How to Change Background Colour on an Instagram Story (2026)

Quick Answer: Draw Tool, Pick a Colour, Long-Press

1. Open the story camera and take or upload a photo (any photo works, since it will be covered).
2. Tap the draw icon (the squiggle; on some versions it sits under the More menu at the top).
3. Choose the regular pen, then tap a colour in the row at the bottom.
4. Press and hold anywhere on the screen for a second or two. The whole background fills with that colour.
5. Tap Done, then add text, stickers or a photo on top.

The same steps work if you search for how to change the background color (US spelling) of a story: it's one gesture, and the colour you pick is the colour you get.

A Solid Colour Behind a Photo

A full fill covers your photo, which is fine for text-only stories but not when the photo is the point. You have two ways to keep it visible:

Option 1: Fill, then erase

1. Upload the photo and fill the screen with colour as above.
2. Select the eraser in the draw tool and adjust its size with the slider on the left.
3. Swipe over the area where the photo should show through. The erased area reveals the photo underneath, which also lets you create a frame or a cut-out effect.

Option 2: Fill first, then add a photo sticker

1. Start with any image, fill the background with your colour and tap Done.
2. Open the sticker tray and tap the photo sticker to pick an image from your camera roll.
3. Resize and position it with two fingers. This gives clean edges and is easier than erasing by hand.

For a softer look, use the highlighter pen before the long-press. It fills the screen with a semi-transparent tint, so the photo stays visible behind the colour.

Gradients and Custom Colours

The default palette only shows a handful of colours, but you can choose almost any shade:

• More colours: swipe left on the colour row to see extra palettes.
• Full colour picker: press and hold any colour dot to open a colour slider, then drag to the exact shade you want.
• Eyedropper: tap the eyedropper icon and drag it over your photo to pick a colour from it, then long-press to fill. It's the easiest way to match a brand colour: open a photo of your logo or packaging and sample it directly.

Instagram doesn't accept hex codes, and the draw tool only fills with solid colours. For an exact brand colour or a custom gradient, design the background as a 1080 × 1920 image and upload it as the story itself. Our free story template maker exports gradient backgrounds at that size, ready to post.

Changing the Background of a Shared Post or Reel

When you share a feed post or Reel to your story, Instagram picks a background from the post's colours automatically. To change it:

• Cycle the preset colours: tap the background (or the colour wheel icon at the top, depending on your version) to switch between colour options.
• Use any colour: fill the screen with the draw tool, then use the eraser to reveal the post again. This takes a bit of care around the edges.

For text-only stories, swipe to Create mode in the story camera (the Aa option). Type your message, then tap the colour circle to cycle through solid and gradient backgrounds. It's the quickest way to post an announcement without needing a photo at all.

Blur and Layout Options

Instagram doesn't have a one-tap blur for story backgrounds. When a photo doesn't fill the 9:16 frame, the app places it on a colour taken from the image, which often looks fine on its own. For a blurred effect, blur a copy of the photo in your editing app, upload it as the story, and add the sharp version on top as a photo sticker.

Layout, found in the story camera's side menu, splits the screen into a grid of two to six photos. The photos become the background, so there's no colour to fill, but it's a good option for before-and-after shots or a product range. For grid sizes, photo stickers and copy-paste tricks, see our guide on building a photo collage in your Instagram story.

Brand-Consistent Stories for Canadian Small Businesses

Stories that look the same every time are recognised faster in a crowded tray. A few habits make that easy:

• One palette. Choose two or three brand colours and use the eyedropper or saved backgrounds every time, so every promo, menu update and reminder looks like it comes from you.
• Bilingual contrast. If you post in English and French, keep the same background and swap only the text. Strong contrast (dark text on a light fill, or the reverse) keeps both languages readable on small screens.
• Reusable templates. Save a set of backgrounds for recurring posts such as weekly specials or opening hours, and add the best ones to profile highlights with matching covers.

Clean, readable stories tend to keep viewers tapping through, and our explainer on how the story viewer list is ordered shows who those viewers are. If you want a branded promo to reach more people, our Canadian story view packages can add initial visibility, and the same visual style on your feed pairs well with likes from Canadian accounts for social proof.

FAQ: Instagram Story Backgrounds