How to schedule Instagram Reels from your Mac with LUME Cortex
Updated
Quick answer
To schedule Reels from LUME Cortex, connect Instagram to LUME Hub, have the Cortex Pro or Agency plan, edit your video and, at the end, choose to schedule instead of just exporting, with the post caption, date and time. LUME Hub publishes it at that time through your Instagram connection.
With LUME Cortex, your edited video doesn't have to go back to your phone: on the paid plans, it goes from your Mac straight to the schedule of the Instagram account connected to LUME Hub. You pick the post caption, date and time, and the Hub publishes it for you.
What you need
- Instagram connected to LUME Hub, with permission to publish. Cortex uses that same connection. To connect it, see the Presence section.
- The Cortex Pro or Agency plan. On the Cortex screen in LUME Hub, the Seu plano no Cortex (Your Cortex plan) card says "agenda no Instagram" (schedules to Instagram) when your plan includes scheduling. How to subscribe is in the LUME Cortex guide.
- LUME Cortex installed on your Mac and signed in with your Hub account.
Button names inside the Mac app can change between versions, so the steps describe the path, not the exact label of each button.
Step by step
- Edit your video in Cortex: pause cutting, captions and motion graphics. If you need help, see how to edit a short video for Reels on Mac.
- At the end of the edit, choose to schedule to Instagram instead of only exporting the file.
- Write the post caption. On the paid plans, Cortex's AI can help you write it.
- Pick the publishing date and time.
- On the Agency plan, check which brand the post is going to before you confirm.
- Confirm. The post is scheduled in LUME Hub, which publishes it at the time you set.
After scheduling
LUME Hub publishes the Reel at the chosen time through the account's Instagram connection. A post goes through three states: scheduled, published or failed. If it fails, the reason is saved on the post.
The most common plan error says the account's LUME Cortex plan doesn't include Instagram scheduling. It shows up when the account the post goes out on has neither the Cortex Pro or Agency plan nor a LUME Hub Instagram module. The post isn't retried automatically: subscribe to the plan and schedule it again.
Team edit requests
If the video came from an edit request by the LUME team, it may arrive with a suggested caption and time. When you schedule or publish it from Cortex, the request turns Pronto (done) on the Cortex screen in LUME Hub, and whoever asked for it is notified.
See also
To polish the on-screen text before scheduling, see how to add auto captions to a video. LUME Hub's post calendar and approvals live in the Content section.
Frequently asked questions
Can I schedule Reels on the free version of Cortex?
No. Instagram scheduling is part of the Pro and Agency plans. On the free version, you export the video and post it another way.
Do I need to connect Instagram inside Cortex?
No. Cortex uses the Instagram account you connected to LUME Hub, with the same login. If Instagram isn't connected to the Hub yet, connect it first in the Presence area.
Can I schedule Reels for clients?
On the Agency plan, yes, for up to 10 brands. The post goes out on the brand's account, and only people who serve that brand can do it: the brand's team with Cortex enabled or the portfolio owner who manages the client.
Why did my scheduled post fail with a plan error?
When the account the post goes out on doesn't have a Cortex plan with scheduling, the post fails with a notice that the account's LUME Cortex plan doesn't include Instagram scheduling. Subscribe to Pro or Agency and schedule it again.
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