Instagram Likes Extractor (Rich Metadata)

Overview

This actor performs a deep extraction of Instagram post engagement data with enriched demographic and temporal metadata. The extraction pipeline captures like metrics, user demographics, and technical telemetry to provide a comprehensive view of content performance. All outputs are validated against schema definitions to ensure data integrity and consistency across batch operations.

Data Dictionary

Field Name	Data Type	Definition
extraction_id	String	Unique identifier for the extraction operation, prefixed with "LS_"
scraped_at	String (ISO 8601)	UTC timestamp indicating when the data extraction was performed
platform	String	Source platform identifier (constant: "instagram")
data_type	String	Classification of extracted data (constant: "like_metrics")
external_id	String	Composite identifier combining platform, post ID, and extraction date
post_details.post_id	String	Instagram's internal post identifier
post_details.post_type	String	Content format classification (e.g., "carousel", "single", "reel")
post_details.creation_timestamp	String (ISO 8601)	UTC timestamp of original post publication
post_details.language_code	String	ISO 639-1 language code with region variant
engagement_metrics.total_likes	Integer	Cumulative count of likes at extraction time
engagement_metrics.like_velocity	Float	Average likes per hour since publication
engagement_metrics.peak_hour_likes	Integer	Maximum likes received within a single hour window
engagement_metrics.unique_likers	Integer	Deduplicated count of accounts that liked the post
demographic_data.geo_distribution	Object	Percentage distribution of liker locations by country code
demographic_data.age_groups	Object	Percentage distribution of likers across age brackets
technical_metadata.api_version	String	Semantic version of the extraction API used
technical_metadata.rate_limited	Boolean	Flag indicating if extraction encountered rate limiting
technical_metadata.processing_time_ms	Integer	Milliseconds elapsed during extraction operation
technical_metadata.checksum	String	Hash value for data integrity verification
is_verified_content	Boolean	Indicates if the post originates from a verified account
sentiment_score	Float	Normalized sentiment score (0.0 to 1.0) derived from engagement patterns
batch_id	String	Identifier linking this extraction to a batch processing job

Sample Dataset

Below is a sample of the high-fidelity JSON output:

{
  "extraction_id": "LS_2025121945821",
  "scraped_at": "2025-12-19T14:22:33Z",
  "platform": "instagram",
  "data_type": "like_metrics",
  "external_id": "ig_897654321_likes_20251219",
  "post_details": {
    "post_id": "897654321",
    "post_type": "carousel",
    "creation_timestamp": "2025-12-18T08:15:00Z",
    "language_code": "en_US"
  },
  "engagement_metrics": {
    "total_likes": 3467,
    "like_velocity": 42.8,
    "peak_hour_likes": 892,
    "unique_likers": 3455
  },
  "demographic_data": {
    "geo_distribution": {
      "us": 45.2,
      "uk": 12.8,
      "ca": 8.5,
      "other": 33.5
    },
    "age_groups": {
      "18_24": 35,
      "25_34": 42,
      "35_44": 15,
      "45_plus": 8
    }
  },
  "technical_metadata": {
    "api_version": "2.8.1",
    "rate_limited": false,
    "processing_time_ms": 234,
    "checksum": "a7c83f591e"
  },
  "is_verified_content": true,
  "sentiment_score": 0.78,
  "batch_id": "BATCH_20251219_L4K2"
}

Configuration Parameters

To ensure optimal data depth, configure the following:

Parameter	Field Name	Data Type	Required	Example
Post Identifier	postCode	String	Yes	https://www.instagram.com/p/DSZ1428iHtf/

Accepted Formats:

• Full Instagram URL: https://www.instagram.com/p/{shortcode}/
• Post shortcode: DSZ1428iHtf
• Numeric post ID: 897654321

Analytical Use Cases

Engagement Pattern Analysis: Researchers can leverage like_velocity and peak_hour_likes to identify optimal posting windows and content lifecycle patterns across different audience segments.

Demographic Segmentation: The demographic_data object enables cohort analysis by geography and age group, supporting targeted content strategy development and audience profiling for brand partnerships.

Sentiment Correlation Studies: Cross-referencing sentiment_score with engagement metrics provides insights into the relationship between perceived content quality and quantitative performance indicators.

Longitudinal Performance Tracking: The extraction_id and scraped_at fields facilitate time-series analysis of post performance degradation or viral growth patterns over extended observation periods.

Data Quality Auditing: Technical metadata fields (checksum, processing_time_ms, rate_limited) enable data engineers to monitor extraction reliability and identify potential data quality issues in production pipelines.

Technical Limitations

Important Considerations:

• Rate Limiting: Instagram's API enforces rate limits of approximately 200 requests per hour per IP address. The rate_limited flag indicates when throttling has occurred.
• Demographic Data Availability: Age and geographic distribution data is estimated based on publicly available signals and may not reflect actual user demographics with 100% accuracy.
• Data Freshness: Engagement metrics represent a point-in-time snapshot. Like counts may increase after extraction, requiring periodic re-scraping for longitudinal studies.
• Private Account Restrictions: Extraction is limited to public posts. Private accounts return null values for all engagement metrics.
• Historical Data Retention: Instagram's API provides access to posts up to 2 years old. Older content may return incomplete metadata.
• Checksum Validation: The checksum field uses a truncated hash (10 characters). For cryptographic verification, implement full SHA-256 hashing on the client side.

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Keywords & Tags: This specification supports workflows involving instagram scraper, instagram likes scraper, export instagram likes, instagram data extraction, instagram analytics API, social media scraping tool, and collect instagram engagement data operations for research and analytics applications.