes, the Music feature on Instagram Stories doesn’t work as expected. In this article, we’ll explore some of the common methods to fix Instagram Music not working in Stories on iPhone, iPad, and Android.

 
How to fix Music in Instagram Stories

There are several known issues with Instagram Stories, which include, but are not limited to:

  • “Instagram Music not available in your region” message while viewing a story.
  • Unable to add music to an Instagram story.
  • Unable to find specific songs in Instagram Music.
  • Music options are limited in the “For You” or “Browse” tab.

Here, we’ll try to troubleshoot these issues with various workarounds or solutions. After performing each step in this guide, go back and check if your specific issue with Instagram Music is resolved.

 
Ensure your device has the latest software updates

Ensure that you’re having the latest software updates installed on your iPhone, iPad, or Android device.

On iPhone or iPad, you can check this by going to the Settings app, then navigating to General >> Software Update. On Android, you may go to the Settings app and then About phone >> Software Update.

 
Ensure your Instagram app is up-to-date

Ensure that you’re running the latest version of the Instagram app downloaded from the App Store or Google Play Store. To do this:

On your iPhone or iPad:

  1. Open the App Store.
  2. Tap on the Today tab from the bottom-left corner.
  3. Tap on your Profile icon from the top-right corner.
  4. Scroll down to the Updates section and check if there is an update for the Instagram app.
  5. Tap on the Update button to download and install the update, if there is one available.

On your Android device:

  1. Launch the Play Store.
  2. Tap on your Profile icon from the top-right corner.
  3. Tap on Manage apps and device.
  4. If updates are available, you should see the updates pending message. Tap on “See details” under Updates available.
  5. Tap on the Update button next to Instagram, if available.

Instagram will be updated to the latest version. Now go back into Instagram and check if your Instagram Music issue is resolved.

 
Ensure Instagram Music is available in your country or region

Instagram is slowly making the Music feature available worldwide. As of this writing, Music for Instagram Stories is available in 30+ countries, with more to be added in the future.

If Instagram Music is not available in your country or region, there’s no official way to fully experience Instagram Music stories (you’ll still be able to view the story but without any background music) or add music to your stories on Instagram, until the feature becomes available in your region.

However, you may be able to experience Instagram Music even if it’s not available in your region, by using a VPN server based in a supported location. Additionally, you may also need to spoof your GPS location to match the VPN server’s location for it to work.

If the feature is available in your region, but it’s not working as expected for you, continue with the further steps provided in this guide.

If the feature is available and working for you, but you have an issue viewing or adding a specific song or music in Instagram Stories, skip to the relevant section of this article.

 
Restart your iPhone, iPad, or Android device

The next common fix for music not working in Instagram is to restart your device.

  • To know about restarting a particular iPhone model, check Apple’s KB article: Restart your iPhone.
  • To know about restarting a particular iPad model, check Apple’s KB article: Restart your iPad.
  • On Android, press and hold the Power button, and then tap Restart.

 
After restart, launch Instagram and check if the issue is resolved.

Logout and Login again to Instagram

Sometimes, logging out and logging back into Instagram might fix your issue with Instagram Music. To do so:

  1. In the Instagram app, tap on the Profile icon from the bottom-right corner.
  2. Tap on the menu from the top-right corner, and tap Settings.
  3. Scroll down to the bottom and tap Log Out.
  4. Quit the app by swiping up from the bottom and removing it from the app switcher.
  5. Open Instagram again and log in to your account using your credentials.

Now check if your Instagram Music issue is resolved.

 
Uninstall and Reinstall Instagram

As a last resort, you can try to uninstall and reinstall the Instagram app.

On iPhone or iPad:

  1. Go to the App Library screen and search for “Instagram”.
  2. Tap and hold the Instagram app icon from the search results.
  3. Tap on Delete app.
  4. On the confirmation pop-up, tap Delete.
  5. Open App Store, and go to the Search tab from the bottom-right corner.
  6. Search for the “Instagram” app.
  7. Tap on the Download icon next to Instagram to download the app.
  8. Once installed, open Instagram and log in to your account using your credentials.

On Android:

  1. Swipe from the bottom of the screen to reveal the App Launcher.
  2. Find Instagram in your app collection, then tap and hold the app icon.
  3. Choose Uninstall, and then OK to confirm.
  4. Open Play Store.
  5. Search for the “Instagram” app.
  6. Tap the Install button below the Instagram app from the search results.
  7. Once installed, open Instagram and log in to your account using your credentials.

By now, Instagram Music should be working on your iPhone, iPad, or Android device provided the feature is available in your region.

 
If you can’t add or experience specific music tracks in Instagram Stories

If you’re unable to add specific music tracks to your Instagram Story, it might be because of two reasons:

  • You may be using a Professional or Business account, which limits the availability of certain tracks in the Instagram Music library.
  • The specific music track may not be available in your region due to music licensing challenges.

If you’re using a Professional or Business account, switching to a Personal account may help solve your problem, as Instagram allows a larger catalog of music tracks for Personal accounts. To switch to a personal account, do the following:

  1. In the Instagram app, tap on the Profile icon from the bottom-right corner.
  2. Tap on the menu from the top-right corner, and tap Settings.
  3. Tap on Account.
  4. Scroll down and tap Switch account type.
  5. Tap on Switch to Personal Account.

If you’re already using a Personal Account and still unable to use specific tracks to your stories (or experience specific tracks used by others in their stories), the likely cause is that the specific track isn’t available in your region due to music licensing challenges.

If you still want to experience these tracks or use them in your stories, you might want to try using a VPN service, by connecting through a server located in a region where the specific tracks are available (along with a suitable GPS spoofer to go with it, if required).

Did this article help you to resolve your specific Instagram Music not working issue? Let us know which solution worked for you in the comments below.