Nearly all Instagram users expect their friends and followers to congratulate them on their birthdays — and they might get angry or be disappointed if you forget about their big day. If someone special in your life is turning 40, though, that’s an even bigger deal than usual. Don’t forget it!
Not sure how to caption your congratulatory birthday posts? You know you have to come up with something slightly more creative than “Happy Birthday,” but writing cool 40th birthday Instagram captions can actually be quite tricky.
Fortunately, that’s where we come in! You’re in for a treat if you’re hoping for a huge collection of neat 40th birthday captions for Instagram that you can pick and choose from any time someone in your circle turns 40. Of course, we’ve also got plenty of caption ideas for you if it’s your big birthday you’re writing captions for, so scroll down to get the party started!
How to Write Meaningful 40th Birthday Captions for Instagram
“Happy Birthday” is the bare minimum you can get away with when writing 40th birthday Instagram captions — but if you want the person you’re congratulating to know that you really care, you do have to come up with something slightly more exciting and meaningful.
You could:
- Choose to go with punny 40th birthday captions for Instagram that make your friend, relative, or other half laugh. Don’t see obvious puns? Remember that they don’t have to be related to “40” or “birthday,” and can also be about something special to the person in question.
- Write heartfelt 40th birthday Instagram captions where you share your genuine wishes for the next year — like success, joy, laughter, adventure, or whatever else suits the person’s character.
- Take the 40th birthday captions for Instagram you’re penning as a great opportunity to make relentless jokes about aging. Of course, not everyone will appreciate these jabs, so this is definitely a case of “know your audience.” If you like the idea but aren’t quite sure what to say, we have some great examples on our list.
- Use quotes from famous people the birthday person likes, enjoys, or admires as your 40th birthday Instagram captions. Again, we’ve posted some great examples down below — but you can also choose your own that aren’t about birthdays or aging.
What if you’re about to post some 40th birthday Instagram captions for your own birthday? In that case, you’ve surpassed the age where bragging about your birthday comes off as “cringe.” Go for it, full steam ahead!
You could write 40th birthday captions for Instagram about being happy with where you are in life (yes, including looking fantastic at 40!), and you can also get away with venting about the feelings you might have relating to leaving your 30s behind. As a nice bonus, those kinds of 40th birthday Instagram captions double as a reminder that all your IG followers should congratulate you on your birthday.
Still looking for good 40th birthday Instagram captions? Don’t worry. With a list of 120 40th birthday captions for Instagram and 10 creative prompts to help you write your own, we think we’ve definitely got you covered.
40th Birthday Instagram Captions for Selfies
1. Season 40, episode 1 — now with extra fancy champagne.
2. My birth certificate says I’m 40, but this smile says I’m still 21!
3. Officially an old dinosaur. Yay!
4. Forty looks pretty f*cking amazing on me, wouldn’t you agree?
5. It’s the big 4-0 and if you offer champagne, I won’t say no.
6. Warning: Birthday cake in hand, midlife crisis brewing on the stove.
7. Selfie stick in one hand… walking cane in the other? Man, I feel old today.
8. Birthday hat in my hair, don’t care. I’m gonna celebrate like a big kid even though I’m 40.
9. 40 years, 40 cheers, and lots of beers!
10. Got 40 problems, but who cares when they’re also birthday cake?
Funny 40th Birthday Captions for Instagram
11. Every day I get to spend with you is wonderful, but I have to say that this one definitely takes the cake.
12. When life gives you a 40th birthday, just lie and say you’re turning 21.
13. Ding! You just unlocked level 40. Would you like to access your new perks?
14. I’m finally at the point where they might ask me if I have a discount card, rather than carding me for drinks.
15. You’re living proof that older doesn’t have to mean wiser, and for that, you’re super special.
16. It’s my 40th birthday party and I can cry if I want to, cry if I want to.
17. 40 is just another way of saying awesome. Just like a fine wine, right?
18. Turning fine wine into sour grapes, one “OMG I feel so old” moment at a time.
19. Just a 40 year old doing 40 year old things, you wouldn’t understand my dinosaur activities.
20. I don’t always turn 40, but I do, I prefer to lie about my age.
Cute 40th Birthday Instagram Captions
21. Bright candles, fireworks, and ice cream. Nothing can stop me from celebrating like a child. Especially not my age.
22. Chasing 40th birthday vibes and lots of gifts! I didn’t live through 40 years for nothing.
23. Got a one-way ticket to 40th birthday town, and nothing can get me down.
24. Wise, wonderful, and still very cute. I’m going to slay Season 40.
25. Another trip around the sun, another crazy birthday celebration. Color me 40!
26. 40th birthday vibes, good times, and long nights filled with dancing and gifts.
27. My 40th? Well, as long as there are candles and hugs, I guess I’m in.
28. Felt 40, probably won’t delete later.
29. I’m the CEO of Turning 40 and Drinking All the Tequila. Cheers!
30. Radiate positive vibes and know that 40 is the new 20.
Romantic 40th Birthday Captions for Instagram for Your Other Half
31. Forty and fab. I feel so lucky to spend every day of my life with my amazing newly 40 year old wife.
32. Another very special trip around the sun, but you’ll always be my shining star.
33. Another year older, another year balder? Sorry hon, I meant to say “bolder,” of course!
34. Piles of presents everywhere, but my amazing husband, who just turned 40, is still the real gift.
35. Love is in the air and 40th birthday vibes are everywhere!
36. Happy birthday to my very special someone. Hoping for many more birthdays with you.
37. Forty years in the rearview, and ready for 40 more amazing ones together!
38. Happy birthday to my 40 year old wife, who’s looking more beautiful than ever before.
39. Hand in hand, we’ll celebrate your 40th birthday together.
40. A romantic candlelit dinner and an “I love you” is the least I could give you for your birthday. You’re the best!
Cool 40th Birthday Instagram Captions for Friends
41. ‘Cause nothing says “40th birthday” more loudly than really fancy champagne and caviar!
42. Came for the birthday cake, stayed to watch out for signs of an impending midlife crisis.
43. Squad goals, 40th birthday edition! We can’t wait ‘til you see your big surprise!
44. Friends don’t let friends get old alone, and that’s a fact. Happy birthday!
45. Youth is temporary, but your squad? We’re forever. Happy 40th!
46. Forty is the new black, and there’s no turning back.
47. There’s no way we’d ever forget your birthday. Especially since you’ll always be older than us.
48. It’s OK, sweetie. You’re officially exempt from putting the correct number of candles on the cake this year.
49. More beer to celebrate another awesome year. Happy 40th birthday to my very favorite person.
50. Just me and my crew about to surprise our best friend for her 40th birthday!
40th Birthday Captions for Instagram With Thank You Notes
51. Thanks for making my day so awesome — ‘cause you can’t party like it’s your birthday if your favorite people don’t show up!
52. Thanks so much for coming to my 40th birthday party, uncle! You always cheer me up with your silly dance moves
53. Showered in gifts and love. I might be old now, but I feel so super thankful!
54. I seriously can’t thank you all enough for the best birthday ever. Getting old ain’t so bad.
55. That moment when I realized my coworkers threw me a surprise 40th birthday party? Priceless!
56. ‘Cause making your years count is so much easier when you have incredible people in your life. Thank you all so much for making my 40th a day to remember.
57. Thanks for the great memories and the even better gifts. Love you!
58. Turning 40 is my new cardio, and I’d like to say a big thank you for the awesome warm-up you gave me at my birthday party!
59. The way you made me feel at my 40th birthday? It was a serious “I’m not crying, you are” moment.
60. Thank you doesn’t quite cut it. I had a seriously fantastic time on my 40th!
Savage 40th Birthday Instagram Captions
61. I had a great time at my 40th birthday party. Let’s hope I still remember it in 40 years!
62. I run on coffee, sarcasm, and making fun of you for being a fossil. Happy 40th, dinosaur!
63. Hey, y’all! Mom thinks she’s old. Let’s rub it in a little.
64. Celebrating your 40th? Shouldn’t that be mourning your youth?
65. Confidence level: You still feel young, and you don’t realize you no longer look it.
66. Birthdays are meh, especially when you’re turning 40, but DW, I’ll still take gifts.
67. Sassy, classy, and nearly old enough to get a senior discount. Oh, well!
68. Smile on your 40th birthday. Show off your teeth while you’ve still got them.
69. Wow, thanks for the new socks. That’s exactly what I needed for my 40th birthday.
70. Spoiler alert: If you have trouble reading this happy 40th message, you probably need reading glasses.
Inspirational 40th Birthday Captions for Instagram
71. Forty, but never too old to chase my crazy dreams… all the way to the bus stop.
72. Not all who wander are lost, some are just trying to figure out what to do for their 40th birthday.
73. Is 40 the end? Nah, it’s nothing but a cool new beginning. Life doesn’t really start until you truly know who you are.
74. If life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you walk through it, I’m sure your 40th is the start of the best adventure ever.
75. I’m not a regular 40 year old. I’m a cool 40 year old who doesn’t care about wrinkles.
76. New year, who dis? I might look old, but I’m still your cool party aunt!
77. You’re only 40 once, enjoy all the free gifts.
78. Forty going on 16 and hellbent on enjoying the **** out of this year!
79. Celebrate your 40th, because birthday calories don’t count. It’s, like, science or something.
80. The best things in life are free, like celebrating my 40th bday with me!
40th Birthday Instagram Captions for Parties
81. Confetti, cake, and singing, but above all, a whole lot of champagne. You only turn 40 once, after all!
82. Dancing to the beat of 40 and feeling fine, ‘cause who needs whine when there’s wine?
83. Let’s just have a potluck and call it a birthday party. You know? I’m too old to dance properly now, or so my preteen says.
84. Old enough to know better, festive enough to keep taking shots anyway.
85. If you need me, I’ll be at the bar getting more cocktails. All the fun begins at 40!
86. Being 40 is just a party compressed into a physical medium.
87. Come to the 40 side, we have cookies and wild parties. You won’t regret it.
88. Livin’ life like one big party, one awesome birthday at a time.
89. Happy, 40, and excited for a big birthday cake.
90. May the 40 be with you, but make sure you always keep dancing like you’re 20!
40th Birthday Captions for Instagram About Getting Older
91. My nephew told me I’m over the hill today. Little does he know I’m already starting the climb back over to the other side!
92. Where there’s a 40th birthday, there’s always a way. Except you might need a cane to get there.
93. Me? Aging? No, I’m just hitting the next level — with more arthritis but less acne.
94. Officially Old and BoringTM, and totally cool with it.
95. Older, wiser, and ready to take on new birthday challenges, starting with this cake.
96. When you’ve been walking around the world for a whole four decades, you simply don’t care about old age jokes anymore.
97. My back hurts. My hair is going gray. But I’m still always up for a 40th birthday party!
98. Warning: I’m armed with reading glasses and I’m not afraid to use them.
99. Lost. If found, return to the early ‘90s. Thanks in advance.
100. Older, but wiser? I am not sure. I still feel like I am 16.
Awesome Quotes for 40th Birthday Instagram Captions
101. “You know you’re getting old when the candles cost more than the cake.” — Bob Hope
102. “You can’t help getting older, but you don’t have to get old.” — George Burns
103. “An archaeologist is the best husband a woman can have. The older she gets, the more interested he is in her.” — Agatha Christie
104. “At age 20, we worry about what others think of us. At age 40, we don’t care what they think of us.” — Ann Landers
105. “The older I get, the better I used to be.” — Lee Trevino
106. “Youth is the gift of nature, but age is a work of art.” — Stanislaw Jerzy Lec
107. “The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age.” — Lucille Ball
108. “To know how to grow old is the master work of wisdom, and one of the most difficult chapters in the great art of living.” — Herman Melville
109. “Youth is happy because it has the capacity to see beauty. Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.” — Franz Kafka
110. “Birthdays are nature’s way of telling us to eat more cake.” — Edward Morykwas
Short 40th Birthday Captions for Instagram
111. Birthday gifts? Always in!
112. Can’t say no to the big 4-0!
113. Forty but still naughty!
114. Another year, another couple of wrinkes. Happy 40th!
115. Dance like it’s your 40th, because it is!
116. Just bolder, not older, I swear!
117. Wisdom with age? Apparently not!
118. New decade, fresh start! Can’t wait to see what the rest of my life holds.
119. I’m just 20 with two decades of experience. Bite me.
120. Slow down long enough to see the beauty of 40.
Creative Writing Prompts for 40th Birthday Instagram Captions
Want to keep the creativity flowing so you can write your own awesome 40th birthday Instagram captions? That’s what these prompts are for. You get the idea. Simply pick a sentence starter and then get to work on brainstorming the best way to complete it. Get as silly as you like — but try to think of something that will make your Instagram followers smile!
121. You know you’re 40 when …
122. Nothing quite says … like your 40th birthday party, especially when …
123. 40th birthday game strong, but I still …
124. No 40th birthday party is complete without …
125. Alexa, play “Happy Birthday” and …
126. My toolkit for the next decade as a “no longer young person” includes …, …, and …
127. 40th birthday parties: Because everyone deserves a little …
128. Sure, I have aching joints, but I also have … The next decade is going to be …
129. I’m just young with extra wisdom, and 40 will be …
130. Tell me that I’m old now one more time, and I’ll…
FAQ About 40th Birthday Captions for Instagram
How long should my 40th birthday Instagram captions be?
Excellent question. Because 40 is quite a significant milestone, you can get away with writing slightly longer captions than you usually would. Nobody will get annoyed with you if you vent about (or celebrate!) your own 40th. If you’re congratulating someone else, a slightly longer caption (say, up to 300 characters) will give you plenty of space to come up with a meaningful message they’ll enjoy reading.
Should I include any emojis in my 40th birthday captions for Instagram?
That’s a definite “yes” from us. As far as your options go, ❤️, 🎉, 🔥, 😎, ✨️, 🥂, 👑, 🍰, 🎂, 🥳, 🎁, and 💝 are all pretty safe bets. Because it’s a big celebration, you can include up to five emojis per caption without looking too over the top.
Can you recommend any cool hashtags to add to my 40th birthday Instagram captions?
Some of the coolest hashtags doing the rounds on Instagram include #bigfouroh, #40andfabulous (or #fortyandfabulous), #overthehill, #40andflirty, #40andlovingit, and, of course, #birthdaycelebration.
