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Pinterest vs. Instagram for Small Business: Which One Brings Better ROI?
As a Pinterest Marketing Manager with solid experience, I often hear this question: Pinterest or Instagram – which platform gives small businesses better ROI? In which I should invest? But, there is no one right answer that will work for every business! So, this post compares reach, conversion, ad costs, content types, and timelines so you can choose the right platform (or both) for your business.
Deciding whether to invest time and ad budget in Pinterest or Instagram is a very common, and smart question for small businesses. Both platforms are visually-driven and powerful, but they serve different user intent and marketing goals. Below I break down the hard differences, the metrics that matter, and a practical playbook so you can choose the platform that will deliver the best ROI for your business.
I’ve backed the key claims with recent industry data and actionable recommendations so you can leave with a plan, not just opinions.
Which Is Better for ROI?
Pinterest: Better for long-term, discovery-driven traffic and lower-cost conversions (great for evergreen content, e-commerce catalogs, product inspiration, and content that solves a problem). Often delivers higher long-term ROAS when organic + shopping features are used.
Instagram: Better for immediate brand awareness, influencer partnerships, and short-term direct-response advertising (especially for lifestyle, beauty, and fashion categories). Strong ad platform with high ad spend and established creator economy.
Best answer for most small businesses: Use both, but with different goals and budgets. Use Pinterest organically to build evergreen discovery + low-cost conversions; use Instagram for awareness, influencer-driven launches, and short-term ad pushes.
How Each Platform Drives Value (and Why it Matters)
Pinterest – “The Visual Search & Planning Engine”
User intent: People search to plan projects, buy, and save ideas (planning/buyer mindset). Pins live long and compound traffic over months/years.
Best for: E-commerce, bloggers, recipe/food brands, home & decor, crafts, printables, planners – basically niches that are search-driven and visually inspirational.
Ad economics & conversion: Pinterest often shows lower CPCs and strong ROAS for product-focused campaigns; many marketers report cost-per-conversion ranges that are favorable vs. other channels. Organic growth (SEO-like pin optimization) also produces long-term traffic.
Instagram – “The Creator & Conversion Engine”
User intent: Browsing, community, instant visual storytelling. People expect quick entertainment or direct product discovery via creators and shops.
Best for: Fashion, beauty, fitness, impulse buys, influencer-driven campaigns, lifestyle brands and any product that benefits from aspirational storytelling.
Ad economics & conversion: Instagram’s ad platform is mature, with high reach and precise targeting -often delivering high immediate conversion rates but at higher competition and potentially higher ad costs. Reels and Stories are huge drivers.
Which Metrics to Track for Real ROI
On both platforms you should track these core KPIs (and attribute them in Google Analytics or your preferred analytics suite):
- Traffic Quality
- Sessions, bounce rate, pages per session, time on site.
- Conversion Metrics
- Conversion rate (purchase, lead form, email signup), revenue per visit, average order value.
- Cost Metrics (for ads)
- CPC, CPA (cost per acquisition), ROAS (return on ad spend).
- Engagement & Discovery
- Saves (Pinterest), shares, comments, saves/bookmarks, completion rate for videos (Instagram Reels / Pinterest video).
- Customer Lifetime Value (LTV)
- ROI calculation should factor repeat purchases and LTV, not just first-click conversions.
Why this matters: A platform with low CPC but low conversion quality (high bounce, low AOV) may still deliver poor ROI. Look beyond impressions, measure true revenue and LTV.
Cost & Timeline: What to Expect
Organic timeline: 3–9 months for meaningful organic compounding; evergreen pins can produce traffic for years. (my case studies show significant lifts often appearing between month 6 and 9 with consistent optimization.)
Ads: Lower CPC and often lower CPA for product-heavy campaigns; many reports indicate Pinterest can deliver cost-effective conversions for discovery-to-purchase journeys.
Organic timeline: Fast for awareness but short-lived; content lifespan is typically days to a few weeks unless re-shared by creators or used in paid campaigns.
Ads: Powerful for immediate conversions (influencer boosts + paid placements). Expect higher ad budgets for scale, but also fast feedback and granular targeting.
Which Business Types Should Favor Which Platform?
Favor Pinterest if: You sell visual products, have strong evergreen content (recipes, tutorials, guides), run an e-commerce store with many SKUs, or want lower-cost, compounding traffic.
Favor Instagram if: You need fast brand awareness, product launches driven by creators/influencers, or your audience is highly active on short-form video (Reels/Stories).
Use both if: You want the short-term spike + long-term funnel: Instagram for launches and community; Pinterest for discovery and sustained organic sales.
Practical Strategy Playbooks (Short & Long Term)
If you’re on a tight budget (small business), start with Pinterest organic — optimize 10–20 high-value pieces of content into multiple pins (keyword titles, descriptions). Focus on SEO + product pins. Run a small Pinterest ad test on top-performing pins (shopping or traffic campaigns). Measure CPC/CPA. Add Instagram later for launch bursts and creator collaborations if ad ROI supports scaling.
If you have ad budget and want quick scale, run parallel tests: Instagram Reels ads + Pinterest shopping/traffic ads. Compare CPA, ROAS, AOV. Use creators/influencers on Instagram to drive immediate interest and retarget those engagers on Pinterest (or via email) for longer-term nurturing. Measure end-to-end in Google Analytics and attribute revenue to campaigns (U-shaped, time-decay, or last-click depending on your funnel).
Common Mistakes That Hurt ROI (and How to Avoid Them)
- Mistake 1: Posting the same image and copy across both platforms.
Fix: Tailor content, Pinterest needs keyword-led descriptions and vertical pins optimized for search; Instagram needs storytelling and short-form video optimized for engagement.
- Mistake 2: Measuring vanity metrics (impressions) rather than conversions.
Fix: Track revenue, AOV, CPA and LTV.
- Mistake 3: Stopping after 1-3 months.
Fix: Commit to 3–9 months of testing and optimization, especially on Pinterest.
Decision Checklist: Which Platform Should You Prioritize?
Answer these questions to choose:
- Is your product visually inspirational and evergreen? → Pinterest
- Do you rely on creators/influencers and short-term launches? → Instagram
- Do you have limited ad budget but time to invest in organic growth? → Pinterest first
- Do you need immediate visibility and buyer proof via influencers? → Instagram first
- Want a long-term, compounding traffic stream + shopping features? → Pinterest
Final Recommendations (Practical Next Steps):
- Run a 30–60 day test on the platform that best matches your answers above. Compare CPC, CPA, conversion rate, and AOV.
- If budget allows, run both with different goals: Instagram for launch/awareness, Pinterest for discovery/evergreen conversions.
- Optimize landing pages for the traffic source (match pin/post promise to page content).
- Track revenue-centric KPIs and calculate ROAS over 30–90 days to compare platforms fairly.
Now, wondering which platform is best for you?
If you want, I can:
- Run a mini audit to tell you which platform will likely bring better ROI for your specific products or services (based on current content). This will cost you only 50 $ (one-time) -> contact me here to ask about this mini service, or
- Considering only Pinterest for marketing on a monthly base to grow your traffic and sales? I can help! Contact me here!
My usual service is completed and full Pinterest monthly management (organic strategy) – there is no need for you to do anything. Here is another case study to read more on how I increased 3 times the monthly traffic for a blogger in 12 months (and of course affiliate sales) for a client (Pinterest case study 1): socialmarketingnest.com/my-pinterest-marketing-tips-and-pinterest-traffic-case-study/
I personally care for each of my client’s accounts and because my time is limited, I can’t take every project, just one or two per month. My focus are bloggers and small businesses in almost any niche. Price starts at only 300 $ per month.
Here are a few ways I can support you with Pinterest marketing help:
- Building Personalized Pinterest strategy, updated for 2026 as a one-time project (implemented by you);
- Monthly Pinterest Management on a long-term for more than 6 months (done for you monthly Pinterest management service – this is my main service).
- One-time Pinterest account set up, optimization or Pinterest audit clean up (done for you one time service);
- Custom Pinterest Canva Templates creation based on your content with a problem-solution model;
- Pinterest one-time consultation with tips for growth in 2025-2026 for your blog – in a pdf file with easy to implement steps by you;
Need help with pins creation -> contact me here for bundle of custom made 20 editable Canva design pins (based on your content) to make sure you will always have the right visuals for Pinterest! It is one time service which will cost you only 50 $, contact me here and ask about mini service for 20 editable static Canva pins based on your content (products, blog posts or services on your site). You will be able to post these directly and use them to build next batch of pins for your Pinterest marketing!
To see more about me and my work with other bloggers, you can check my testimonials here. Feel free to contact me here!
Here is my LinkedIn for a quick connection and help:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/socialmarketingnest/
I will be happy to support and help you in your Pinterest journey in 2025-2026!
About the author:
Stiliyana Stoycheva – Pinterest Manager, Strategist and Consultant located in Varna, Bulgaria
Helping entrepreneurs worldwide with their internet marketing strategy, specializing in Pinterest marketing for bloggers. She has solid experience behind her with hundreds of clients from all over the world, helping them with highly successful and result oriented Pinterest management services. She has studied the Pinterest platform in detail for the last 8 years and has tested various strategies for maximum performance.
To understand more about me and SocialMarketingNest team, read our FAQ here.
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