Discover public Instagram accounts from business search queries, then collect
public Profile data in structured Apify Datasets.
Use it for influencer research, competitor lists, lead enrichment, and market
research. Start with the words a customer would search for; the Actor uses
Google Search to discover eligible public Instagram pages, validates the
returned URLs, and fetches each public Profile it can resolve.
> This Actor discovers resources from search queries. It does not accept
> usernames, Instagram URLs, or full search URLs as its primary input.
### What you get
- Public Instagram Profile records: identity, bio, links, account flags,
profile images, and available follower, following, and post counts.
- A Profile-discovery record for every eligible Profile URL accepted from a
search-result page.
- A public Post or Reel discovery record when a content search mode is used,
including its resolved owner when Instagram makes it available.
- Optional enrichments: a linked Facebook profile, latest-post previews, and
related-profile suggestions.
The Actor is designed for Profile research. Post and Reel modes use public
content to identify account owners; the default Dataset contains deduplicated
Profile results, not a full post archive.
### How it works
```text
Your business queries
|
v
Search-powered Instagram discovery
|
+-- Profile URL ------> public Profile fetch ------> default Dataset
|
+-- Post / Reel URL --> public owner resolution --> public Profile fetch
|
+--> searchPostResults
Accepted Profile URLs -------------------------------------> searchProfileResults
```
The Actor avoids fetching the same Instagram Profile more than once per run.
Discovery records remain in separate datasets so you can trace which searches
produced each result, while the default Dataset stays a clean Profile table.
Discovery results come from Google Search. The Actor then fetches current
public Profile or content data from Instagram, with optional Facebook
enrichment. It does not use or contribute results to a Profile, email, or
contact database owned by the Actor publisher. Run outputs are written to the
Apify account of the user running the Actor.
### Quick start
1. In the Input tab, add one or more business search expressions to **Search
queries**.
2. Choose a **Search mode** and, if useful, set the maximum results and search
localization.
3. Run the Actor. Open the default Dataset for Profiles, or use the Output tab
to open the two discovery datasets.
Example: find public Profile URLs relevant to a Singapore skincare search.
```json
{
"queries": ["vegan skincare singapore"],
"searchMode": "profiles",
"queryMaxResults": 30,
"searchCountry": "sg",
"searchLanguage": "en"
}
```
### Typical use cases
- **Influencer discovery:** find accounts in a location, category, or niche,
then compare verification, audience size, links, and public Profile details.
- **Market and competitor research:** create a repeatable list of accounts
found for the business searches you care about.
- **Lead enrichment:** identify public business Profiles and review
biographies, websites, categories, and any email visible in the public
Profile or search description.
- **Content-led account discovery:** search for Posts and Reels, then resolve
their public owners to Profiles.
### Configure the input
| Input | Default | What it controls |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **queries** | Required | One to 5,000 business search expressions used to discover Instagram resources. |
| **emailDiscoveryMode** | **false** | Replace each input with email-provider searches, including country-specific hosts selected by **searchCountry**. |
| **searchMode** | **profiles** | Target Profiles, Posts, Reels, or both content types. |
| **searchTimeRange** | Not set (Any time) | Limit results to the past 24 hours, week, month, or year. |
| **queryMaxResults** | **10** | Maximum unique eligible candidate URLs retained for each query, from 10 to 100. |
| **searchCountry** | **us** | Two-letter lowercase search country code, such as **sg** or **jp**. |
| **searchLanguage** | **en** | Search language code, such as **en** or **ja**. |
| **scrapeFacebookProfile** | **false** | Fetch one linked public Facebook Profile when a supported URL is found. |
| **skipPostCount** | **false** | Skip the extra request used to derive post count. |
| **skipLatestPosts** | **true** | Skip lightweight latest-post previews. |
| **skipRelatedProfiles** | **true** | Skip related-profile suggestions. |
#### Search queries
Enter ordinary business search expressions, not URLs. Quotes and supported
search operators are allowed.
- **vegan skincare singapore**
- **independent coffee roaster berlin**
- **γ³γΉγ‘ "@gmail.com"**
Use double quotes (`"..."`) to match an exact word or phrase, for example
`"vegan skincare"`. Prefix a word or quoted phrase with a minus sign (`-`) to
exclude it, for example `vegan skincare -wholesale` or `-"job hiring"`. Do not
put a space between the minus sign and the excluded term.
Leading/trailing whitespace and exact duplicate expressions are removed. Search
operators are preserved. A full search URL is rejected.
#### Email discovery mode
**Email discovery mode is off by default.** Enable **emailDiscoveryMode** to
search for Profiles that may publish an email address. The Actor replaces,
rather than additionally runs, each input query with one Google Search query
for each built-in email host. It always starts with
**gmail.com**, **hotmail.com**, **outlook.com**, **icloud.com**, and
**yahoo.com**, then uses **searchCountry** to append local hosts. For example,
`searchCountry=jp` also
adds `yahoo.co.jp`; its query excludes the known same-domain Yahoo shopping and
auction noise.
```json
{
"queries": ["Health/beauty"],
"emailDiscoveryMode": true,
"searchCountry": "au"
}
```
The example executes email-focused variants such as:
```text
Health/beauty "@gmail.com"
Health/beauty "@bigpond.com"
Health/beauty "@optusnet.com.au"
```
`queryMaxResults` applies separately to every effective email query. The
country-specific host list is bounded at four, so a query expands to at most
nine effective queries. With the 5,000-query input limit, this can create up
to 45,000 initial search tasks. Email discovery improves the likelihood of
finding a public email-related search result; it does not guarantee that the
resulting Profile has an extractable email.
A publicly visible email may be inaccurate or may not belong to the Profile
owner. Its public availability does not mean the recipient has agreed to
receive marketing messages. You are responsible for ensuring that collecting,
exporting, sharing, and using results complies with applicable laws and
platform terms.
#### Search time range
Optionally set **searchTimeRange** to limit search results to a recent period:
| Value | Input label |
| --- | --- |
| `day` | Past 24 hours |
| `week` | Past week |
| `month` | Past month |
| `year` | Past year |
Leave it unset to search all available results (Any time). For example:
```json
{
"queries": ["vegan skincare singapore"],
"searchTimeRange": "week"
}
```
#### Search modes
| Mode | Search target | Default Dataset result | Discovery dataset |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| **profiles** | Public Profile URLs | One Profile record per resolved Profile | **searchProfileResults** |
| **posts\_and\_reels** | Public Post and Reel URLs | One Profile record per resolved owner | **searchPostResults** |
| **only\_posts** | Public Post URLs | One Profile record per resolved owner | **searchPostResults** |
| **only\_reels** | Public Reel URLs | One Profile record per resolved owner | **searchPostResults** |
Content search modes retain one **searchPostResults** row for each accepted
discovery source. If multiple sources resolve to the same account, the owner
Profile is still fetched and emitted only once.
#### Optional Profile enrichments
These switches affect the Profile fetch after discovery:
- **Facebook Profile:** when enabled, the Actor looks for one supported Facebook
URL in **external\_url**, **bio\_links**, **fb\_profile\_biolink**, **biography**,
and **full\_name**, in that order. If found, it writes an **fb\_profile** object.
- **Post count:** **post\_count** is derived from the public Profile page's
metadata. Enable **skipPostCount** to avoid that extra request.
- **Latest posts:** disable **skipLatestPosts** to request a lightweight latest
post preview. This is not a fixed full-post schema or a replacement for a
dedicated post scraper.
- **Related profiles:** disable **skipRelatedProfiles** to collect Instagram's
available account suggestions. A failed suggestion enrichment produces an
empty list rather than failing the Profile.
### Understand the results
The Actor writes three datasets with different purposes.
| Dataset | One row represents | Use it for |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Default Dataset** | A scraped Instagram Profile | Profile analysis, exports, monitoring, and enrichment. |
| **searchProfileResults** | An eligible Profile URL accepted from one search-result page | Auditing Profile discovery for each query. |
| **searchPostResults** | An accepted Post or Reel after its content fetch attempts finish | Auditing content-led discovery, collection status, and any resolved owner. |
The search datasets preserve real search-discovery events. They can contain more
than one row for the same Profile or content item when it appears in different
queries or sources. The default Dataset does not contain search provenance
fields such as matched queries or matched URLs.
When Email discovery mode is on, the two search datasets distinguish
**inputQuery** (your business expression), **query** (the effective email
search), and **emailHost** (the added domain). When the mode is off,
**inputQuery** equals **query** and **emailHost** is `null`.
#### Default Dataset: Profile records
The Dataset provides a compact Overview view, while raw items retain available
Instagram fields. Common fields include:
| Group | Fields | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Identity | **pk**, **id**, **pk\_id**, **username**, **full\_name**, **url** | **url** is the canonical public Profile URL. |
| Profile and links | **profile\_pic\_url**, **profile\_pic\_url\_hd**, **biography**, **contact\_email**, **bio\_links**, **external\_url**, **pronouns** | Availability depends on Instagram's public payload. |
| Counts | **followers**, **following**, **post\_count**, **total\_clips\_count**, **has\_any\_clips** | Post count can be approximate. |
| Account details | **is\_private**, **is\_verified**, **is\_business**, **is\_professional\_account**, **category**, **account\_type** | Missing optional values are commonly null. |
| Optional enrichments | **fb\_profile**, **latest\_posts**, **related\_profiles** | Controlled by the settings above. |
| Run metadata | **ig\_status**, **crawled\_at** | **ig\_status** describes the Profile fetch outcome. |
Instagram may return additional raw metadata. Treat optional fields as
non-guaranteed: public payloads vary by account, locale, and endpoint changes.
#### Profile result example
This shortened example shows a successfully resolved Profile. Optional fields
can be null, and optional lists can be empty.
```json
{
"pk": "6590609",
"id": "6590609",
"username": "kevinhart4real",
"full_name": "Kevin Hart",
"url": "https://www.instagram.com/kevinhart4real/",
"profile_pic_url": "https://scontent.example-cdn.net/profile.jpg",
"profile_pic_url_hd": "https://scontent.example-cdn.net/profile-hd.jpg",
"biography": "Live Love & Laugh!!!",
"contact_email": null,
"bio_links": [],
"external_url": "https://www.kevinhartnation.com/",
"followers": 172275843,
"following": 1287,
"post_count": 2122,
"is_private": false,
"is_verified": true,
"is_business": false,
"is_professional_account": null,
"category": "Comedian",
"fb_profile": null,
"latest_posts": [],
"related_profiles": [],
"ig_status": "ok",
"crawled_at": "2026-09-02T10:30:00Z"
}
```
When Instagram does not return a Profile, the default Dataset can contain a
minimal result:
```json
{
"username": "example",
"url": "https://www.instagram.com/example/",
"ig_status": "not_found",
"message": "Profile not found or restricted",
"crawled_at": "2026-09-02T10:30:00Z"
}
```
**not\_found** means the Profile did not return usable public Profile data. It
can mean the account does not exist, is restricted, or is otherwise unavailable
to the public request; it does not prove that an account has been deleted.
#### Search discovery examples
The **searchProfileResults** Dataset has one row per eligible Profile URL
accepted from a search page:
```json
{
"inputQuery": "vegan skincare singapore",
"query": "vegan skincare singapore",
"emailHost": null,
"searchPageIndex": 0,
"desc": "Instagram photos and videos from this public profile.",
"email": "hello@example.com",
"isVerifiedUrl": true,
"profileUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/example/",
"username": "example",
"discoveredAt": "2026-09-02T10:30:00Z"
}
```
The **searchPostResults** Dataset records the final content collection
outcome and, when available, the fetched public media object and owner:
```json
{
"inputQuery": "vegan skincare singapore",
"query": "vegan skincare singapore",
"emailHost": null,
"searchPageIndex": 0,
"desc": "Instagram photos and videos from this public Reel.",
"email": null,
"isVerifiedUrl": true,
"contentType": "reel",
"shortcode": "ABC123",
"contentUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/reel/ABC123/",
"ownerId": "123456789",
"ownerUsername": "example",
"post": {
"id": "123456789_123456789",
"code": "ABC123"
},
"ig_status": "ok",
"message": null,
"fetchedAt": "2026-09-02T10:31:00Z"
}
```
For content results, **ig\_status** is **ok** when both the public media object
and its owner were resolved. **not\_found**, **owner\_not\_found**, and
**fetch\_failed** identify unsuccessful collection outcomes after retries;
**message** contains the corresponding reason. A failed result can therefore
have null **ownerId**, **ownerUsername**, and **post** values.
**isVerifiedUrl: true** says only that the Actor accepted the URL as an
eligible HTTPS Instagram route. It does not verify the Instagram account,
guarantee availability, or represent Instagram verification status.
### Result semantics and limits
#### Candidate limits and pagination
**queryMaxResults** limits unique eligible candidate URLs retained per query; it
does not guarantee default Profile Dataset rows. A query can produce fewer
Profiles because results may be missing, invalid, duplicated, deleted,
restricted, ownerless, or unavailable. For content modes,
**searchPostResults** retains the final collection status for every accepted
source even when its fetch attempts are exhausted.
The Actor requests at most **ceil(queryMaxResults / 10)** search-result pages
per query. It schedules the next page only when needed, rather than scheduling
all pages up front.
#### Public availability and fields
Only public data returned through the Actor's requests can be emitted. Private
or restricted Profiles have less available information, and raw Instagram
fields can change without notice.
**post\_count** is parsed from public Profile-page metadata. Instagram can
abbreviate values such as **14K** or **1.2M**, so the value can be approximate.
It is null for private Profiles, when the setting skips the request, and when
the metadata is unavailable or cannot be parsed.
**contact\_email** is the first email address found in the public **biography**
or **full\_name**, or null when none is available. The **email** field in a search
dataset is different: it is the first address found in the search description.
With latest-post enrichment enabled, the Actor requests up to 10 previews for
paying users and up to 5 for non-paying users. Their nested shape follows
Instagram's current payload except for Actor convenience fields; do not depend
on it as a fixed full-post contract.
#### Pricing and usage
This Actor uses pay-per-event pricing.
Each successfully fetched search-results page counts as one
`search-results-page` event, including pages with no eligible Instagram results.
Failed search requests are not charged.
If **Facebook Profile** enrichment is enabled, a `scrape-fb-profile` event is
charged only when a supported linked Facebook Profile is successfully added to
the Profile result.
Higher **queryMaxResults** values can require more search-results pages.
**Email discovery mode** can also increase usage because it expands each input
query into several email-focused searches. See the Actor's **Pricing** tab and
your Apify usage details for current rates.
### Tips and troubleshooting
| Situation | What to check |
| --- | --- |
| The run stops before discovery | Check that at least one non-empty search query is provided. |
| Fewer Profiles than expected | Increase **queryMaxResults** within 10β100, refine the query, and remember the limit is candidates rather than output records. |
| You need Posts or Reels rather than owners | Use a dedicated post or Reel Actor below; this Actor's main result is a Profile. |
| You only need basic Profile data | Leave **skipLatestPosts** and **skipRelatedProfiles** enabled. Enable **skipPostCount** if post count is not needed. |
| Discovery needs a different market | Set **searchCountry** and **searchLanguage** with valid country and language codes. |
### Need a different Instagram dataset?
| Actor | Description | Stats |
|---|---|---|
| Instagram Profile Scraper | Scrape public Instagram Profile data from usernames or Profile URLs. | |
| Fast Instagram Profile Posts Scraper | Scrape post data from Instagram Profile pages. | |
| Instagram Profile Posts Scraper | Extract Profile post fields such as hashtags, counts, media, and shortcodes. | |
| Fast Instagram Profile Reels Scraper | Scrape public Instagram Reels from Profile pages. | |
| Instagram Hashtags Posts Scraper | Scrape public Instagram hashtag pages. | |
| Instagram Related Profiles Scraper | Discover related accounts and recursively expand Profile networks. | |