Instagram is rolling out a new “Competitive Insights” feature within its Professional Dashboard, giving creators and brands a new way to benchmark their performance against others on the platform.
The feature, spotted by digital marketing advisor Sarah Roizman, allows business and creator accounts to compare up to 10 competitor profiles side by side. Users can see relative follower growth and posting frequency (across Reels, feed posts, and ads), along with some individual post performance data, even for accounts that hide their like counts.
While it’s a step toward more transparent benchmarking, the tool currently offers only basic, one-on-one comparisons rather than grouped or detailed analytical views. You won’t find comprehensive graphs or insights into audience engagement trends, and key metrics like clicks, shares, or saves aren’t yet part of the mix.
That limits how useful the new feature really is. After all, follower growth is no longer the gold standard of social success, not in an era where algorithmic feeds prioritize personalized discovery over chronological following.
As social media metrics evolve, marketers are increasingly focused on awareness, nurturing, and conversion, metrics that reveal how effectively content drives action and connection, not just reach.
Here’s a quick framework to think about where real value lies:
- Awareness: Follower growth, engagement, shares, saves, views
- Nurturing: Views, likes, replies, clicks, saves
- Conversion: Clicks, shares-to-clicks (when trackable)
Compared to that, a binary “posts vs. followers gained” chart feels a little dated. Still, it’s a useful contextual tool for gauging where your profile stands, especially if Instagram plans to expand the feature over time.
For now, though, Competitor Insights is interesting… but not game-changing.