What Is a Story? — Free Tool
A Story is a full-screen vertical post that expires after 24 hours. Learn which platforms have them, how the 24-hour rule and highlights interact, and why Stories are a retention tool rather than a growth one.
A full-screen vertical post that disappears after 24 hours, shown mainly to people who already follow you. Stories carry the casual, in-the-moment material that would not earn a place in the feed.
What it is
A Story is a full-screen vertical post that expires 24 hours after you publish it. Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, LinkedIn at times, Snapchat, and others all run a version. It sits in a bar above the feed rather than in the feed itself, and viewers tap through one frame at a time.
How it is measured
The frame is 9:16. The top and bottom of the screen are occupied by the profile row, the reply box and the platform's own controls, so anything important belongs in the middle. Individual frames are short, usually up to about 15 seconds of video before the platform splits them. The useful metrics are not likes: they are frame-by-frame retention, taps forward, exits, sticker interactions and replies. Because a reply lands in your inbox rather than in public, Stories are the format most likely to start a one-to-one conversation.
Commonly misunderstood
The most common error is expecting Stories to grow an account. They are shown to people who already follow you, and the ordering favours the ones who interact most, so a Story campaign mostly reaches your warmest audience twice. The second error is treating expiry as a reason to be careless. Screenshots exist, and a badly worded frame outlives its 24 hours. The third is confusing Stories with Reels because both are vertical video. Reels are permanent and aimed at strangers; Stories are temporary and aimed at regulars.
When it matters
Use Stories for behind-the-scenes material, polls and questions, reminders, and the link taps you cannot get from a feed caption. Judge them on replies and completion, not on reach.
Related terms
Features
- Plain definition of a Story and the 24-hour expiry rule
- Which platforms carry Stories and how each one differs
- Why Stories reach followers rather than strangers, and what that means for your numbers
- Stickers, links and replies: the interactive parts that make Stories worth posting
- Links to related formats so you can compare a Story with a Reel
Frequently asked questions
Do Stories really disappear?
From the Stories bar, yes, after 24 hours. They stay in your own archive, and you can pin one to a highlight on your profile so it persists publicly until you remove it.
Who sees my Stories?
Mostly people who already follow you, ordered by how often they interact with you. Stories are not a discovery surface, so they will not bring in new followers at any scale.
Can I put a link in a Story?
On Instagram yes, with a link sticker, on any account. Other platforms vary. This is one of the few places a tappable link is available outside the bio.
How many Stories should I post a day?
Enough to be present without making the sequence a chore to tap through. Watch the completion rate: if viewers drop off after frame three, you are posting more frames than your audience wants.
Are Story replies public?
No. A reply to a Story arrives as a direct message, which is why Stories tend to generate real conversations rather than public comments.
