How valuable is that blue checkmark that you see next to the profile pics of all your favorite celebrities and influencers?
Well, according to a lot of people out there, it’s pretty valuable.
This is because you need to be able to convince Instagram that you’re the real you. Your account also has to be big enough for this to matter.
While there are quite a few companies out there now that claim they can help you get verified on the gram, we want to talk about how to get verified on Instagram: the legit way.
Let’s take a look at how to make this happen.
Why Should You Get Verified?
So, before we cover the how question, let’s take a look at the why.
Getting verified on Instagram is a great way for Instagram to help their community connect with influencers and public figures.
As we mentioned before, it basically proves that you’re the real deal.
When you get to a certain level of fame on Instagram, you get people that want to impersonate you.
If there are other accounts trying to be you, your followers have no way of knowing whether your account is the real one or not.
Enter the verified blue tick.
Being verified on the gram can help you attract a bigger following, as well as get your account on the explore page and other relevant search results.
How to Get Verified on Instagram in 2025
- Go to your Instagram profile by clicking on the three lines that will be in the top right-hand corner.
- Click on your settings at the bottom right.
- Scroll through the options until you can see something that says ‘request verification.’
- Clicking on this will take you through to a form
- Fill out the form
- Upload an I.D. You can use anything from your diver’s license to your passport for this. If you’ve got a business account, you can use anything from a tax filing to a household bill.
- Send it
Am I Verified Now?
Once you’ve sent through the form, you aren’t automatically verified.
Your request will go through a moderator that will then go and take a look at your account.
They will decide whether or not you need to be verified.
Sometimes, it can take a week or two even to hear back from anyone, so don’t worry if you do not hear anything – they could just be taking their time.
Once they’ve made up their mind, you’ll get a notification through Instagram itself to let you know. Even if it’s a no, you can always apply again after 30 days.
What Do You Do if You Get Denied
We all want to get verified on Instagram.
However, what if you apply for verification and get rejected?
As we mentioned above, you can always re-apply to be verified again after 30 days.
You can also just wait until your account becomes a bit bigger so that the moderator can see just how much you’ve grown.
One thing to keep in mind, though, is that paid ads don’t count towards being verified.
- Link to a Website: a great way to show the moderator that you are you is to link your company website to your Instagram. You can even put your email address in your bio as a great point of contact for other followers or brands that want to collaborate.
- Link to Other Social Media: another way to prove that you are who you say you are is to link your Instagram to your other social media channels. This can be anything from Pinterest and Facebook to Twitter.
- Be Consistent: you should try to be as consistent as possible when building your Instagram account. This means being consistent with your feed and uploading posts that are similar to one another. The more consistent your brand’s message is, the easier it will be for Instagram’s moderators to see that you are you.
So, even if you get denied the first time, as you can see, there are definitely things you can do to improve your Instagram’s chance of being approved for the blue tick next time.
Can You Lose it Once You Get it?
If you provide Instagram with information that isn’t real when you’re applying for the blue tick, there is a chance that it can be taken away from you once you’ve been approved.
What’s more, you can also lose your blue badge if you attempt to sell it to someone, or if you try to get it from a third party.
Another way you can lose your Instagram verification tick is if you use your Instagram bio and profile to promote a different service from the one you were promoting when you first applied for it.
What Else Can I Do to Get Verified?
- Stick to the Rules: if the moderator looks at your profile and feels like you haven’t stuck to the community guidelines, there’s no chance of them verifying your account.
- One Request One Verification: you should only be applying for one verification per account. This is because each account should be representing a unique, original person or business. The only time that this rule doesn’t apply is if a brand has multiple accounts.
- Set Your Profile Up: if you haven’t completely set up your profile yet, then you’re not going to get verified. This means that you’ve got to have a bio, a profile picture, and at least one post.
- Set Your Profile to Public: Instagram won’t verify an account if it’s set to ‘private.’ Make sure that you’ve got your account set to ‘public’.
- Be Real: because you’re trying to share a real business or brand, or even just a person, you need to prove this. This means that meme, fan, and parody accounts don’t count.
- Be Newsworthy: while anybody on the gram can apply to be verified, the reality is that most small accounts won’t get the blue tick. This is because you need to show that people are truly interested in what you’ve got, which means you’ll already have high search results for your content. While this doesn’t apply to absolutely everyone, it’s still the kind of expectation that you should have going into the application process. One tip is to try and nail your first promotion or collaboration before you do.
Final Thoughts
While you certainly don’t need that blue tick to turn your Instagram profile into something that everyone loves, it does have its advantages.
If you’ve got to a point where you have other people trying to copy your account and its content, then being verified by the gram is undoubtedly going to boost your credibility with your potential and existing community.
Just follow our simple, yet practical tips, and you’ll get verified on Instagram in no time!