The Ultimate Troubleshooting Guide: How to Crush Instagram‘s "Try Again" Error

Hey friend! Have you ever felt the frustration of trying to upload a sweet Instagram carousel or video, only to be slapped in the face with the vague "We‘ll try again once there‘s a better connection" error message?

I feel your pain. As a lifelong tech geek and social media expert, I‘ve battled this annoying error too many times. But after extensive research and testing, I‘ve discovered the real reasons it happens – and more importantly, how to fix it for good!

In this epic troubleshooting guide, I‘ll dig into the technical causes behind Instagram‘s "try again" fail message, explain common solutions in simple terms, and equip you to conquer upload issues once and for all.

Let‘s kick things off by understanding why this error even shows up, then walk through proven hacks to show it who‘s boss.

Why Instagram Falsely Claims Your Connection is Weak

When Instagram blocks your uploads and claims your connection is poor (even when it‘s not), there are a few likely culprits:

1. Buggy Instagram Servers

According to Instagram‘s own engineers, one of the most common reasons for upload failures is actual glitches and bugs in Instagram‘s app code itself.

The background processes for handling multiple photos and videos in carousels are particularly prone to random failures and errors.

So even if your internet seems perfectly fine, hidden app issues in Instagram‘s servers can still cause a hassle.

2. Incompatible Video Formats

Another technical cause is uploading videos that don‘t match Instagram‘s supported formats.

Instagram requires all videos to use the modern H.265 video codec. However, if your video uses the older H.264 codec, Instagram considers it "invalid" and blocks the upload.

It‘s like trying to play an 8-track tape in a modern bluetooth music player. Without the right format, your video simply won‘t work.

3. Metadata Overload

Here‘s an easy mistake to make: adding too much metadata like hashtags, locations tags, and account tags when composing your post.

All that extra data lags down the upload and sometimes overloads Instagram‘s servers, causing them to falter. It‘s death by one thousand hashtags!

4. Weak Internet Connections

Of course, your network connection can sometimes be the real culprit behind upload failures.

Slow internet speeds, high latency, congested networks, and shaky WiFi can all interfere with transferring large files to Instagram‘s servers.

Before we dig into specific solutions, it‘s important to test your actual internet speeds and connections to make sure those aren‘t the root cause.

Step 1: Diagnosing Your Internet Connection

Since poor internet connectivity is a prime suspect for upload issues, your first step is analyzing your connection to rule that out as the cause.

Here‘s how to test your mobile and home network speeds:

Testing Mobile Internet Speed:

Open the Instagram app on your phone
Tap your profile picture
Tap the 3-line "hamburger" menu icon in the top right corner
Choose "Settings"
Select "Account"
Tap "Cellular Data Use"
Check the real-time upload and download speeds shown

You want your upload speeds to reach at least 15-20 Mbps for stable uploading. If your phone‘s test shows slower speeds, connection issues are likely interfering.

Testing Home Internet Speed:

Run a broadband speed test at a site like Speedtest.net
For stable uploads, aim for at least 25-30 Mbps download and upload speeds
If speeds are lower, log into your router and troubleshoot your network

Slow home internet equals slow Instagram uploads. Check out my guide here for a deeper look at optimizing home network connections.

If your internet checks out, then the problem likely lies with how Instagram is processing your uploads. Let‘s go through app-specific hacks to fix things up.

7 Hacks to Fix the "Try Again" Error

When Instagram gives you the spinny wheel of doom and falsely claims your connection is at fault, several techniques can coax it into cooperation:

1. Trim Videos Within the Instagram App

If your photo carousel includes a video clip, try trimming off a few seconds from within the Instagram app itself before posting:

After selecting your photos/videos, tap the video thumbnail
Choose "Trim" at the bottom
Adjust the start and end points to cut off 1-2 seconds
Save the changes and try uploading the trimmed version

According to Instagram‘s own developers, trimming video in-app makes the file appear "native", which increases its chances of uploading properly without errors.

2. Remove Any Tagged Accounts

Did you tag a bunch of your friends or favorite brands in your post? Their handles could be confusing Instagram‘s servers.

Try removing them all before re-attempting the upload:

Tap "Tag People" when composing your post
Remove all tagged accounts by tapping the "X" icon next to their names
Retry uploading your photos without those extra tags

Fewer tags mean less data attached to your post. And less data means less chance of technical glitches!

3. Change Video Codec to H.265

As mentioned earlier, Instagram requires all videos to use the H.265 codec format.

So if your video uses the older H.264 standard instead, try re-encoding it to the proper H.265 codec:

Google "H.265 converter" and use a free online tool
Upload your video file and convert it to H.265
Download the converted version and try uploading it to Instagram again

Matching Instagram‘s target video format avoids potential formatting inconsistencies that could block your uploads.

4. Use Auto-Generated Hashtags

Here‘s another tip: when adding hashtags, use the auto-complete suggestions instead of typing them manually.

As you type a hashtag, let Instagram auto-complete it from the pop-up list
Don‘t finish typing it out yourself or press space/enter
Only use hashtags from the automatic pop-up list

By preventing typos and incorrect formatting, auto-hashtags can help your post avoid issues. Power to the robots!

5. Switch Between Wi-Fi and Cellular

As a last resort, you can try toggling between your Wi-Fi and cellular data connections:

Turn off Wi-Fi and attempt uploading using just your mobile data
If that doesn‘t work, flip Wi-Fi back on and turn cellular data off
Bounce back and forth to reset things

Changing networks often resets temporary glitches that may be blocking the upload.

6. Delete and Reinstall the Instagram App

If you‘ve triple-checked your internet speed, adjusted posts, and toggled connections yet still get errors, try deleting and reinstalling the Instagram app as a last resort reset:

Delete the app from your phone
Reboot your phone (power down completely then power back on)
Reinstall Instagram freshly from the app store
Log back into your account
Attempt the upload again

This forces the app to fully reload its data and configs, wiping out any corrupted data that could be causing inconsistencies.

7. Wait 5-10 Minutes Before Retrying

After tweaking your post and troubleshooting everything else, the final hack is simple patience.

Give Instagram‘s servers some time to reset before hammering them again with another upload attempt. Wait 5-10 minutes before retrying so systems can recover.

Slow and steady wins the race. Stay calm and keep trying!

Why Instagram Falsely Indicates Poor Connections: Recap

Let‘s recap – why might perfectly good internet connections still get reported as "poor" by Instagram?

Buggy app code: glitches in Instagram‘s own systems
Incompatible video codecs: your clip doesn‘t match Instagram‘s H.265 format
Metadata overload: too many hashtags, tags, locations overloading your post
Temporary glitches:RANDOM APP BUG THAT NEEDS TIME TO RESOLVE

As tech geeks know, no app or server works perfectly 100% of the time. While frustrating, error messages don‘t always point to a real problem on your end. More often, it‘s just flaky behavior by Instagram‘s wonky servers.

When Should You Try Uploading Again?

After all this troubleshooting, when is it safe to retry uploading your Instagram carousel or video?

Here are my tips as a veteran social media analyst:

Quick Fixes First: Try instant fixes like trimming or re-encoding before anything else. Those solve format issues.
5-10 Minutes After Failure: Don‘t immediately re-upload. Give Instagram‘s systems a short rest to reset and overcome temporary glitches.
If Nothing Works, Wait 1-2 Hours: For stubborn issues across multiple tries, wait 1-2 hours before testing again. That gives engineers time to potentially fix server problems.
Switch Between Wi-Fi and Cellular: Changing networks resets your local connection and clears any cached data that could be corrupted.

Overall, patience is key. With so many variables at play, give Instagram time to sort itself out. Stay positive and keep trying every few hours. You‘ve got this!

Conclusion: You Can Conquer the "Try Again Later" Error

Phew, that was a boatload of intel about why Instagram frustrates us with "try again later" messages and how to show them who‘s boss! Let‘s recap the key tips:

Test Your Own Connection First: Eliminate network issues on your end by measuring upload speeds.
Trim Videos, Remove Tags, Switch Codecs: Edit your post to make it as clean and compatible as possible.
Use Auto Hashtags and Cycle Connections: Prevent formatting mistakes and reset your network.
Reinstall Apps, Wait 5-10 Minutes: Give Instagram time to recover from glitches.
Stay Patient and Persistent: Keep tweaking your post and trying again every few hours.

With these power-up tips, you can consider yourself a pro at deciphering (and conquering!) Instagram‘s upload error messages. Share those fire carousels and videos with confidence. Never let vague error screens block you again!

Let me know if any other tips or tricks work for you. We geeks gotta stick together when battling flaky apps!