IGTV as a separate product was retired in late 2022, but the videos posted during its lifetime (2018–2022) are still reachable through Instagram's public URLs. To download an IGTV video in 2026, copy the video URL from the Instagram app or the /tv/ path on instagram.com and paste it into InstaSaver. The parser handles the legacy format the same way it handles a normal Reel.
What happened to IGTV
IGTV launched in June 2018 as Instagram's answer to YouTube. It allowed videos up to 60 minutes long (15 minutes for unverified accounts) and was the only place on Instagram where you could upload horizontal video. The dedicated IGTV app was discontinued in 2021, and in 2022 Instagram merged IGTV into the main feed as simply "Instagram Videos". Old uploads kept their original /tv/ URL pattern, which is still the marker a downloader uses to identify them today.
If you have a link starting with instagram.com/tv/, it is an IGTV video. If it starts with instagram.com/reel/, it is a Reel. If it starts with instagram.com/p/ it is a regular feed post, which may or may not contain a video.
Step-by-step: save an IGTV video
Step 1: Get the /tv/ URL
On desktop, open instagram.com, navigate to the video on the creator's profile (look for the TV icon tab on older profiles), and copy the address bar. On mobile, the tap-to-share flow also produces the /tv/ URL. If the creator re-uploaded the video as a Reel later, you may need to hunt for the original.
Step 2: Paste into InstaSaver.one
The parser recognises /tv/ URLs and fetches the same MP4 endpoint Instagram uses for its own mobile app. No special mode is required.
Step 3: Save the MP4
Because IGTV videos can be long (up to an hour for verified accounts), the file size is often 200–500 MB. Make sure you are on Wi-Fi or have enough mobile data budget.
Aspect ratio gotchas
IGTV was one of the few Instagram formats that accepted horizontal 16:9 video alongside vertical 9:16. When you save an IGTV file you get the original aspect ratio, not the cropped version Instagram sometimes displays inside the feed. If you plan to repost on a vertical-only platform like Reels or TikTok, you will need to crop the 16:9 source yourself with a video editor.
File size vs. quality
A 5-minute IGTV video at 1080p24 is roughly 80 MB. A 30-minute video at the same settings is around 500 MB. Instagram does not offer a 4K IGTV encode, so even videos originally shot in 4K are down-sampled to 1080p for public distribution. The MP4 you save is the exact file Instagram hands to its mobile app.
Why IGTV videos sometimes fail to download
The most common cause is a creator migrating their old IGTV videos to Reels and deleting the originals. When that happens the /tv/ URL returns 404 even though the video still exists under a /reel/ URL. Search for the video title on the creator's profile and copy the Reel URL instead.
A second common cause is a creator making their profile private after you bookmarked the /tv/ link. Public IGTV content disappears from the logged-out endpoint the moment the profile switches to private, regardless of when the video was originally posted.
Quick facts
| Attribute | IGTV (2018-2022) | Instagram Videos (2022+) |
|---|---|---|
| Max length | 60 min (verified) | 90 sec (feed) / 90 min (Reels) |
| Aspect ratio | 9:16 or 16:9 | 9:16 primary |
| URL pattern | /tv/ | /reel/ or /p/ |
| Resolution | 1080p max | 1080p max |