How to Create an Instagram Catalog? Step-by-Step Guide

An Instagram catalog is a digital product database that allows you to showcase your products with prices, descriptions, and images on Instagram Shop and your posts. Instagram uses this data in the catalog to create a Shop tab on your profile, product tags, and collections.

It is especially essential for e-commerce businesses, boutiques, manufacturers, or service providers—catalogs form the backbone of the sales journey on Instagram. If your products are not in the catalog, you cannot tag products in posts, open a Shop tab, or direct users straight to the purchase page.

As stated in Instagram’s official help center (Instagram Help), to use shopping features, your products must comply with policies and be properly defined in the catalog. Missing a small detail during setup can lead to your account being rejected during the approval process.

Sepetbayım observes that brands who set up their catalogs correctly, especially on Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter, see a significant increase in sales per follower. Because the catalog transforms followers from just “likers” into “customers who can shop.”

What can you do with an Instagram catalog?

Once properly created, with an Instagram catalog you can:

• Tag products in posts, Reels, and Stories
• Open a Shop tab on your profile
• Create product collections and campaign showcases
• Direct users to product or checkout pages with a single tap
• Measure product performance via Meta Business Suite

In this guide, you will learn step-by-step how to create a catalog from scratch, connect it to your Instagram account, add products, resolve errors, and optimize it to convert into sales.

Your account and brand must be ready before opening a catalog. Otherwise, Instagram may not approve your account during review or shopping features may be limited.

Account and business information checklist

Before starting your catalog, make sure you have completed the following steps:

• Instagram account type: Your account must be converted to a Business or Professional (Creator) profile. For detailed instructions, see the Instagram business account setup guide.
• Linked Facebook page: Since Meta’s commerce infrastructure works through Facebook, you must create a page registered in your brand’s name and link it to your Instagram account.
• Your website (if any): If you plan to redirect externally, your website must have an SSL certificate (https) and open product pages.
• Contact information: At least one real contact channel such as email, phone, or WhatsApp must be visible on your profile.

Product and brand preparations

To speed up filling the catalog, prepare the following data in advance:

• Name for each product (short and descriptive)
• Clear and consistent price information (with currency)
• High-resolution product images in 1:1 or 4:5 ratio
• Stock code/SKU or product IDs
• Short but sales-focused descriptions

Tip: The price you use in the catalog must match the price on your website or marketplaces. Different prices can cause trust issues and lead to rejection during approval.

If you are not yet strong in community and reach, even if your product catalog is ready, your conversion rate may remain low. At this stage, you can safely try Sepetbayım’s free Instagram followers and free Instagram likes tools to grow your Instagram audience.

Instagram catalogs use Meta Business infrastructure in the background. Therefore, the first step is to create a catalog account via Meta Business Suite.

Logging into Meta Business Suite

1. Log into your Facebook account via your browser.
2. Go to your business page’s management panel.
3. Open the Meta Business Suite or Meta Business Tools section from the menu.
4. Find the “Catalogs” or “Commerce Manager” link in the left menu.

The interface is updated occasionally, so menu names may vary slightly. But the logic remains: you need to create a catalog object under your business account.

Steps to create a new catalog

1. Click the “Create Catalog” button.
2. Select “E-Commerce” or “Products” as the catalog type.
3. Name the catalog (e.g., Brand Name – Instagram Catalog).
4. Select the business account that will manage the catalog.
5. Click create to open an empty catalog skeleton.

After creating the catalog, you need to specify which platforms it will be used on. Here you can add other channels like Facebook Shop, with Instagram being the primary one.

Connecting your Instagram account to the catalog

1. While on your catalog page, go to the “Settings” section.
2. Click on the “Connected Business Assets” or similarly named menu.
3. Use the “Add Instagram Account” option to select your business profile.
4. Approve the permission requests and save.

This connection allows the products you add shortly to appear as store and product tags on your Instagram Business Account. If you encounter errors during setup, refer to our account issues guides and Instagram official help documents for detailed solutions.

Creating a catalog alone is not enough. Before enabling shopping features, Instagram reviews your account and products to ensure policy compliance. Skipping this step can delay approval or cause outright rejection.

Basic requirements for Instagram shopping

According to Instagram (check the official help page for updated items), to get shopping approval you must:

• Be a real business and sell products that belong to you or the brand you represent
• Offer a physical or digital, tangible product/service
• Have catalog content compliant with community guidelines and commerce policies
• Maintain a regular and consistent posting history
• Provide transparent return, exchange, and delivery terms

Common reasons for rejection during approval

The most frequent rejection reasons in Instagram shopping applications include:

1. Incomplete profile information: Missing bio, profile photo, website, or contact details.
2. Prohibited product categories: Drugs, weapons, adult content, gambling, etc.
3. Poor content history: Very few posts or profiles focused solely on catalogs without organic content.
4. Untrustworthy brand: Amateur images, inconsistent prices, perception of counterfeit products.

Warning: Products you sell in the Instagram catalog must comply with the platform’s Community Guidelines and Commerce Policies. Violating policies may disable your entire catalog.

If your account is very new or has low engagement, it’s a good idea to strengthen your content strategy for a few weeks before applying. During this time, you can increase your reach using the latest engagement techniques guide and Sepetbayım’s free Instagram views tools.

After creating your catalog account and linking it to Instagram, the next critical step is adding products. Meta offers three main methods depending on your business scale: manual addition, bulk product feed, and third-party integrations.

Manual product addition (ideal for small businesses)

If you have a small number of products, adding each one individually via Commerce Manager is the most practical way:

1. Go to the “Items” tab in the catalog panel.
2. Click the “Add Item” button and choose manual addition.
3. Fill in fields like product name, description, price, stock status, URL, and image.
4. Select category and brand, then save.

This method is usually sufficient for boutique businesses with fewer than 50 products.

Bulk product upload via feed (data source)

For medium and large stores, adding products one by one becomes unmanageable. In this case, you need to use a product feed (XML, CSV, Google Sheet):

• Create a product feed URL compatible with your website infrastructure.
• Go to “Data Sources” in Commerce Manager.
• Click “Add New Data Source” and upload your feed URL or file.
• Set the update frequency (daily, hourly).

This method automatically reflects stock and price updates in the catalog.

Third-party integrations

If you use popular platforms like Shopify, WooCommerce, or Ticimax, you can synchronize your catalog with ready Meta integrations. The typical steps are:

1. Install the Facebook/Instagram integration plugin in your store panel.
2. Connect your Meta Business account.
3. Select which products to transfer to the Instagram catalog.

The table below compares the advantages of each method:

After adding products, the next step is to see how to tag these products on Instagram and showcase them in your storefront.

Once your catalog is ready, you need to apply for the Shopping feature inside the Instagram app. This step allows Instagram to scan and approve your catalog data.

Applying within the app

1. Open the Instagram app and go to your business profile.
2. From the top-right menu, go to Settings and Privacy.
3. Find the “Business” or “Professional Tools” menu.
4. Select the “Shopping” option.
5. Select the catalog you want to connect.
6. Accept the terms and submit for review.

After your application is sent to Meta, the review usually takes a few days. When your account is approved, Instagram notifies you and Shop features become visible.

How long does the approval process take?

Review time:

• Usually completed within 24–72 hours.
• Sometimes extended to 1–2 weeks if additional review is needed.
• If your account has prior violations or suspicious activity, the process may take longer.

During this period, continuing regular posting and increasing product content positively affects the algorithm’s trust score.

What to do if your application is rejected?

Rejection reasons are usually communicated via notification or email. Follow these steps:

1. Carefully read the rejection reason (prohibited category, missing info, weak presence, etc.).
2. Edit your profile info, website, and catalog content accordingly.
3. Review Commerce Policies and Community Guidelines if needed.
4. After making necessary corrections, wait a while and reapply through the app.

If your account has restrictions or suspension issues, you must resolve them first. For detailed info, see the Instagram account restriction guide and suspension and appeal guide.

After your shopping feature is approved, the real value creation begins: by adding product tags to your content, you can guide your followers from discovery to purchase.

Tagging products when sharing a new post

1. Create a new photo or video post on Instagram.
2. After applying filters and edits, go to the caption screen.
3. Tap the “Tag Products” option in post settings.
4. Tap the area in the photo or video where the product appears.
5. Select the relevant product from the catalog list.
6. Share the post.

Your followers can now tap the tags in the post to go to the product detail page and from there to your website or checkout channel.

Adding products to existing posts and Reels

You can also match already shared content with your catalog later:

1. Open the relevant post or Reel from your profile.
2. From the three-dot menu, select “Edit”.
3. Tap “Tag Products” or “Add”.
4. Mark product areas in the image and select matching products.

For Reels, showing the product clearly within the first 3 seconds and emphasizing its benefit in the caption significantly increases conversion. For a deeper strategy, check our Reels reach guide.

Tip: Over-tagging products can harm user experience. Usually, 1–3 product tags per post are ideal; try to focus on the main product.

Simply adding and tagging products does not unlock full potential. You need to turn catalog products into a sales funnel with collections, campaign showcases, and story highlights.

Creating collections and showcases

Within Commerce Manager, you can group your catalog products logically:

• Collections: Thematic groups like “New Arrivals,” “Discounted Products,” “Summer Collection.”
• Featured sets: Gathering your top 10 bestsellers in one collection.
• Campaign-focused showcases: Product groups for specific discounts or promotions.

These collections appear as category headers in your Instagram Shop tab, helping users find what they want more easily.

Increasing catalog traffic with stories and highlights

Stories are a powerful space to “tell” about products:

1. Create a series of promotional stories for each collection.
2. Use product tags or shop links in every story.
3. Make these stories permanent in highlight folders like “Collections” or “Discounts”.

For example, promoting all products in a “New Season” highlight folder as individual stories aligns well with mobile users’ browsing habits.

Using the catalog for businesses selling via DM

Businesses still quoting prices or taking orders via DM can use catalog links as follows:

• Send the relevant product page link to customers while chatting in DM
• Add a catalog link in the profile bio with a message like “Check out our store for all products”
• Instead of sharing bulk price lists, direct customers to the relevant collection

When combined with Instagram DM sales techniques, these methods speed up communication and increase trust.

Many businesses that complete Instagram catalog setup make the main mistakes in management. Incorrect prices, out-of-stock products, or low-quality images not only reduce sales but also negatively affect your account’s trust score.

Common catalog mistakes

• Unupdated stock and prices: Not removing sold-out products from the catalog causes disappointment for users.
• Low-resolution or dark product images: Reduce click rates in Explore and shop areas.
• Copy-pasted descriptions: Texts that are not unique and do not clearly explain benefits hurt conversion.
• Wrong categories and tags: Appear in irrelevant search results and degrade ranking quality.

Checklist for solid catalog management

The simple but effective checklist below helps keep your catalog healthy:

1. Check stock and prices at least weekly.
2. Add new products to the catalog within 48 hours at the latest.
3. Clearly update old and new prices during discount periods.
4. Use at least 2 high-quality images from different angles for each product.
5. Include critical info like measurements, sizes, and usage areas in product descriptions.

Tip: If you manage catalog data with Google Sheets or CSV, you can reduce errors by defining simple formulas and color-coded alerts in price and stock fields.

To increase product visibility in the catalog, it’s also important to maintain the overall health of your Instagram profile. For this, you can benefit from our guides on account growth tactics and creating hashtag groups.

When selling on Instagram, you must pay attention not only to platform rules but also to Turkey’s personal data protection and distance sales regulations. Especially the data you collect from users during payment is considered personal data under KVKK.

KVKK and personal data

The basic framework for personal data protection in Turkey is set by the KVKK Authority. When selling via Instagram catalog:

• You must transparently state the purpose and retention period for collecting customer name-surname, address, phone, and payment info.
• Your website should have a disclosure statement and privacy policy. For examples, see Sepetbayım’s KVKK and privacy policy pages.
• You must use the data only for the specified purposes.

Platform agreements and commercial responsibilities

At every step of selling on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, or Twitter, you must comply with their terms of use. For example, for commercial use and advertising policies on Twitter, review the X (Twitter) terms of service. Applying the same approach for Instagram and other networks protects your business from legal risks.

Sepetbayım offers free, password-free tools supported by ads and does not take payments from users; therefore, it handles security and privacy sensitively. When building your own e-commerce and catalog system, adopting a similar transparency and data minimization approach strengthens both your customer’s trust and your long-term brand reputation.

At the final stage, after setting up your catalog and store, you can move on to advanced topics like performance measurement, A/B testing, and content optimization. Our guides in the analysis and measurement category will guide you.