Instagram API errors · checked against Meta's docs on 10 October 2026

Instagram API error 2207009: Image aspect ratio cannot be published

Code	`36003`
Subcode	`2207009`
Message	`The submitted image with aspect ratio {submitted-ratio} cannot be published. Please submit an image with a valid aspect ratio.`

What it means

Feed and carousel images must have an aspect ratio between 4:5 (0.8, portrait) and 1.91:1 (landscape). Anything taller or wider is rejected with 2207009.

A 9:16 phone photo (0.56) is too tall. A 2:1 panorama is too wide. A 1080 × 1350 image (4:5) and a 1080 × 566 image (1.91:1) are the limits.

How to fix it yourself

Crop to a ratio inside the range, for example 4:5 for portrait or 1:1.
Or pad the image with a solid border until it fits, which keeps the whole picture.

Stories have no such limit in Meta's spec (9:16 is recommended), so a tall image can go to a story instead of the feed.

How postcache handles it

Upload with x-target: instagram.feed (or instagram.carousel) and postcache checks the ratio before Instagram sees the file. Add convert=crop or convert=pad and postcache fixes it for you; dry_run=1 only reports the problem.

curl -X PUT "https://postcache.dev/v1/media?convert=pad" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $POSTCACHE_API_KEY" \
  -H "x-target: instagram.feed" \
  --data-binary @tall-photo.jpg

The answer is 202 with status: "converting". Poll GET /v1/media/{id} until it is ready, then use the url.

Sources: Meta's Instagram Platform error codes and IG User Media spec. More: all Instagram API media errors · postcache API docs.