Quick Guide on How to Change the Background Color on Instagram Story

Why change Instagram story background color

Changing your Instagram Story background is a powerful way to elevate your content. It goes beyond mere aesthetics, offering several key benefits. A customized background instantly makes your content more visually appealing and eye-catching, cutting through the noise of generic posts.

Furthermore, a well-chosen background can highlight essential elements like text or stickers, ensuring your message stands out. For businesses and creators, it's crucial for aligning with brand colors and aesthetics, fostering a consistent and professional look that strengthens brand recognition. Ultimately, custom backgrounds help your stories stand out from default or dull options, increasing engagement and leaving a lasting impression on your audience.

How to change the background color on Instagram story

When talking about how to change the background color of Instagram Stories, Instagram provides several in-built tools to change the background color of your story. The following is a breakdown of the most common methods you can use to change the background color on Instagram Story.

Solid color background

STEP 1
1. Start story & add an object

Open "Story" mode, take a photo/video or add one from your gallery (even a blank one works).

STEP 2
1. Access Draw & Pick Color

Tap "..." > "Draw," then select your desired color from the palette or use the eyedropper.

STEP 3
1. Apply Color & Erase

Press and hold the screen to fill. After that, use the eraser tool to reveal parts of your object if desired.

Gradient background (using "Create" mode)

STEP 1
1. Start story & enter create mode

Open "Story" mode and tap the "Aa" (Create) icon on the left.

STEP 2
1. Cycle gradients

Tap the small circle icon in the bottom-right corner (filled with a gradient color) to browse different pre-set gradients.

STEP 3
1. Add content

Add your text, stickers, or photos as usual on top of the chosen gradient.

Picture as background (layering photos)

STEP 1
1. Add your background photo

Open "Story" mode, select the photo you want to use as your background from your camera roll, and size it to fill the screen.

STEP 2
1. Add your foreground photo

Tap the "Sticker" icon (square smiley face), then tap the "Photo" sticker (looks like a landscape icon) and select the photo you want to place on top.

STEP 3
1. Adjust layers & position

Resize and position your foreground photo.

While Instagram's built-in tools offer basic options to change your story background, they can be limiting when it comes to creative freedom and customization. If you want more flexibility, faster design, and eye-catching results, it's time to upgrade your process. Pippit makes it easy and effective, with its smart tools, that help you create professional-looking Instagram Stories without complex editing.

Transform boring Instagram Story backgrounds with Pippit

Transforming drab Instagram Story backgrounds is effortless with Pippit, your AI-powered creative agent. Whether you're a small business promoting products, an influencer sharing daily vlogs, or simply an individual wanting to elevate personal stories, Pippit helps create visually stunning backdrops. Imagine eye-catching templates for flash sales or dynamic animated backgrounds for travel highlights, as Pippit offers a range of customizable Instagram Story background templates. Its AI capabilities streamline design, allowing quick customization of colors, fonts, and layouts to match your unique brand or personal style, engaging followers instantly. To learn how you can utilize Pippit to create beautiful Instagram Story backgrounds, continue reading our resourceful guide.

How to create stunning Instagram Story backgrounds with Pippit

Elevate your Instagram Stories with stunning backgrounds created effortlessly using Pippit. This AI-powered tool offers a vast library of customizable video backgrounds, allowing you to design captivating visuals that grab attention and boost engagement, all with ease and efficiency.

STEP 1
1. Head over to the "Video generator > Video editor" section

Begin your journey by first signing up for Pippit, utilizing the above-mentioned links. Once you do that, head over to your dashboard and select the "Video editor" option inside the "Video generator" section.

Once you do that, you will be redirected to a different webpage, where you will be required to upload your Instagram Story video, whose background you want to remove or change. Simply click on the plus (+) sign and upload your content for background removal.

STEP 2
1. Customize your Instagram Story content with stunning backgrounds

After uploading your video content onto Pippit's servers, select it to be included in the video editing timeline and then click on the "Smart tools" option, present on the right-hand side of your screen. From there, use the "Remove background" option. You can decide to select the "Auto removal" option for automatic removal of the video's background, or the "Chroma key" option to pick a specific color to remove it from the video's background. Once you select your preferred option, wait for a couple of seconds/minutes for Pippit to complete the removal process.

As soon as the background removal process is completed, click on the "Background" option on the right-hand panel and select your preferred custom background, which will replace the previous background. You can decide to go with any solid color or apply exciting graphical backgrounds.

STEP 3
1. Preview and export your video

In the next step, you further take advantage of Pippit's diverse video editing features. These include the option to add text and captions, insert stock footage or photos, incorporating effects and animations, integrating audio tracks, performing color adjustments, changing the speed of the video, and much more.

Once you are happy with the results, simply click on "Export" and you will be able to "Download" your video in your preferred resolution, format, frame rate, etc. Conversely, you can directly "Publish" your video to your social media channels, such as Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok.

Bonus: How to create amazing Instagram Stories & Reels using Pippit

Unleash your creativity on Instagram Reels with Pippit. Simplify the process of video generation by transforming your ideas or even product links into dynamic, engaging reels. Simply follow our suggested steps below and you will be good to go.

STEP 1
1. Select the "Video generator" option

The primary step of the Instagram Reel creation process involves heading over to your Pippit dashboard and then selecting the "Video generator" option. Once you do that, you will be required to enter a prompt for your video generation, which can include text and media, a website link, or a document.

In the next step, you will be required to choose/enter your video title and description, select the media files (including AI-recommended media), and provide more information on the video that is to be created. Under "More info", you will find options to enter the product highlights, target audience, marketing ideas, etc. Scrolling down on the same page will give you the option to select your preferred "Video types" and "Video settings". Once you make your selections, click on "Generate".

STEP 2
1. Create and customize your Instagram Reel video

Once the video generation process is completed and you are provided with the video options to choose from, simply browse through them and pick the one that you feel will bring better response from your Instagram followers. However, if you are not happy with any of the given options, you can click on "Create new" to generate a new batch of videos. On the other hand, if any video catches your eye, you can hover your mouse cursor over it to get options like "Change video style", "Quick edit", or "Export" video instantly.

If you do decide to explore the "Quick edit" option, simply click on it and you will get access to changing your video script, get the ability to insert captions/subtitles, options to alter the video avatar and voice, and get the chance to incorporate media files and relevant text.

STEP 3
1. Preview and export

Before you decide to export your Instagram Reel, you can click on the "Edit more" option to get access to Pippit's robust video editing timeline. From here, you can perform various advanced actions, like cropping or deleting parts of the video, inserting stock footage or photos, changing the video speed or aspect ratio, making any color adjustments or picture noise reduction, integrating video effects and animations, changing the video background, etc.

Lastly, if you want to export your resultant video, so that you can use it for your Instagram Reels, proceed to click on "Export" and you will be asked whether you want to "Download" or "Publish" it. If you want to share your reel video at a later date, then click on the download option to export your video in your preferred format, frame rate, and resolution. Otherwise, you can directly publish it to your Instagram handle or any other social media channels (TikTok or Facebook).

Pippit's smart features that power Instagram Stories & Reels

• AI reels generator: Pippit's AI video generator automatically crafts scroll-stopping videos from your existing content, saving you hours of editing time. It analyzes your uploaded media to intelligently select key moments, apply dynamic transitions, and suggests trending audio to maximize engagement.

• AI Instagram influencer avatar: Create a unique and consistent brand presence with Pippit's AI avatars. Design a customizable digital persona that can present your content, deliver messages, and even interact with your audience without you needing to be on camera.

• AI voiceovers: Enhance your reels with natural-sounding narration using Pippit's AI voice feature. Choose from a variety of voices and languages to perfectly match the tone and style of your video content. This eliminates the need for costly voice actors or tedious recording sessions, allowing for quick and professional audio integration into every reel.

• Track performance with real-time analytics: Gain invaluable insights into your reel's performance with Pippit's real-time analytics dashboard. Monitor key metrics such as views, engagement rates, reach, and audience retention as soon as your content goes live.

• Auto background resizer: Ensure your Instagram Story backgrounds always fit perfectly with Pippit's dedicated resizer. It automatically adjusts any image or design to the optimal dimensions for Instagram Stories, which is 9:16 in aspect ratio for your information, ultimately preventing awkward cropping or pixelation.

Creative Instagram story background ideas

Now that we have already discussed how to change story background color Instagram, it's time to look at some creative ideas to take advantage of those options. Crafting visually appealing Instagram Stories is a great way to engage your audience. While Instagram offers many creative tools, the background of your story sets the stage. Here are some creative ideas to make your story backgrounds pop, categorized for easy inspiration:

Gradient backgrounds

Go beyond simple two-color gradients. Explore subtle, multi-point blends that mimic natural phenomena like sunsets or misty mornings. Experiment with directional gradients (diagonal, radial) or use them as a semi-transparent overlay on an existing photo for a dreamy effect.

Textured or patterned backgrounds

Bring the real world into your stories. If you are wondering how to make Instagram Stories background black, then you can use close-up photos of everyday textures like wood, fabric, or concrete. Digitally create abstract patterns or add subtle hand-drawn lines and swirls using Instagram's drawing tool. Blurred backgrounds from photos with shallow depth of field can also add visual interest without distractions.

Mood-based colors

Select colors that evoke the desired emotion. Use soft blues and greens for calm, bright yellows and oranges for energy, deep jewel tones for sophistication, or dark blues and grays for a mysterious vibe. The right color instantly sets the tone for your content.

Use your brand palette

Reinforce your brand identity by consistently using your brand's specific colors. This could be a solid background in one of your core colors, a custom gradient combining two or more, or even subtle color-blocked designs. Always use Instagram's eyedropper tool to ensure perfect color matching from your existing brand assets.

Tips for choosing the right background color for your story

Now that we have shown you some background examples on how to change background Instagram Story, here are some essential tips and tricks to help you choose the correct background color for your Instagram Story:

• Align with your message: The background color should complement the core message of your story, not compete with it. For example, a soft, muted background might suit a heartfelt message, while a bright, energetic color could enhance a celebratory announcement. Think about the feeling or information you want to convey and select a color that visually supports it.
• Boost readability: When thinking about how to change the background color on instagram story, prioritize clarity. Choose background colors that offer sufficient contrast with your text, stickers, and any overlaid images. A busy or overly vibrant background can make it difficult for your audience to read your message, leading to them quickly swiping past. Simpler, more consistent backgrounds often lead to better readability.
• Stay on-brand: For businesses and content creators, consistent branding is key. Use colors that are part of your established brand palette. This reinforces your identity, makes your stories instantly recognizable, and builds a cohesive visual experience for your followers, strengthening brand recall and loyalty.
• Mood you want to convey: Colors evoke emotions. Warm colors like reds and oranges can convey energy or excitement, while cool colors like blues and greens often suggest calmness or professionalism. Consider the desired emotional response from your audience and select a background color that aligns with that specific mood.
• Contrast with text and stickers: When deciding to change background color Instagram Story, ensure there's a strong visual distinction between your background and any foreground elements like text, GIFs, or stickers. If your background is dark, use light-colored text, and vice versa. This high contrast prevents elements from blending in and ensures all parts of your story are easily visible and digestible.
• Seasonal or trending themes: Leverage current trends and seasons to make your stories timely and relevant. During holidays, use festive colors (e.g., reds and greens for Christmas). For seasonal content, embrace colors that reflect the time of year (e.g., pastels for spring, earthy tones for autumn). This keeps your content fresh and engaging.

Conclusion

In summary, mastering the process of how to change the background color on Instagram Story, from simple solid colors and gradients to leveraging your own photos and brand palettes, is essential for captivating your audience. We've explored various in-built methods and creative ideas to elevate your visual storytelling.

For truly effortless and professional results, Pippit stands out. Its AI-powered features, including the AI video generator, video background remover, custom AI avatar, and real-time analytics, directly address content creation challenges, ensuring your stories and reels are always scroll-stopping. Transform your Instagram presence today by exploring Pippit and elevating your content to the next level!

FAQs

1
1. How do I Instagram change story background color to a solid shade?

Start a story, add any media (even a blank image), then tap the "Draw" tool. Select your desired color and press and hold on the screen to fill the background. Pippit streamlines this process by offering a vast library of AI-generated solid color and gradient backgrounds, allowing you to instantly apply the perfect hue without manual steps.

2
1. Can I Instagram Story change background color after I've already added text or stickers?

Yes, after adding content, go to the "Draw" tool, pick a color, and long-press the empty background space. Pippit can quickly adjust backgrounds around your existing story elements or suggest new ones that complement your content through its smart design features.

3
1. How do I Instagram Story change background color without covering video or photo?

Apply a solid background using the "Draw" tool, then use the "eraser" tool to reveal parts of your original video or photo underneath. Pippit's advanced AI helps you create layered effects, allowing precise control over what's visible and making complex designs simple.

4
1. What's the quickest way to Instagram Story how to change background color to a gradient?

Use the "Create" mode in Instagram Stories (the "Aa" icon); it applies a gradient automatically, and you can tap the circle to cycle options. Pippit offers an extensive range of unique gradient styles and AI-generated dynamic backgrounds, providing more creative freedom than Instagram's default options.