11 Types of Selfie Captions on Instagram & How to Master Them

From meaningful quotations to witty humor to engaging “convos”, here are the 11 types of selfie captions everyone uses on Instagram, and how to become a pro at each!

Hey gorgeous! You can love social media, or you can hate it, but you can’t escape it. For those of us who love to use it, selfies are a big part of this usage, whether you’re posting your own or looking at others! And this research may have never been done or published until now, but I’ve analyzed many selfie captions to realize that there are certain specific types that the pros use.

11 Types of Selfie Captions on Instagram

There are 11 types of selfie captions used by influencers, celebs and Instagram users in general. These include quotes, funny, celebratory, descriptive, revelatory, experience, conversational and more. Let’s get to know about each type with examples, and how to use them.

1. Quotes

Easy to find all over the internet, quotes are some of the simplest captions to use on your Instagram pics. They’re there when you really can’t think of anything else! And there’s a quote for every occasion, mood and thought! That’s why a lot of small bloggers and everyday users post quotes as their Instagram captions.

Quotes can make you look smart when you’re really not! But there’s no shortcut to creating a large fan-base. That’s probably why celebrities use quotes much less frequently, since the best of Instagram users try to create their original captions. So if you truly want to sound smart, create your own quotes, or use other types of selfie captions.

Some examples:

• Happiness and beauty are by-products.
• Mondays are important because they make Tuesdays seem better!
• We eat not so we can live, we live so we can eat (tag a foodie)!
• Art is the strongest symbol of protest.

How to Write Quotes

Of course, the simplest way is to just google your mood and take a quote off the internet. If you can’t think of anything, just take a line from your favorite movie or song if it goes with your mood. And don’t forget to credit the source if you took it from somewhere.

However, if you want to write your own, original quotes, read on. It may seem like only deep thinkers or extraordinarily smart people can write original quotes. But I believe that just about anyone can.

So think about what you deeply believe in, even if others don’t agree with you. What are your personal beliefs, ethics and lifestyle principles? Just write them down in a simple way that anyone can understand. You can also use wordplay to make your quotes sound more profound.

2. Descriptive

Descriptive selfie captions are really what they sound like – they just describe the picture or selfie. They may talk about the mood, the day, weather, place or activity the pic is capturing. These are the easiest types of selfie captions and the quickest to create. Also, they may be just an emoji, in which case they’re also the laziest types of selfie captions!

Examples:

• Can’t get this song out of my head.
• Cozy Sunday.
• *Flips hair*
• Monday Morning Mood
• Bedhead and coffee
• No pamper sesh is complete without a selfie!
• C’est la vie!
• A couple of new pics I found from an old photo shoot!
• I woke up like this.
• No makeup, no filters.

How to Write Descriptive Selfie Captions

You can just use one word to describe a mood. Easy-peasy. Or talk about the weather or describe what you’re doing in a sentence. You can simply write about how you’re feeling about your activity, like “Sweet ice-cream!” or “Can’t get enough of these cute animals!” You really can’t go wrong with these! The only trick is to not make it too boring. So don’t use these types of selfie captions with every pic.

3. Revelatory

Revelatory selfie captions are similar to descriptive ones. They describe the picture, but they do it in a way that reveals something new about you. These types of selfie captions are often used by teens to reveal their new interests, hobbies or personality traits to their classmates or crushes!

But even celebrities use these types of selfie captions to share personal things with their fans. Revelatory captions are engaging because they make the post seem personal. They show a hidden side of you to the audience and make you seem more authentic.Oftentimes, these types of selfie captions may seem descriptive, but have hidden details to make them seem more relatable or personal.

Here are a few examples:

• Trying 80s style makeup today! It reminds me of my mom who used to wear this exact style in her college pics!
• 20s were all about hating my body. 30s are all about accepting it as it is!
• Watching rom-coms – my kinda style to end the weekend!

How to Write Revelatory Selfie Captions

Some people love sharing tid-bits about themselves, and they can write these types of selfie captions naturally. However, private people like me who hate sharing things in the fear hat people may not be interested, may need to work hard to learn to share.

Simply think of interesting things about your personality, your fun hobbies or achievements that you haven’t told the world yet. Then think of what goes with your selfie. For example, you may want to show off an achievement, or reveal something about your childhood. You may want to reveal that you just had a bad experience, or a profound one.

4. Experience

Experiences are always an easy thing to write about, since they obviously describe the selfie and also give you the opportunity to share new things. Experience selfie captions talk about your travels, daily activities, or past experiences.

Some examples:

• Throwback from my sweetest trip when I really realized why I love traveling…
• I was on my way back from work today when I realized how much I’d been missing my family back home!
• Chicago! Facebook tells me this was 7 years ago today!
• No one hugs better than koalas!

Sky diving was one of the most profound experiences I’ve ever had in my life – giving up my fear of life, understanding my sense of self and will, all the while appreciating the beauty of the vast expanse of the sky. But don’t ask me to do it again!

How to Write Experience Selfie Captions

Just think of what you’ll really remember about a certain experience. It’s like writing a very short diary entry. Think of each picture and caption like creating small memoirs that you’ll be able to look back at and appreciate. Write about what you liked the most – like a feeling associated with a place, or someone you met, or anything interesting that happened on a day that sort of defined it.

5. Funny

Funny selfie captions can make your followers laugh, and they’ll love you for it. It’s great to have loads of funny captions, because it gives people a reason to follow you. They’ll look forward to your next pic! So it’s a great idea to master writing funny captions.

• A selfie a day keeps depression away.

How to Write Funny Selfie Captions

Jokes don’t have much in common, except that they usually have an unexpected twist. That’s what makes them funny. So if you wanna create funny captions, talk about what your followers didn’t expect you to say. For example, end a deeply profound caption with something cool and silly. Or add a pic of something else, then talk about something else.

The trick is to not try too hard, else your captions will start getting cringey. I understand that not everyone is naturally funny. But it’s okay if you take a funny caption from somewhere and add credits. If not, you can just use other types of selfie captions. Just do what you do best.

6. Self-Deprecating

Self-deprecating is a type of humor in which the person makes fun of themselves. So these types of selfie captions are trying to make your audience laugh at your own expense. This is one of the best types of humor since no one is getting hurt, and people think of you as a humble, down-to-earth person.

• I wish I could be also write my review on the latest season of GoT but I have no opinions at all, even though I’ve wasted years watching every episode!
• I try to have an open mind but my brains keep falling out.
• They say I’m gonna hate myself in the morning if I sleep till late. Bold of them to assume I’ll love myself otherwise.

How to Write Self-Deprecating Selfie Captions

It takes a bold person to pull off self-deprecating humor. So you gotta start taking yourself less seriously. Stop thinking about what other people will think. Instead of hiding your flaws, bring them out and show the world they don’t affect you in a negative way.

Self-deprecating humor is also used as a self-defense mechanism by some people, to laugh at their flaws instead of feeling sorry for themselves. Some people use humor as a silly facade to hide their insecurities. If this is the case, you may want to watch out for those mean comments, as you don’t want to end up getting hurt in the process. People may also talk about your captions and their “real meaning” in real life (offline), so take it all in your stride and be light-hearted about it.

7. Advertorial

As the name suggests, advertorial captions serve as ads to talk about a product, service or new blog post. These can be fun, if a celebrity is talking about their old or latest movie or TV show. Or they can also be interesting if it’s about something the followers like.

However, your followers may also hate these types of selfie captions if they don’t add value, since they are just using your selfie to try to direct the attention of your followers towards a product or service. Instagrammers also use advertorial captions to promote things that they may be getting paid for. Beware, if not used properly, advertorial selfie captions can make you come across as unauthentic and superficial. So they should never seem spammy or overdone.

Let’s check out a few examples:

• Wanna know what my 35 must haves for office are? Discover the ultimate list of work wardrobe must haves (Link in bio)
• I’ve found the perfect skincare routine for me. Link in bio!
• New video coming up next week! Stay tuned!

How to Write Advertorial Selfie Captions

They may take a bit of practice in the beginning, but once you’ve got the hang of it, it’ll seem like writing anything else. Concentrate on the facts. Keep it short and only write what may seem helpful or interesting to your followers.

Remember, your followers are like you: they’ll hate fake things. Avoid being overly sweet. Avoid writing anything that you wouldn’t wanna read on someone else’s account. Try to be as genuine as you can, and throw in things that come from the heart, or that are funny. For example, if you’re promoting a new video, talk about how much work you put into it, or what makes its information credible. Talk about why you’re passionate about your work without being cheesy.

8. Celebratory & Wishes

These types of Instagram selfie captions are great ideas for festivals, holidays and when you want to celebrate professional milestones or personal achievements. Or it can be a simple hi! Things like announcing your engagement, celebrating an anniversary, or wishing your followers happy holidays are best said with a smile and exclamation point!

Here are a few examples:

• Guys have I told you lately that I love you?
• Have a fantabulous evening!
• Happy Halloween!

How to Write Celebratory Selfie Captions

Here you don’t always need to be 100% original. If you can’t think of anything else, it’s okay to be inspired by someone else’s post. However, if you want to be original, that’s even better. Just write a heartfelt message to your followers. A few words are more than enough. But if you really want, you can write a longer message thanking them, wishing them happiness and telling them how you feel.

9. Cheeky

Cheeky posts are the opposite of self-deprecating captions – instead of making fun of yourself, you flamboyantly praise yourself. The extra-ness of these selfie captions makes them seem funny or cool. Cheeky posts are not everyone’s cup of tea, but are a great way to be unapologetically proud of yourself and your quirks.

• I love drama.
• Moody af.
• Confidence level: selfie with no filter.
• Some may need others’ approval, I am one of the others.
• Less makeup doesn’t make me any less glam!
• I’m sexy and you know it!
• Born to make bold statements.
• Not everyone likes me, but not everyone matters.
• IDGAF
• Never mind.

How to Write Cheeky Selfie Captions

Just think of what your mood is and be a little extra about it. Even if it’s something neutral or negative, try to be proud of it! These are like your bragging rights. Show off your flaws and show the world you don’t care about anyone’s approval. Beware, too much of cheekiness isn’t considered a good thing, and it may be off-putting for some people. Afterall, being humble and down-to-earth are always timeless traits. So be cheeky in moderation and also show your humble side at other times.

10. Secretly Romantic

Secretly romantic captions are, of course, outrightly romantic but they are secretly directed towards someone in particular. Or they may just seem innocent but are actually romantically directed towards someone else, like an inside joke. They only work if that special someone reads it. And then understands that they are the object of your secret affections!

• I was up there because of you and I know that every minute of every day.
• You don’t even know how many selfies I took to select this one out for you!

How to Write Secretly Romantic Selfie Captions

Well, I’m perhaps not the right person to give advice on being secretly romantic, since I was never able to tell any of my crushes in high school that I liked them. I didn’t even try! But yeah, sometimes trying to grab someone’s attention becomes necessary.

So just tell them your feelings in a simple, not too extra way. The goal is to not shock them or scare them away. Just be sweet and make it harmless and innocent enough! Be prepared as someone else may get the wrong idea and message you to ask if it was about them. Way to ruin a romantic mood!

11. Conversational

Conversational selfie captions are engaging, and are intended to make your audience reply to your post. They are usually light-hearted and end in a question, encouraging the followers to reply. They may also tell them to do something, like a suggestion or starting in “Let’s”.

• It’s the weekend! What are your plans?
• I’m thinking of starting a book club. Who’s in?
• If you had one last day to live, what would you spend it doing?
• Sup?

How to Write Conversational Selfie Captions

Connversational selfie captions are more about engagement than the selfie itself. They are bold, in that they try to start a conversation with strangers and friends alike. So they may end up going in a direction you didn’t intend. You may get too many weird replies, or you may not get any reply at all. Be prepared for all outcomes!

To write these types of selfie captions, just think of topics that may be interesting to a large number of people, like a new movie, a current event or news, or something you deeply believe in. Talk about your own opinion and ask others’ opinions. Or post a poll, asking people to vote on something simple. It can be something meaningful or informative like wisdom and life. Or just go for something silly that’s just time-pass like celeb gossip or useless stuff like TV or whatever!

So these are all the 11 types of selfie captions that constitute almost all captions on Instagram. In fact, they even constitute non-selfie captions. So which one are you guilt of most commonly using? And which one do you wish you could master? Lemme know below! And tag me in the pic that has the most creative caption you’ve ever created. I’d love to see (and like) it!

Muaah!