Knowing which type of Instagram account to create is a make-or-break decision. Instagram offers three types of accounts, each providing different features and options, so it’s important you choose the right one for your goals. 

Aside from personal accounts, business and creator accounts on Instagram provide additional account options, as well as valuable analytics and detailed metrics, but which is best? Let’s review the differences, as well as how you can enhance your Instagram Marketing with Metricool.

Instagram Personal Account

When you enter Instagram for the first time to create an account, a personal profile will be created by default. This profile is a bit limited since it doesn’t offer metrics and data about your activity. Therefore, you won’t be able to analyze its performance, and you can’t add buttons to your bio. 

As you can probably guess, personal profiles are geared towards personal use, such as sharing moments with friends and family. So they may not be the best option for businesses, creators, and marketers.

With a Personal Instagram Account, you can:

• Create content and stories: You can use Instagram without any restrictions; create posts, stories, reels, and go live. However, you won’t be able to analyze the impact of your publications on your followers.
• Add a single link to your bio: You can edit your bio and add a link to drive followers to your website.
• Link your account to Facebook: Both accounts are linked through Meta.

One major difference and benefit of having a personal profile is music access. Personal accounts have a much larger library, whereas Business accounts can only utilize the royalty-free library. This has frustrated many users, knowing that with a creator or business account, many trending songs may not be available for content. This is something to keep in mind when choosing the type of Instagram account you want to create.

You also can’t create ads with a personal Instagram account, you need a professional account for this.

As of now, Instagram’s API access restricts personal accounts from using third-party applications such as Metricool and Facebook Creator Studio to schedule and analyze content. Business and Creator Accounts have API access, so you’ll need to switch to a professional account to manage your profile with Metricool. 

How to Switch to a Professional Instagram Account

You can change your personal account into a content creator or business account at any time. Simply follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings and select “Account types and tools”. 
2. The last option in the settings menu lets you switch to a business or content creator account: select the account type you want. 
3. Done! Remember, as soon as you make the change, your account will become public.

Instagram Creator Account

Creator accounts are perfect for influencers, public personalities, bloggers, and artists. These creators come from a multitude of professions, including fashion designers, entrepreneurs, athletes, and musicians.

Creator accounts are used to separate influencers from companies (who use Business accounts). There is no limit to the number of followers that can access this type of account. Creator accounts on Instagram make it easier to control your online presence, calculate your growth, and manage your messages. Here are the specific tools:

• Professional Dashboard: Track your performance and access Instagram insights.
• Contact Information and Category Labels: Contact information and category label. These are optional and can be turned on or off as you wish.
• Growth Insights: Understand what content helps grow your audience with insights about your posts to calculate engagement and follower fluctuations.
• Secondary Inbox: You’ll have access to an inbox with Primary and General tabs. You can use this inbox to organize your messages and notifications.
• Ranked Requests: You’ll be able to sort your requests by received date or by top accounts.
• Saved Replies: This is a shortcut to use to answer your FAQs.
• Manage followers: Protect your account from unwanted followers by reviewing potential spam follower requests and removing suspected spam and bot accounts from your followers.
• Ads: You can run ads through Instagram, Facebook, or Meta Ads Manager.

Creator accounts can view analytics, reply to messages, and have the option to include paid collaborations. They’re similar to a business account but with certain features designed for influencers.

Instagram Business Account

Business accounts are created for local businesses, brands, organizations, and service providers.

The options for Business accounts are similar to those features available for Creator Accounts, including analytics, adding CTA buttons, boosting posts, etc.

Business Accounts have the most options available, especially when it comes to promoting a business. With options such as shopping and different types of ads, this option is optimal for businesses and brands wanting to use social media as a marketing avenue.

How to Make The Most of Your Professional Instagram Account

If you have a business or creator account, Metricool is the best way to boost your strategy.  You can easily plan and publish content, manage your social media messages, and analyze the performance of your content, all in the same place. Our intuitive calendar also allows you to Auto-Publish Instagram content, with help from our AI Assistant if you need it. 

Comparing Instagram Account Types: Key Features

Let’s take a look at the features of each Instagram account side by side, this will help you understand which is best for you.

So now you’re fully informed on the different types of Instagram account, you can make the right choice for your profile. To understand how to monetize your content on the platform, check out the post below:

Isabel Romero , 06 May 2025