Instagram Reels script template for 15, 30 and 45 seconds
Below are three beat sheets for Instagram Reels, at 15, 30 and 45 seconds. Each opens on a first frame you also pick as the grid cover, carries one line a viewer would forward, and closes on a loop. Two worked scripts show the word count, and the planner times your own lines.
A Reels script is the spoken lines and shot notes for a Reel, cut into timed beats, and the Instagram Reels script template on this page has 4 beats at 15 seconds, 5 at 30 and 6 at 45. Every sheet opens on a first frame that you also pick as the cover, places one line written to be sent, and ends on a loop into it.
Those three beats answer what Instagram has said. In a January 2025 video reported by Social Media Today, Adam Mosseri named watch time, likes per reach and sends per reach as the numbers to watch, with sends counting slightly more among non-followers. That month the profile grid also switched to vertical thumbnails. Both sources were checked on 21 October 2026.
Word count sets the length. This site’s rule of thumb is 2.5 spoken words a second, so a 30-second Reel holds about 75 words.
Free Reels script planner
Pick a length, write each beat in its box, and watch the word count against the budget. Budgets use this site’s rule of thumb of 2.5 words a second. Loaded now: the bottom-watering script at 15 seconds and the move-in script at 30. The 45-second sheet is blank for your own lines.
0 to 2 s: First frame (pick it as the cover too)5 of about 5 words
On screen: First line starts here; subject centred, on-screen text six words or fewer (this site’s rule)
2 to 7 s: The demonstration12 of about 13 words
On screen: One continuous action filmed close, its real sound under the voice
7 to 12 s: Send line13 of about 13 words
On screen: Name the person a viewer would forward this to
12 to 15 s: Loop line6 of about 8 words
On screen: Last shot framed like the first, last words leading into the first line
36 words, about 14.4 seconds spoken. That fits 15 seconds.
What this does: it times the words you type, in your browser. It does not write lines, it sends nothing anywhere, and real speaking speed varies by person, so read the script aloud against a timer once. The Script Generator in the app turns a topic into a ready-to-record short-form script.
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What goes in a 15-second Reels script?
A 15-second Reels script has four beats, and their budgets in the planner add up to 39 words: 5, 13, 13 and 8. Each beat rounds its own seconds × 2.5, so 12.5 and 7.5 round up, while the 15 seconds themselves hold 37.5. Setup gets no beat.
Beat sheet for a 15-second Reel
Seconds
Beat
On screen
Words
0 to 2
First frame (pick it as the cover too)
First line starts here; subject centred, on-screen text six words or fewer (this site’s rule)
5
2 to 7
The demonstration
One continuous action filmed close, its real sound under the voice
13
7 to 12
Send line
Name the person a viewer would forward this to
13
12 to 15
Loop line
Last shot framed like the first, last words leading into the first line
8
Write the first beat twice. It is a spoken line and a still. Since January 2025 the profile grid has shown Reels as vertical thumbnails, so choose that first frame as the cover when you post, and keep its on-screen text to six words or fewer, this site’s rule for a first frame.
Example: bottom watering a houseplant.
First frame (pick it as the cover too): “Water your plant from underneath.”
The demonstration: “Two fingers of water in a bowl. Pot in for ten minutes.”
Send line: “For anyone whose water runs straight out of the bottom of the pot.”
Loop line: “Back in the bowl next week.”
That is 36 words, and 36 ÷ 2.5 = 14.4 seconds, leaving 0.6 seconds of the last shot under music or the sound of the water. “Back in the bowl next week” hands over to the first line when the Reel restarts.
How is a 30-second Reel scripted?
A 30-second Reel gets five beats and about 75 words. The extra time buys a beat for strangers. Instagram’s 31 May 2023 ranking post puts the viewer’s history of interacting with the person who posted second among Reels signals, and a non-follower has no history of interacting with you. The beat cannot stand in for that signal; it tells a stranger who the Reel is for.
Beat sheet for a 30-second Reel
Seconds
Beat
On screen
Words
0 to 2
First frame (pick it as the cover too)
First line starts on frame one; the still has to read on the vertical profile grid
5
2 to 6
Why a stranger should care
Say who it is for; a non-follower has no history of interacting with you
10
6 to 20
The demonstration, step by step
A new shot for each step, with voice, music or room sound under every cut
35
20 to 26
Send line
One sentence that describes a specific friend, said to camera
15
26 to 30
Loop line
Ends mid-thought so the opening line completes it
10
Example: filming a rented flat on move-in day.
First frame (pick it as the cover too): “Film your flat before unpacking.”
Why a stranger should care: “If you rent, this clip is your deposit evidence later.”
The demonstration, step by step: “Walk every room in one take, starting at the front door. Open each cupboard, run each tap, and say what every mark on the wall is. Email it to yourself for the date stamp.”
Send line: “Anyone you know picking up keys this month needs this first.”
Loop line: “Phone out, before the first box comes in.”
68 words ÷ 2.5 = 27.2 seconds, leaving 2.8 seconds of walk-through carried by the track or room sound.
The same sheet as a blank template, to copy into a notes app:
0 to 2 s, about 5 words: First frame (pick it as the cover too)
Say:
On screen:
2 to 6 s, about 10 words: Why a stranger should care
Say:
On screen:
6 to 20 s, about 35 words: The demonstration, step by step
Say:
On screen:
20 to 26 s, about 15 words: Send line
Say:
On screen:
26 to 30 s, about 10 words: Loop line
Say:
On screen:
Two notes in the table answer the same post’s list of Reels Instagram shows less: muted ones and ones made mostly of text. Audio stays on. Keep voice, a track or room sound under every beat, including the seconds with no speech, and leave paragraphs for the caption.
When does a Reel need 45 seconds?
Use 45 seconds when the demonstration has two halves, such as repainting a door where the first coat goes wrong. Reels can run up to 3 minutes since Adam Mosseri’s announcement on 20 and 21 January 2025, though every added beat is another place for watch time to stop.
Beat sheet for a 45-second Reel
Seconds
Beat
On screen
Words
0 to 2
First frame (pick it as the cover too)
First line starts here; the same still test as the shorter sheets
5
2 to 8
Why a stranger should care
The cost of getting it wrong, in one sentence
15
8 to 20
First half, ending on an open question
Stop where a viewer wants to see what happens next
30
20 to 32
Second half and the result
Show the answer on screen before saying it
30
32 to 40
Send line
Who needs this, and when they will need it
20
40 to 45
Loop line
Back to the first frame, so the first line reads as a reply
13
The beat ending at second 20 stops on a question the second half answers: “So why did the second coat look worse than the first?” This page leaves the 45-second sheet for you to write: it has no worked script, and the planner loads it empty. For a topic, the Reels ideas list sorts 30 ideas by why a viewer would send them.
How do you write the line someone sends?
Write one sentence that describes a person the viewer knows, and place it after the demonstration. In the January 2025 video, Mosseri said sends count slightly more with non-followers and likes slightly more with followers.
A draft line describes the topic. A send line describes the recipient.
Draft lines rewritten as send lines
Draft line
Send line
Who it gets sent to
“Bottom watering is good for plants.”
“For anyone whose water runs straight out of the bottom of the pot.”
A friend with a thirsty plant
“Tips for moving into a rental.”
“Anyone you know picking up keys this month needs this first.”
Someone moving this month
“A stretch for desk workers.”
“For the colleague who groans every time they stand up.”
The person at the next desk
Name the person. The 15, 30 and 60 second sheets on the TikTok script generator page have no send beat and spend that stretch on a turn instead.
After posting, the share count on the Reel is the closest number to sends, and Viewers in its insights is the closest to reach. The Instagram engagement rate calculator does the arithmetic, and the Reels pre-posting checklist puts the send check before you share.
Why should a Reel end on a loop?
A loop adds watch time. Instagram’s reel insights help page counts replays in watch time, then divides watch time by initial views, the first play in a reel session, to get average watch time. A replay raises the top of that division and leaves the bottom alone.
The loop example on this page. The 80 replays add 1,200 ÷ 400 = 3 seconds to average watch time without adding initial views; Views, which counts every start and replay, reads 480.
Take the plant Reel with 400 initial views averaging 11 seconds: 4,400 seconds of watch time. If 80 viewers watch it again to the end, that adds 80 × 15 = 1,200 seconds, and 5,600 ÷ 400 = 14 seconds average. Views, which counts every start and replay, shows 480.
Frame the last shot like the first, and make the last line a thought the first line completes: “Phone out, before the first box comes in” runs into “Film your flat before unpacking.” The numbers sit under the Reels tab on your profile, then the reel, then View insights.
Can AI write the script for you?
Go Viral’s Script Generator turns a topic into a ready-to-record short-form script; the app’s Creator Toolkit labels it “15–60s beats”. The planner is not AI. For Reels script writing, use them in this order:
Give the generator a topic with a person in it: “keeping your deposit when you move into a rented flat”.
Paste the draft into the planner, one beat per box, and cut what runs over budget.
Add a send line and a loop line if the draft lacks them.
Record, then import the clip or paste the Reels link. Hook Score rates the first 3 seconds from 0 to 100, and the Engagement Heat Map shows drop-offs and replays.
The app has no Instagram login, so watch time and shares still come from Instagram. With two openings that score close together, test one as a trial reel first.
Questions about scripting Reels
How do you write a script for Instagram Reels?
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Pick the length, then fill one beat at a time: a first frame you also pick as the cover, with a first line of about 5 words, the demonstration, one line a viewer would forward, and a last line that leads back to the start. At this site’s 2.5 words a second, the four 15-second budgets add up to 39 words.
Is there an AI Reels script generator?
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Go Viral’s Script Generator turns a topic into a ready-to-record short-form script, the format a Reel uses. It runs on iPhone and iPad, with a paid subscription for all features. The planner on this page is not AI; it times lines you write, in your browser.
How many words is a 30-second Reel?
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About 75, at this site’s rule of thumb of 2.5 spoken words a second, split 5, 10, 35, 15 and 10 across the five beats. The worked move-in script uses 68, leaving 2.8 seconds of footage carried by music or room sound.
Can a Reel run longer than 45 seconds?
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Yes. Since Adam Mosseri’s announcement on 20 and 21 January 2025, Reels can run up to 3 minutes, up from 90 seconds. Repeat the middle of the 45-second sheet, each part ending on a question the next part answers, and keep one send line and one loop line at any length.
Draft the beats, then score the opening
The Script Generator drafts a short-form script from a topic. Record it, and Hook Score rates the first 3 seconds from 0 to 100 before Instagram shows it to anyone. Free to download, with a paid subscription for all features.