How to Get Followed on Pinterest: A Step-by-Step Guide

Followers do not find you on Pinterest. Your pins do.

Pinterest ranks content by keyword relevance and save behavior, not by your follower count. That single fact changes almost everything about how you should approach growth here compared to Instagram or TikTok.

Before You Start

• A Pinterest account you can convert to (or already have as) a Business account
• At least 3-5 board topics mapped to your niche
• A source of original images or graphics (product photos, blog images, or a design tool like Canva)
• 20-30 minutes a week you can commit to pinning consistently

Step 1: Switch to a Pinterest Business Account

Do this first. Everything else in this guide depends on it.

A Business account is free, and it unlocks Pinterest Analytics, Rich Pins (which pull in extra metadata like pricing or article headlines), and access to the Trends tool that shows what people are actively searching for. Without it, you are pinning blind. You cannot see which pins are driving saves, clicks, or profile visits, so you have no way to know what to repeat.

Go to your settings and convert your existing personal account rather than starting a new one. A fresh account starts with zero search history and zero authority on any topic, which makes the first few months slower than they need to be.

Step 2: Optimize Your Profile and Boards for Search, Not for People

Pinterest scans titles, pin descriptions, board topics, and linked domains to match content to what a searcher is looking for, and weighs how closely your content matches a user’s established interests, according to Sprout Social’s analysis of the Pinterest algorithm . It is not primarily ranking content based on who follows whom.

That means your profile name, bio, and board titles need to work like search listings, not like a personal bio.

• Display name: Include your niche, not just your brand name. “Sarah Lane | Budget Home Decor” outperforms “Sarah Lane” for discovery.
• Bio: Front-load the specific topics you cover, using the exact phrases your audience searches.
• Board titles: Use full search phrases instead of one-word labels. “Small Bathroom Storage Ideas” beats “Bathroom.”
• Board descriptions: Write 1-2 sentences per board using related keywords naturally, not stuffed.

Think of every board as its own landing page for a specific search query, not as a folder for storing pins you like. A board titled “Inspiration” tells the algorithm nothing about intent. A board titled “Budget-Friendly Small Bathroom Storage Ideas” tells it exactly which searches to surface that board for, and every pin you add reinforces that topic signal. This is also why niching down early helps: 5 tightly-focused boards outrank 20 vague ones for search visibility, because each one builds a clearer relevance signal over time.

Step 3: Design Pins in the Format the Algorithm Rewards

Pin dimensions are not a style choice. They affect how much space you get in the feed, which affects how many people see the pin before they ever decide to follow you.

The standard, best-performing pin size is 1000 x 1500 pixels, a 2:3 vertical ratio, per Tailwind’s Pinterest image size guide . Square and horizontal images take up less vertical space in the feed and get scrolled past faster. Every pin should also carry:

• A clear, legible headline in bold text, readable at thumbnail size
• One focal image or graphic, not five competing elements
• Your brand or website name in a small, consistent spot (builds recognition over repeated views)

If you are not a designer, a template tool like Canva or Adobe Express with a locked 2:3 canvas removes the guesswork.

Standard and square pin sizes per Tailwind’s Pinterest image size guide ; Video Pin dimensions per Sprout Social’s guide to Pinterest video best practices . When in doubt, default to the standard 2:3 pin. It is the format Pinterest’s own feed layout favors, and it is the one you will use most often.

Step 4: Write Descriptions That Match What People Actually Type

Every pin needs a description of 1-2 sentences that reads naturally while including the specific phrase someone would search for. Skip generic captions like “love this!” — they carry zero search signal.

A useful pattern: state what the pin shows, who it is for, and the outcome. “A 5-step morning routine for new parents who want more energy without adding another app to check.” That sentence contains searchable phrases and reads like something a human wrote, not a keyword dump.

Add a handful of relevant hashtags underneath the description, typically 3-5 per pin based on common Pinterest creator practice. They help Pinterest categorize new pins quickly, but they will never substitute for a genuinely well-written description.

Step 5: Pin on a Consistent Schedule

Pinterest is a search engine that rewards accounts with a steady stream of fresh, relevant content over accounts that post in one large burst and then go quiet. Consistency compounds here because each new pin is a fresh chance to rank for a search query, and a dormant board signals less activity to the algorithm.

You do not need to pin daily to see traction. A realistic, sustainable cadence, 3-5 pins a week spread across relevant boards, will outperform a 20-pin burst followed by three weeks of silence. Use a scheduling tool if manual daily pinning is not realistic for your workflow.

The reason consistency compounds is straightforward: each pin is a separate, permanent entry in Pinterest’s search index. Unlike a feed post that disappears from view within days, a pin can keep surfacing in search results for months, sometimes years, after you published it. A steady publishing habit means you are constantly adding new entry points into search, while an inactive board eventually stops earning fresh distribution even if the older pins on it are still ranking. Treat pinning less like posting and more like publishing pages to a small, permanent website inside Pinterest.

Step 6: Publish Video Pins for Extra Distribution

Pinterest retired the standalone “Idea Pin” format in 2023, folding it into a single, unified Pin creation flow. Today, adding video or multiple images to an organic Pin simply renders it as a Video Pin. Video Pins are designed to surface in home feeds, search results, and related Pins, per Sprout Social’s guide to Pinterest video best practices . Pinterest’s mobile app also includes a dedicated Watch tab for video content, per Wyzowl’s 2026 Pinterest video guide . (“Idea ads” now exists only as a paid ad format, not an organic posting option.)

Use short Video Pins, roughly 6-15 seconds with the hook in the first 2-3 seconds, for tutorials, before/after transformations, or step-by-step content that benefits from motion over a static image. Standard image pins still work well for driving clicks to a specific blog post or product page, so use both formats rather than replacing one with the other.

Step 7: Track Saves in Pinterest Analytics and Repeat What Works

Saves are one of the core engagement signals Pinterest tracks. A save tells the algorithm someone found your content valuable enough to want to find it again later. Per Sprout Social’s Pinterest algorithm research , Pinterest also looks at how many people save your Pins, zoom in on images, or click through to your site, weighing these signals together when deciding how widely to distribute a Pin.

Open Pinterest Analytics weekly and note which pins are generating the most saves and outbound clicks. Then do more of that: same topic, similar format, same board. Growth on Pinterest is rarely one viral pin. It is a compounding library of pins that keep resurfacing in search months after you published them.

Want your Instagram growth working alongside your Pinterest strategy? See our complete guide to building an audience from zero for the platform-choice framework that ties your channels together.

Common Mistakes

1. Chasing Follows Directly Instead of Chasing Saves

Follow-for-follow schemes and “follow me for a follow back” comments do not move the algorithm. Pinterest ranks and distributes content based on relevance and save behavior, not on your follower count or who follows whom. A creator with 500 followers and consistently saveable pins will out-rank a creator with 5,000 followers and low-save content.

2. Uploading Square or Horizontal Images

A square Instagram-style image or a horizontal blog banner both lose real estate in the Pinterest feed compared to a proper 2:3 vertical pin. This is one of the easiest fixes on this list and one of the most commonly ignored.

3. Writing Zero-Keyword Descriptions

“So good!” and “Obsessed with this” tell the algorithm nothing about what the pin contains or who should see it. Every description is a missed search-ranking opportunity when it does not include the terms people actually type.

4. Posting in Bursts and Then Going Silent

Uploading 30 pins in one afternoon and then disappearing for a month resets your momentum every time. A steady, sustainable weekly cadence outperforms sporadic bursts, even when the total pin count ends up similar.

5. Ignoring Analytics Entirely

Pinning without checking which pins actually earn saves means repeating guesses instead of repeating what is proven to work. Ten minutes a week in Pinterest Analytics tells you exactly which topics and formats to make more of.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you get followed on Pinterest?

Get followed by publishing consistently saveable, keyword-optimized pins in the 2:3 vertical format, organized into clearly named boards. Pinterest’s algorithm ranks content on relevance and save behavior first, so followers accumulate as a byproduct of your pins ranking well in search, not from directly chasing follows.

How long does it take to grow Pinterest followers?

Most accounts see initial traction within 4-8 weeks of consistent pinning, with meaningful follower growth typically building over 3-6 months as boards accumulate search authority. Pinterest content also has a longer shelf life than most platforms; pins commonly keep generating saves and traffic many months after publishing.

Does following other Pinterest accounts get you followers back?

Following other accounts rarely generates a proportional follow-back, since Pinterest’s discovery feed is driven by keyword relevance and save signals rather than social reciprocity. A better use of that time is engaging genuinely with niche-relevant boards and improving your own pin descriptions.

Do hashtags help you get more Pinterest followers?

Hashtags provide minor categorization help but carry far less ranking weight than pin descriptions, board titles, and save behavior. Use 3-5 relevant hashtags per pin as a supplement, not as your primary discovery strategy.

How many pins should I post per day to grow on Pinterest?

There is no fixed daily requirement. A sustainable 3-5 pins per week, spread across relevant boards, tends to outperform sporadic high-volume bursts followed by inactivity. Consistency over time matters more than raw daily volume.

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