How to create an Instagram analytics report (+ free template)

What’s worse than watching your Instagram analytics plummet? Not knowing why.
If you’re manually tracking performance across multiple clients, things can get unsustainable real fast. Some tools give you surface-level insights. Others flat-out mislead. For busy agency teams, every manual export is billable time lost and proof of ROI gets buried.
Add to that the constant changes Instagram is rolling out, and it’s no wonder marketers feel like they’re always playing catch-up.
That’s where a smart, streamlined Instagram analytics report comes in. In this guide, we’ll show you exactly what to track, how to track it, and give you our proven template you use immediately. No more flying blind with your social media strategy.
Creating an Instagram analytics report isn't just busywork but an essential for success on the platform. Here's why you need one:
“It took us some time to find the solution to seamlessly build custom reports with a high degree of personalization. Our reports have now all the required information the way we want it, including amazing visualizations." - Angela Bridgers, NH Digital
Your Instagram analytics report should include these essential metrics to give you a complete picture of performance:
Instagram Insights is the platform's native analytics tool. While basic, it's free and gives you direct access to your data.
You need a Business or Creator account to access Instagram Insights.
Go to “Settings” > Switch to “Professional account”
Tap the “Dashboard” icon on your profile page
In the main Insights section, you'll see two primary categories:
Tap the dropdown "Insights" button to toggle between these views. Here's what each section includes:
Account Insights:
Content Insights:
For any metric, click the dropdown to view detailed breakdowns and additional data points.
Unlike Reporting Ninja that allows you create custom reports in minutes, Instagram Insights doesn't directly export reports. So you'll need to manually record data, take screenshots or enter data into a spreadsheet.
Group your metrics by audience, content, and growth to spot patterns. Focus on actionable insights that can improve your strategy.
Turn your data into charts and graphs to make trends easier to spot. This helps you communicate findings to clients or team members.
For more robust reporting, dedicated Instagram analytics tools make the process faster and more thorough.
Reporting Ninja stands out as the most affordable social media analytics tool with comprehensive Instagram analytics. What makes it unique is its three-in-one approach: you can create and deliver reports in three different destinations: our custom reports platform, Looker Studio, and Google Sheets.
Reporting Ninja automatically pulls your data and creates beautiful, customizable reports.
Key features:
"As the leader of a marketing team, we used to spend hours immersed in spreadsheets and gathering data. Thanks to Reporting Ninja, we've transformed that process. Automation has freed up my team, allowing us to focus on what truly matters: crafting effective strategies." - Daniel Kristoffersen, Fox Real Estate
[Try Reporting Ninja Free for 15 Days - No Credit Card Required]
Later offers scheduling and Instagram analytics capabilities but at a higher price point. It's popular for its visual content calendar and scheduling features.
Key features:
Rival IQ focuses on competitive analysis alongside Instagram analytics. It's pricier than Reporting Ninja but offers benchmarking against competitors.
Key features:
An Instagram analytics report gives you a clear picture of what's working and what's not. Here's why that matters:
With an analytics report, you can identify which content types perform best. This lets you create more of what works and less of what doesn't.
For example, you might discover your carousel posts get 3x more saves than single images, or that video tutorials generate 5x more shares than promotional content. This specific knowledge lets you double down on high-performing formats and stop wasting time on content that flops.
Your report reveals detailed audience demographics and behavior patterns, helping you tailor content to your specific target audience.
This detailed profile helps you craft hyper-targeted content that feels personally relevant to followers. Say you discover your audience is primarily 25-34 year old professionals who browse Instagram during lunch breaks and engage most with educational content, you’ve just gotten information that completely reshapes your content strategy.
Identifying when your audience is most active to maximize reach is so important that it’s attracted several research.
B2B audiences, for instance, are likely to be most active between 8-9 AM and 4-5 PM on weekdays, aligning with typical work hours. Scheduling your posts during these windows can trigger an engagement rate increase virtually overnight.
Without proper tracking, Instagram can feel like a black hole for your marketing efforts. An analytics report connects your social activity directly to business outcomes through conversion metrics.
Track the complete journey from impression to website visit to lead or sale. You'll know exactly which content drives business results and can calculate a precise return on your Instagram investment.
For agencies and social media managers, professional Instagram analytics reports don't just impress clients, they retain them. Stunning visual reports showing clear progress keep clients invested in your services.
Instead of vague promises, you deliver concrete proof of your value with beautiful white-label reports showing exactly how your work impacts their business.
Manual reporting is a productivity killer. Social media managers typically spend hours weekly just gathering data and creating reports; time that could be spent on strategy or content creation.
Automated analytics reports eliminate this busywork entirely. Saving an average of 8 hours per week with automated data collection is over 400 hours saved annually. This is time you can reinvest in activities that actually grow accounts rather than just measuring them.
{{cta-block-v1}}
Don't want to build a report from scratch? Use this free Instagram analytics report template for Looker Studio to get started right away. We'll also show you Reporting Ninja's custom report platform with even more Instagram templates soon.
Tracking detailed metrics like reach, impressions, engagement, follower growth, and post performance shouldn’t be scattered across screenshots and spreadsheets.
This free template brings everything into one clean, intuitive dashboard. This makes it easier to spot trends, understand what’s working, and back every decision with data.
And perhaps most importantly, it makes your reporting sustainable. Instead of rebuilding charts or scrambling to answer, "How did that carousel actually do?", you’ll have a go-to system that grows with you.
Use it weekly, monthly, or quarterly to track progress, optimize your strategy, and clearly show the ROI of your efforts.
[Try the free Instagram analytics report template]
Every effective Instagram analytics report template should include these key performance indicators:
Track how quickly your audience is growing with the follower growth rate formula:
(New followers ÷ Total followers at start of period) × 100
This metric shows if your type of content is attracting new followers consistently.
The engagement rate measures how actively your audience interacts with your content:
(Total engagements ÷ Total followers) × 100
This is more valuable than raw follower counts as it shows actual audience interest.
Your reach rate shows what percentage of your followers actually see your content:
(Average reach per post ÷ Total followers) × 100
This helps you gauge content visibility and algorithm performance.
For Instagram Stories, track how many viewers watch your entire story:
(Viewers of last frame ÷ Viewers of first frame) × 100
This shows how engaging your story content is from start to finish.
Measure how effectively your Instagram drives desired actions:
(Number of conversions ÷ Total link clicks) × 100
This connects your Instagram efforts to actual business results.
Follow these best practices to get the most value from your Instagram analytics reports:
Social media managers should define what success looks like before creating their social media report. Align your key metrics with specific business goals like brand awareness, engagement, or sales.
Don't just look at single-point metrics. Track performance over time to identify trends and seasonal patterns in your Instagram analytics.
Break down metrics by content type, audience segment, or campaign to get more granular insights from your analytics report.
Add competitor analysis to your report to understand how you stack up against others in your industry. This provides context for your numbers.
Pro tip: Track 3-5 direct competitors consistently rather than changing the comparison set frequently for more meaningful benchmarking.
Don't just report numbers. Include recommendations based on your findings. This transforms your analytics report into a strategic tool.
{{cta-block-v1}}
Reporting Ninja simplifies the entire process of creating Instagram analytics reports with its intuitive platform.
Simply log in to Reporting Ninja and connect your Instagram Business account. The platform will immediately start pulling your data.
Select a pre-designed Instagram analytics report template or create your own custom layout. All templates are fully customizable.
Add your logo, brand colors, and select which key metrics to include. You can add custom metrics and calculations too.
Set up your report to run daily, weekly, or monthly and be delivered automatically to your inbox or client emails.
Create your first Instagram report in 5 minutes
Want to analyze Instagram performance consistently and without misleading data? Reporting Ninja gives you everything you need for comprehensive, professional reports at a fraction of the cost of other tools.
With reports available across three destinations (custom reports platform, Looker Studio, and Google Sheets) you deliver insights exactly how your clients prefer.
With Reporting Ninja, you'll get:
Don't waste another hour on manual reporting. Start your free 15-day trial today - no credit card required.
[Try Reporting Ninja Free for 15 Days]
Yes! You can create a basic Instagram analytics report for free using Instagram Insights and our free template. For more comprehensive reporting, Reporting Ninja offers a free 15-day trial.
Follower growth rate and engagement rate are the two most important key metrics for measuring Instagram growth. They show both audience size and quality.
Most agencies send monthly reports to clients, but some provide weekly updates for active campaigns. Reporting Ninja makes it easy to schedule reports at any interval.
Instagram Insights shows profile visits but for full website traffic attribution, you'll need to connect Google Analytics to track traffic sources from Instagram.
Sign up for a 15 days free trial. No credit card required.