How to Remove a Single Image from an Instagram Carousel [5 Steps]

Is there anything worse than finding a mistake in an Instagram post that you spent hours correcting?

Possibly, but it’s too damn bad. Lucky for us, you can now remove a single photo from an Instagram carousel post without deleting the entire carousel – so there’s some flexibility when it comes to editing Instagram posts live.

Why is this great news? Well, Instagram carousel posts (or, as Gen Z calls them, photodumps) get three times more engagement than regular posts, and you want to make sure your posts are flawless.

Here’s how to erase what experts call “oops.”

Is it possible to remove a single photo from the Instagram carousel after posting?

Yes, you absolutely can, although this has not always been the case. Instagram first introduced the feature in November 2021, leaving social media managers around the world to breathe a sigh of relief.

IG chief Adam Mosseri himself announced the news via (you guessed it) Instagram.

There’s a catch: you still can’t delete a photo from an Instagram carousel that only has two photos.

Want to remove an image from a carousel with three or more photos? Easy. But you can’t turn a published carousel into a traditional IG post—in other words, two or more images must remain.

How to remove a single photo from a posted carousel on Instagram

For example, let’s say I want to remove this adorable calf from my Instagram carousel (this is just an example, please don’t panic, no adorable calves were harmed in the making of this blog post).

Step 1: Find the carousel you want to delete a photo from and tap the three dots icon at the top right corner of the screen.

Step 2: A menu will appear. In this menu, click “Edit”.

Step 3: In the top left corner of the carousel, you will see a trash can icon. Touch this icon to delete a photo.

Step 4: Instagram will ask you if you are sure you want to delete the image. Click “Delete”to close the deal, but please note that you can restore the image within 30 days of deleting it.

Step 5: Click “Done”in the top right corner to save your changes. (This is easy to miss, so be extra careful!)

How to recover deleted photo in Instagram carousel

Let’s say you’re so passionate about your job as a Hootsuite blogger that you actually removed one of your favorite calf photos from the carousel. Here’s how to get it back.

Step 1: Go to your profile and tap on the three horizontal lines in the top right corner. From there, a menu will appear. Click Your activity.

Step 2: Scroll down until you see the Recently Deleted option and select it.

Step 3: All the media you have deleted in the last 30 days will appear. Find the photo you want to restore and select it.

Step 4: Click “Restore”in the pop-up menu.

Step 5: Instagram will ask if you’re sure you want to take the action. Click “Restore”again.

While deleting posts from the Instagram carousel is fairly easy, it’s not particularly professional – and as every modern-day celebrity knows, screenshots are forever. If you can, try to limit the mistakes you make (and the photos you delete) when planning a comprehensive social media marketing strategy.

The right tools help too. You can use Hootsuite to compose, preview, schedule, and share all of your Instagram posts, including feed posts, carousels, stories, and videos. In addition, Canva is integrated into our platform, so it’s very easy to edit cool carousel graphics in the right size and dimensions.

You can easily check all your scheduled posts before they go live in an intuitive calendar view (including your posts from other platforms).