Instagram · Before you delete
How to save your Instagram photos before deleting your account
Prefer a click-by-click walkthrough with screenshots? See the full guide →
From a messy ZIP to this — every photo and video organized by year and by the people in them.
Download everything before you delete
Leaving Instagram is a good decision for a lot of people — just don't take years of photos and videos down with it. Instagram lets you request a complete copy of everything you've posted. It's the official, free way to get it all at once; what lands is a ZIP file full of folders.
- Open Settings and activity. In the Instagram app, tap your profile picture, then the menu (☰) in the top-right.
- Go to Accounts Center. Tap Accounts Center near the top of Settings.
- Open Your information and permissions. Then tap Download your information.
- Select your account and Photos and videos. Choose "Some of your information" and select Photos and videos — or "All available information" to get everything.
- Set quality to High and request. Pick a format (HTML is easiest to browse), set Media quality to High, then submit the request. Instagram emails you a link when it's ready — usually a few hours, up to a couple of days for large accounts.
- Download the ZIP and confirm it's complete — then delete. Open the email, download the ZIP (the link expires after a few days), and open it to make sure your photos are really there. Only after you've confirmed it's complete should you delete the account — deletion is permanent after the grace period.
For the detailed version with screenshots, see how to request your archive step by step.
Keep your memories somewhere real — off Meta
The export gets your photos out — but it leaves them in a mess. They land in nested folders with cryptic names, the original dates are often stripped, and videos sit apart from photos. A ZIP in your Downloads folder is easy to forget — or lose to a dead hard drive.
That's what everkept fixes. Upload the ZIP and you get one private gallery — every photo and video together, organized by year and grouped by the people in them, with the dates restored. Only you can access it, it lives off Meta, your uploaded files are deleted from our servers after 30 days unless you keep your gallery, and it's never sold, shared, or used to train anything. Free to see what we found; one-time price to keep it, no subscription.
Common questions
If I delete my Instagram account, are my photos gone forever?
Yes. When you permanently delete your Instagram account, your photos and videos are removed from Instagram's servers after a deletion grace period and cannot be recovered. That's why it's important to download your full archive and confirm it's complete before you delete. If you only deactivate, your data is hidden but preserved — but it's still safest to keep your own copy.
How long does it take to download my Instagram archive?
Usually a few hours for smaller accounts, up to a few days for accounts with thousands of posts. Wait for the email and download the file before you start the deletion process — don't delete the account while the export is still being prepared.
What's the difference between deactivating and deleting Instagram?
Deactivating hides your profile but preserves your data, so you can come back. Deleting removes everything permanently after a grace period and can't be undone. Either way, download your own copy first — it's the only way to be sure your memories survive.
What's the best way to keep my Instagram photos after I download them?
The downloaded ZIP is just folders of files that's easy to lose or forget. everkept turns the archive into one private gallery — every photo and video together, organized by year and by the people in them, with dates restored. Only you can access it, it lives off Meta, and it's yours to keep — free to browse everything we find for 7 days, one-time price, no subscription.
Leave Instagram. Keep every memory.
Download your archive, then see it turned into one private gallery you control — organized by year and by person, off Meta, free to browse everything we find for 7 days.
Browse your whole gallery free →No password needed · Your files are private and deleted after 30 days unless you keep your gallery · One-time price, no subscription