Understanding your Instagram Engagement Rate (ER) is crucial for evaluating the performance of your content and the health of your account. Unlike a simple follower count, your engagement rate tells you how actively involved your audience is with what you post.
The Standard Engagement Rate Formula
The most common method used by marketing agencies and influencers to calculate engagement rate is based on your follower count. This measures the percentage of your audience that interacts with your content.
ER = ((Likes + Comments + Saves + Shares) / Total Followers) × 100
Note: While Likes and Comments are public metrics, Saves and Shares are private metrics only visible to the account owner via Instagram Insights. If you are calculating the ER of a competitor or a public account, you typically only use Likes and Comments in the numerator.
Engagement Rate by Reach (ERR)
Many social media experts argue that calculating engagement based on Reach is more accurate than using follower count. This is because not all of your followers see every post due to the Instagram algorithm.
ERR = ((Total Engagements) / Total Reach) × 100
This metric tells you the percentage of people who actually saw the post and chose to interact with it. This number is usually higher than the follower-based rate and is excellent for judging content quality.
What is a Good Engagement Rate on Instagram?
Engagement rates vary significantly depending on the industry and the size of the account. Generally, as follower counts grow, engagement rates tend to drop. Here are typical benchmarks:
Less than 1%: Low engagement. You may need to revisit your content strategy or check for ghost followers.
1% – 3.5%: Average/Good. This is the industry standard for most accounts.
3.5% – 6%: High. Your audience is very connected to your content.
Above 6%: Very High/Viral. Often seen in micro-influencers or viral posts.
Why Does Engagement Rate Matter?
The Instagram algorithm prioritizes content with high engagement. When you post, the algorithm shows it to a small percentage of your audience. If they engage (like, comment, share), the algorithm takes this as a signal that the content is valuable and pushes it to more people, including the Explore page.
function calculateEngagement() {
// 1. Get input values
var likes = parseFloat(document.getElementById('igLikes').value) || 0;
var comments = parseFloat(document.getElementById('igComments').value) || 0;
var saves = parseFloat(document.getElementById('igSaves').value) || 0;
var shares = parseFloat(document.getElementById('igShares').value) || 0;
var followers = parseFloat(document.getElementById('igFollowers').value);
var reach = parseFloat(document.getElementById('igReach').value) || 0;
// 2. Validate essential input
if (!followers || followers 0) {
reachRate = (totalEngagements / reach) * 100;
hasReach = true;
}
// 6. Display Results
document.getElementById('resultsArea').style.display = 'block';
document.getElementById('resTotalEngagements').innerText = totalEngagements.toLocaleString();
// Update Follower Rate Display
document.getElementById('resFollowerRate').innerText = followerRate.toFixed(2) + "%";
// Grade Follower Rate
var gradeEl = document.getElementById('gradeFollower');
gradeEl.className = 'ig-grade'; // Reset classes
if (followerRate < 1) {
gradeEl.innerText = "Low";
gradeEl.classList.add('grade-low');
} else if (followerRate < 3.5) {
gradeEl.innerText = "Average";
gradeEl.classList.add('grade-avg');
} else if (followerRate < 6) {
gradeEl.innerText = "High";
gradeEl.classList.add('grade-high');
} else {
gradeEl.innerText = "Viral";
gradeEl.classList.add('grade-viral');
}
// Update Reach Rate Display
var reachBox = document.getElementById('reachResultBox');
if (hasReach) {
reachBox.style.display = 'block';
document.getElementById('resReachRate').innerText = reachRate.toFixed(2) + "%";
var gradeReachEl = document.getElementById('gradeReach');
gradeReachEl.className = 'ig-grade';
// Benchmarks for Reach are typically higher, but we will use similar scaling for simplicity or adjusted slightly
if (reachRate < 1) {
gradeReachEl.innerText = "Low";
gradeReachEl.classList.add('grade-low');
} else if (reachRate < 5) {
gradeReachEl.innerText = "Average";
gradeReachEl.classList.add('grade-avg');
} else if (reachRate < 10) {
gradeReachEl.innerText = "High";
gradeReachEl.classList.add('grade-high');
} else {
gradeReachEl.innerText = "Viral";
gradeReachEl.classList.add('grade-viral');
}
} else {
reachBox.style.display = 'none';
}
}