After struggling for weeks with this issue, I finally resolved it on my own and wanted to quickly document it for anyone else who might run into it.
The issue connecting Instagram to Facebook: “Can’t use this account”
If you’ve tried setting up the ability to cross-post your Instagram stories & posts to Facebook, you may have run into the error “Can’t use this account.”
Unfortunately, Instagram’s help article on this topic is useless if you get the ”Can’t use this account” error:
So here’s how I figured it out.
For me, the issue connecting Instagram to Facebook was happening from both ends—Instagram → Facebook, and Facebook → Instagram—on both mobile and desktop. Here’s what I was seeing on desktop, from the Facebook end:
At first, I thought it was because I had a ’professional’ Instagram account, so I tried changing it to a ’personal’ account. But that didn’t make a difference in the issue connecting Facebook & Instagram. I still got “Can’t use this account” every time. 🙈
The solution: Disconnecting Instagram’s “one login” feature
One day I decided I was tired of seeing notifications for the PubLoft and GigLoft Instagram accounts that I’m no longer supporting. They showed up under my main account, @rarelyjeremy, just like the image here:
So, I switched to one of them, and tried to log out.
The Instagram app asked if I wanted to save the login info and continue logging in with my main account. That was when I realized that I had set up the “one login” feature a while back, and that could be the cause of the mystical “Can’t use this account” error.
I followed the on-screen instructions to disconnect the “one login” in Meta accounts center, and then did it again for the other of the two ’Loft accounts. Then, crossing my fingers, I tried connecting my Instagram to Facebook once again… and after weeks of this issue, IT FKN WORKED!! 😝
So, all that to say, if you are having the issue connecting your Instagram to your Facebook, get RID of the ”one login for all accounts” feature that Instagram launched in 2019. While it’s pretty useful, it was obviously the culprit behind this issue for me.
Now to figure out why Instagram logs me out of desktop when I sign in on mobile, and vice versa… TBC…
Originally published @December 2, 2022
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