The short versionAs of October 7, 2026, Instagram's free Edits app can make carousels. You can mix photos and videos, add text, layouts, stickers and filters, run one photo and headline across slides, apply saved presets, and post straight to Instagram or download for later. It's on iPhone first, with Android coming soon.
The swipe-across panorama carousel used to take Photoshop or a third-party app. Now Instagram's own free editor does it. On October 7, Instagram added a carousel editor to Edits, its standalone video editing app.
What happened
"Starting today, Instagram users can make carousels in the platform's free, dedicated video editing app, Edits," PetaPixel reported. You can mix photos and videos on one canvas and add text, layouts, stickers, filters and adjustments, then color grade, scale and rotate elements.
The details
The headline feature is continuity across slides. In Instagram's announcement, Dan Moreno, a Design Engineer on the Edits team, explains that "a photo can bleed from one slide into the next, and a headline can carry across them, turning the swipe itself into part of the storytelling."
Presets you've made in Edits, covering image and video adjustments, colors, audio and text styles, work on carousels too. "Your visual identity is how people know a post is yours, and now it extends to the carousels you make in Edits," Moreno said.
Finished carousels can be shared straight to Instagram or downloaded to post later. The feature is on iPhone first, with Android "coming soon," according to PetaPixel and The Verge. To find it: open Edits, go to the Projects tab and pick Carousel from the + menu.
Why brands should care
Carousels are one of the few post types people stop and swipe through, and a panorama gives them a reason to. For a salon, cafe or boutique, one wide photo of your space split across two slides is a scroll-stopper you can make in minutes, for free, without leaving Instagram's own tools.
Presets matter just as much. When every post uses the same look, people recognize yours before they read the name.
What to do
- Update Edits on your iPhone, open Projects, tap + and pick Carousel.
- Run one wide photo across two slides, with one headline over the seam.
- Apply your saved preset so the carousel matches your other posts.
- Add one short video slide of the work happening.
Sources
- PetaPixel: Instagram Edits now lets you make custom photo and video carousels (Oct 7, 2026)
- The Verge: You can now make Instagram carousels in Meta's Edits app
- New to Edits: An editor for your carousels (Instagram announcement, reprinted)
- Edits on the App Store
FAQ
Can you make Instagram carousels in Edits?
Yes. As of October 7, 2026, Instagram's Edits app lets you build carousels that mix photos and videos, then share them straight to Instagram or download them.
Is the Edits carousel editor on Android?
Not yet. It launched on iPhone first, with Android described as coming soon.
How do you make a panorama carousel in Edits?
Open Edits, go to the Projects tab, tap + and choose Carousel. A photo can run from one slide into the next, with a headline carrying across them.
