Instagram Reel Hooks & Competitor Analyzer

Analyze Instagram Reels from competitor accounts. Extract hooks, captions, hashtags, audio, posting cadence, and engagement metrics in flat CSV-friendly output for benchmarking, content research, and creative strategy.

What this actor does

Instagram Reel Hooks & Competitor Analyzer turns public Reels from any public Instagram profile (or direct Reel URLs) into a structured competitive-intelligence dataset. It is not a generic Reel downloader. The focus is on analysis-ready output:

• opening hook extraction + rule-based hook-style classification
• CTA type detection (link_in_bio, dm, save, follow, share, buy, …)
• hashtag / mention / audio extraction
• posting cadence (weekday, hour, days since published)
• engagement ratios and account-level benchmarks (views vs the profile's sample average, performance bucket)

Output is one flat row per Reel — ideal for CSV, Google Sheets, BI tools, or as clean input for downstream LLM summarization.

How it works

1. Input — provide public profile URLs, bare usernames, or direct Reel URLs.
2. Profile fetch — for each profile, call Instagram's public web_profile_info endpoint and the Reels tab endpoint to collect up to maxReelsPerProfile recent Reels.
3. Direct Reel fetch — for each Reel URL, resolve the shortcode and fetch /api/v1/media/{id}/info/.
4. Normalize — extract a stable set of fields from whatever shape Instagram returned.
5. Derive — compute hook text, hook style, CTA type, hashtags/mentions, cadence, ratios, and sample benchmarks.
6. Export — push one flat row per Reel to the dataset.

Inputs

Field	Type	Default	Description
startUrls	string[]	required	Profile URLs, bare usernames, or Reel URLs (mix freely)
maxReelsPerProfile	int	20	Cap Reels per profile input
dateFrom	ISO date	—	Only include Reels published on/after this date
dateTo	ISO date	—	Only include Reels published on/before this date
skipPinnedReels	bool	true	Skip pinned Reels (they distort benchmarks)
includeProfileContext	bool	true	Emit profile* fields on every row
includeDerivedFields	bool	true	Emit hookStyle, ctaType, ratios, benchmarks
includeHashtagsArray	bool	true	Emit hashtags as array
includeMentionsArray	bool	true	Emit mentions as array
includeAudioFields	bool	true	Emit audioTitle, audioArtist, audioType, audioOriginal
includeVideoUrl	bool	false	Emit best-effort signed video URL
requestTimeoutSecs	int	300	Per-request timeout
maxConcurrency	int	1	Concurrent inputs
debugMode	bool	false	Verbose logging

Sample inputs

Example 1 — Multi-account competitor analysis

Compare Reel output across three competitor accounts, newest 30 each, skipping pinned Reels so benchmarks aren't distorted.

{
  "startUrls": [
    "https://www.instagram.com/nike/",
    "https://www.instagram.com/adidas/",
    "lululemon"
  ],
  "maxReelsPerProfile": 30,
  "skipPinnedReels": true,
  "includeProfileContext": true,
  "includeDerivedFields": true
}

Example 2 — Single Reel deep dive

Analyze one specific Reel with full profile context, audio metadata, and the optional signed video URL.

{
  "startUrls": [
    "https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWicOUHDvp5/"
  ],
  "includeProfileContext": true,
  "includeAudioFields": true,
  "includeVideoUrl": true
}

Example 3 — Date-windowed profile scan

Pull only Reels published in Q1 2026 from a single brand profile, trim output to scalar fields only (no arrays) for pure CSV workflows.

{
  "startUrls": [
    "https://www.instagram.com/teslaaunz/"
  ],
  "maxReelsPerProfile": 50,
  "dateFrom": "2026-01-01",
  "dateTo": "2026-03-31",
  "skipPinnedReels": true,
  "includeHashtagsArray": false,
  "includeMentionsArray": false,
  "includeAudioFields": true
}

Output

The run produces a single dataset view — Reel Rows — with one flat, CSV-friendly row per Reel.

Sample record (one row per Reel)

Real output from analyzing https://www.instagram.com/teslaaunz/:

{
  "inputUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/teslaaunz/?hl=en",
  "sourceType": "profile",
  "profileUsername": "teslaaunz",
  "profileFullName": "Tesla Australia and New Zealand",
  "profileUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/teslaaunz/",
  "profileId": "59601257554",
  "profileIsVerified": false,
  "profileCategoryName": null,
  "profileBiography": "We design and build products that people love.",
  "profileExternalUrl": "https://www.tesla.com/en_au",
  "profileFollowersCount": 11350,
  "profileFollowingCount": 6,
  "profilePostsCount": 151,
  "reelId": "3864775559205550713",
  "reelShortcode": "DWicOUHDvp5",
  "reelUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWicOUHDvp5/",
  "reelType": "reel",
  "isPinned": false,
  "publishedAt": "2026-03-31T06:06:55.000Z",
  "publishedDate": "2026-03-31",
  "publishedTimestamp": 1774937215,
  "caption": "Reliable back up power and up to AUD $1,500/ NZD $1,700 back on your install. T&Cs apply",
  "hookText": "Reliable back up power and up to AUD $1,500/ NZD $1,700 back on your install. T&Cs apply",
  "hookLine1": "Reliable back up power and up to AUD $1,500/ NZD $1,700 back on your install. T&Cs apply",
  "hookLengthChars": 88,
  "hookLengthWords": 17,
  "hookStyle": "other",
  "ctaType": "none_detected",
  "hashtags": [],
  "mentions": [],
  "taggedUsers": [],
  "hashtagCount": 0,
  "mentionCount": 0,
  "languageHint": "en",
  "audioTitle": null,
  "audioArtist": null,
  "audioType": null,
  "audioOriginal": null,
  "durationSeconds": null,
  "likesCount": 54,
  "commentsCount": 1,
  "viewsCount": 688,
  "playsCount": null,
  "sharesCount": null,
  "engagementTotal": 55,
  "engagementRateByFollowers": 0.0048,
  "viewsToFollowersRatio": 0.0606,
  "likesToViewsRatio": 0.0785,
  "commentsToViewsRatio": 0.0015,
  "sharesToViewsRatio": null,
  "daysSincePublished": 24,
  "postingMonth": 3,
  "postingWeekday": "Tuesday",
  "postingHourLocal": 6,
  "dateBucket": "last_30d",
  "accountReelsSampleSize": 40,
  "accountAvgViewsSample": 6002.93,
  "accountAvgLikesSample": 176.47,
  "accountAvgCommentsSample": 8.65,
  "relativePerformanceVsAccountAvg": 0.115,
  "performanceBucket": "low",
  "contentTopicHint": null,
  "hasQuestionInHook": false,
  "hasNumberInHook": true,
  "hasEmojiInHook": false,
  "hasCTA": false,
  "captionLengthChars": 88,
  "captionLengthWords": 17,
  "thumbnailUrl": "https://scontent-iad3-2.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/658797984_17985064196985555_7087428163089197254_n.jpg?...",
  "videoUrl": null,
  "scrapedAt": "2026-04-24T08:38:16.237Z",
  "runId": "Y9RGT5VKVzOJPL7fa"
}

The thumbnailUrl is a signed Instagram CDN URL (time-limited). The full URL is returned in the dataset — it is truncated above only for readability.

Output field groups

All fields are scalar or simple arrays; missing values are null.

Source / account — inputUrl, sourceType, profileUsername, profileFullName, profileUrl, profileId, profileIsVerified, profileCategoryName, profileBiography, profileExternalUrl, profileFollowersCount, profileFollowingCount, profilePostsCount

Reel identity — reelId, reelShortcode, reelUrl, reelType, isPinned, publishedAt, publishedDate, publishedTimestamp

Content — caption, hookText, hookLine1, hookLengthChars, hookLengthWords, hookStyle, ctaType, hashtags[], mentions[], taggedUsers[], hashtagCount, mentionCount, languageHint, audioTitle, audioArtist, audioType, audioOriginal, durationSeconds

Performance — likesCount, commentsCount, viewsCount, playsCount, sharesCount, engagementTotal, engagementRateByFollowers, viewsToFollowersRatio, likesToViewsRatio, commentsToViewsRatio, sharesToViewsRatio

Timing / cadence — daysSincePublished, postingMonth, postingWeekday, postingHourLocal, dateBucket

Benchmarks — accountReelsSampleSize, accountAvgViewsSample, accountAvgLikesSample, accountAvgCommentsSample, relativePerformanceVsAccountAvg, performanceBucket (high / avg / low / unknown)

Hook flags + misc — contentTopicHint, hasQuestionInHook, hasNumberInHook, hasEmojiInHook, hasCTA, captionLengthChars, captionLengthWords, thumbnailUrl, videoUrl, scrapedAt, runId

Hook style values

question, how_to, list, mistake, warning, story, opinion, direct_cta, other, unknown.

CTA type values

follow, comment, dm, link_in_bio, save, share, buy, watch_more, none_detected, unknown.

Benchmarks

For profile inputs, the actor computes the sample average of views / likes / comments across the Reels it collected, then annotates each row with:

• relativePerformanceVsAccountAvg = viewsCount ÷ accountAvgViewsSample (falls back to likes when views are unavailable)
• performanceBucket — high (>1.5×), avg (0.5–1.5×), low (<0.5×)

In the sample record above, the Reel got 688 views against an account sample average of ~6,003 views (40-Reel sample), giving a relativePerformanceVsAccountAvg of 0.115 and bucketing it as low.

For single-Reel inputs, accountReelsSampleSize = 1 and benchmarks are null.

Pricing

Pay-per-event: reel-result — charged once per Reel row pushed to the dataset. The actor respects your configured spending limit: if the limit is reached mid-run, the run stops gracefully — no further rows pushed, no further events charged.

Limitations

• Public data only. No login, no private accounts, no login-walled data.
• Some fields (viewsCount, playsCount, sharesCount, audioArtist) are best-effort and may be null for any given Reel.
• postingHourLocal reflects UTC hour, not the viewer's timezone.
• All derived fields (hookStyle, ctaType, benchmarks) are transparent, rule-based heuristics — not machine-learning classifications.

Local development

cd actor
npm install
npm start      # Run with INPUT.json
npm run dev    # Run with local storage

Deployment to Apify is manual (apify push). This actor does not auto-deploy.