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Connect Facebook & Instagram

Connect your Instagram professional account through Meta so Vaybel can publish posts, Reels, and carousels, show you engagement, and optionally tag products from your Instagram Shop.

Updated 2026-09-02

Goal

Give Vaybel permission to publish the content you make to your Instagram account and read back how it performs. The connection runs through Meta's own login flow, and it only takes a few minutes once your Instagram account is set up the way Meta expects.

Before You Start

Meta's connection flow has two requirements that trip up almost everyone. Check both before you click Connect:

  • An Instagram professional account. Business or Creator both work. Personal accounts can't be connected. Switch in the Instagram app under Settings -> Account type and tools -> Switch to professional account.
  • A Facebook Page, linked to that Instagram account. Meta's Instagram API works through a Facebook Page, even if you never post to Facebook. Vaybel does not post to your Page. If you don't have one, Meta's dialog can create a Page for you during the connection, but the link between the Page and your Instagram account is still something you set yourself (see below).

You also need to be logged into Facebook as the personal profile that administers the Page. Meta may ask you to confirm with two-factor authentication.

Selling on Instagram is optional

You do not need an Instagram Shop, a product catalog, or a Meta commerce account to connect. Those only matter if you want Vaybel to tag products in your posts so followers can tap to shop. You can connect today for publishing and insights, and add the shop later without losing anything.

This is the step people miss. If the two aren't linked, the connection will look successful in Vaybel but publishing will fail. The easiest place to do it, and to check it, is Meta Business Settings:

  1. Open business.facebook.com/settings and pick your Business portfolio.
  2. Go to Accounts -> Pages, select your Page, and open the Connected assets tab.
  3. If your Instagram account isn't listed, click Connect assets and choose it.

The same tab is where you confirm the link later: the Instagram account should appear under the Page before you start the Vaybel connection.

Meta Business Settings showing a Facebook Page's Connected assets tab with an Instagram account connected.
In Business Settings, the Page's Connected assets tab lists the linked Instagram account. If it's empty, use Connect assets.

You can also link from the Instagram app under Edit profile -> Page, or from the Facebook Page under Settings -> Linked accounts; the result is the same.

Where To Start

Open Dashboard -> Settings -> Integrations, find Facebook & Instagram under Social Accounts, and click Connect. Make sure you are in the workspace that should own this Instagram account; each workspace connects one account.

Vaybel Settings, Integrations page showing the Facebook & Instagram row under Social Accounts with a Connect button.
Start from the Facebook & Instagram row under Social Accounts.

Walk Through Meta's Dialog

Step

Log in to Facebook

Use the personal profile that manages your Page. If you're already logged in, Meta skips straight to the next step.

Step

Choose a Business portfolio

A Business portfolio is Meta's container for your Page and Instagram account. Pick the portfolio that owns them. If you've never created one, choose Create a Business portfolio and fill in your business name, email, country, and website. Your store's URL is fine as the website.

Meta dialog asking which Business portfolio to share assets from, with an option to create a new one.
Pick the portfolio that owns your Page and Instagram account, or create one on the spot.
Step

Select your Page and Instagram account

Both are required. Pick the Page and the Instagram account that are linked to each other. If the Instagram dropdown is empty, the account isn't linked to any Page yet, or it's still a personal account; go back to Before You Start.

Meta dialog with a Facebook Page and an Instagram account selected.
Select the Facebook Page and the Instagram account together.
Step

Catalog (only if you have an Instagram Shop)

If your Instagram account has an approved shop, Meta also offers its product catalog here. Selecting it lets Vaybel tag products in your posts. If you don't see a catalog, you don't have an approved shop yet. Skip it. Nothing else depends on it.

Step

Review and confirm

Meta lists exactly what Vaybel is asking for: publish content to your Instagram account, read its engagement, and manage products in the catalog you shared (if any). Click Confirm to finish and return to Vaybel.

Meta review screen listing the Instagram publishing and insights permissions requested by Vaybel.
The review screen lists the permissions Vaybel will receive before you confirm.

Verify The Connection

Back in Vaybel, the Facebook & Instagram row should read Active with your Instagram handle underneath, for example @yourbrand • Connected • today's date.

Vaybel Integrations page showing Facebook & Instagram as Active with the connected Instagram handle.
A healthy connection shows the Instagram handle next to Active.

If the row says Active but no handle appears, the Instagram account wasn't linked to the Page when you connected. Link them, then disconnect and connect again. Meta doesn't re-check the link after the fact, so a fresh connection is required.

What Vaybel Does With This Access

  • Publishes only when you click Publish. Vaybel never posts on its own.
  • Reads engagement (views, likes, comments) for posts published through Vaybel and shows them on your Posts page.
  • Adds or updates products in your catalog only when you tag a product in a post, and only in the catalog you shared.
  • Disconnect anytime from Settings -> Integrations. You can also remove Vaybel from Facebook under Settings -> Business integrations; either way Vaybel deletes the access it held.

Change Your Selection Later

Meta remembers what you granted. To switch Pages, add your catalog after your shop is approved, or fix a wrong selection: disconnect in Vaybel, click Connect again, and on Meta's review screen choose Edit previous settings. That reopens the asset picker instead of reusing your last choices.

Watch For

  • an Instagram account that is still personal, not professional
  • an Instagram account that isn't linked to the Page you selected
  • choosing a Page owned by a different Business portfolio than the one you picked
  • being logged into a Facebook profile that doesn't manage the Page
  • expecting a catalog to appear before the Instagram Shop is approved

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