Instagram Profile Reels Scraper

Instagram Profile Reels Scraper

Instagram Profile Reels Scraper is an Apify actor that collects structured reels/post metadata from public Instagram profiles — fast. It helps you scrape Instagram reels by username and export Instagram reels captions, likes, comment counts, first comment, post URLs, owner details, and timestamps into clean datasets for analysis. Built for marketers, developers, data analysts, and researchers, this IG profile reels scraper tool enables repeatable, at-scale workflows for competitor analysis, trend tracking, and content planning across multiple profiles.

What data / output can you get?

Below are the exact JSON fields this Instagram reels data extractor pushes to the Apify dataset. You can export to JSON or CSV and plug the data into your analytics stack.

Data type	Description	Example value
displayUrl	Thumbnail image URL for the post/reel	"https://scontent-iad3-1.cdninstagram.com/...jpg"
caption	Full caption text (includes mentions/hashtags)	"With cutting-edge science on his side..."
ownerFullName	Profile owner’s full name	"Natgeo"
ownerUsername	Profile owner’s username	"natgeo"
url	Canonical Instagram post URL	"https://www.instagram.com/p/DMNbY-TRBlZ/"
commentsCount	Total number of comments	1988
firstComment	First available comment (best-effort)	"Love this"
likesCount	Total number of likes	342541
timestamp	ISO-8601 date/time when the post was created	"2025-07-17T13:01:24.000Z"

Note: The dataset is export-ready for JSON/CSV. This Instagram reels metadata scraper focuses on public profile content and returns structured fields you can feed into dashboards or pipelines for Instagram reels analytics scraper use cases.

Key features

• 🔁 Intelligent proxy fallback & rate limiting
  Built-in proxy manager with residential→datacenter fallback and progressive delays helps you stay resilient during scraping. Ideal as an Instagram reels API alternative scraper.

• 📦 Bulk profile processing
  Supply a list of usernames/URLs and run a bulk Instagram reels downloader workflow for scalable, cross-profile collection.

• 🎯 Configurable limits & pacing
  Control resultsLimit per profile (0 for all available posts) and delayBetweenRequests to balance speed and stability.

• 📈 Engagement metrics toggle
  Choose whether to include likesCount and commentsCount with extractEngagement for flexible performance and output depth.

• 💬 First-comment capture
  When extractComments is enabled, the actor extracts a firstComment where available using multiple strategies.

• 🧰 Developer-friendly, Python-based
  Implemented with Python and aiohttp — perfect for those seeking an Instagram reels scraping Python script powered by Apify infrastructure.

• 📤 Export-ready datasets
  Download structured results as JSON/CSV from the Apify dataset, or consume via API for automation.

• 🔒 Public data only
  Designed for public profiles — an Instagram reels web scraper focused on safety and compliance.

How to use Instagram Profile Reels Scraper — step by step

1. Sign up or log in to Apify.
2. Open the “Instagram Profile Reels Scraper” actor.
3. Add input data: paste Instagram profile URLs or usernames into urls (supports “username”, “@username”, or “https://www.instagram.com/username/”).
4. Set resultsLimit per profile (use 0 for all available).
5. Configure proxyConfiguration (useApifyProxy is recommended on the Apify platform).
6. Adjust options as needed: extractComments, extractEngagement, delayBetweenRequests, maxConcurrency, sortOrder, maxComments.
7. Click Start to run the actor. You’ll see logs for each processed profile.
8. Download your dataset in JSON or CSV, or access it via the Apify API for downstream workflows.

Pro tip: Combine multiple profiles in urls to monitor Instagram profile reels updates over time and feed the exported captions (with hashtags) into your reporting or enrichment pipelines.

Use cases

Use case name	Description
Social media marketing + trend discovery	Aggregate reels/post metrics to benchmark content performance and inform creative strategy.
Influencer research + outreach	Evaluate creators’ engagement at scale, using structured metrics for shortlisting and auditing.
Competitor analysis + benchmarking	Track how peers use reels/posts and compare posting cadence and engagement over time.
Editorial planning + content ops	Export Instagram reels captions into content calendars to replicate winning formats.
Data analytics + BI pipelines	Feed JSON/CSV outputs into dashboards for an Instagram reels analytics scraper workflow.
Academic & market research	Collect longitudinal, public-profile datasets for hypothesis testing and pattern discovery.
API pipelines & automation	Use the Apify dataset API to integrate this Instagram profile reels downloader into ETL and automation stacks.

Why choose Instagram Profile Reels Scraper?

Built for precision and reliability, this Instagram reels web scraper prioritizes structured output, resilience, and bulk processing.

• ✅ Accurate, structured fields (caption, counts, firstComment, URLs, owner info, timestamps)
• 🚀 Scales to many profiles via urls with configurable resultsLimit
• 🧪 Developer-ready Python core; simple to automate in data pipelines
• 🔁 Robust proxy fallback and rate limiting for steadier runs
• 🔐 Public data only — avoids private profiles and login requirements
• 💸 Export-friendly JSON/CSV datasets for quick analysis and integration

Compared to ad‑hoc browser extensions or unstable scripts, this production actor focuses on consistent output and repeatability for teams that need a dependable IG profile reels scraper tool.

Is it legal and ethical to use Instagram Profile Reels Scraper?

Yes — when done responsibly. This actor collects publicly available information from Instagram profiles you provide in urls. It does not access private accounts, passwords, or restricted data. Always ensure your use complies with Instagram’s Terms of Service and relevant privacy regulations (e.g., GDPR, CCPA). Consult your legal team for edge cases or jurisdiction-specific requirements.

Input parameters & output format

Example input (JSON):

{
  "delayBetweenRequests": 2,
  "extractComments": true,
  "extractEngagement": true,
  "maxComments": 1,
  "maxConcurrency": 3,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": false
  },
  "resultsLimit": 30,
  "sortOrder": "newest",
  "urls": [
    "natgeo",
    "cristiano"
  ]
}

Parameter details:

• urls (array, required)
  Description: List of Instagram profile URLs or usernames to scrape. Supports “https://www.instagram.com/username/”, “username”, or “@username”.
  Default: none (required)

• resultsLimit (integer, optional)
  Description: Maximum number of posts to scrape per profile. Set to 0 for unlimited (all available posts).
  Default: 10

• sortOrder (string, optional)
  Description: Order in which posts should be sorted. Allowed values: "newest", "oldest".
  Default: "newest"

• maxComments (integer, optional)
  Description: Maximum number of comments to extract per post (0 = no comments, -1 = all comments).
  Default: 1

• proxyConfiguration (object, optional)
  Description: Proxy settings for the scraper. On the Apify platform, enabling useApifyProxy is recommended.
  Default: { "useApifyProxy": true }

• maxConcurrency (integer, optional)
  Description: Maximum number of profiles to process simultaneously.
  Default: 3

• delayBetweenRequests (integer, optional)
  Description: Delay between requests to avoid rate limiting (in seconds).
  Default: 2

• extractComments (boolean, optional)
  Description: Whether to extract comments from posts (slower but more comprehensive).
  Default: true

• extractEngagement (boolean, optional)
  Description: Whether to extract likes, comments count, and other engagement metrics.
  Default: true

Notes:

• If resultsLimit is set between 1 and 9, the actor uses a minimum of 10 per profile.
• Only public profiles are supported.
• Depending on content availability, firstComment may be empty. If extractEngagement is false, likesCount and commentsCount are set to 0.

Example output (JSON):

[
  {
    "displayUrl": "https://scontent-iad3-1.cdninstagram.com/...jpg",
    "caption": "With cutting-edge science on his side, @chrishemsworth is back and ready to journey...",
    "ownerFullName": "Natgeo",
    "ownerUsername": "natgeo",
    "url": "https://www.instagram.com/p/DMNbY-TRBlZ/",
    "commentsCount": 1988,
    "firstComment": "Love this",
    "likesCount": 342541,
    "timestamp": "2025-07-17T13:01:24.000Z"
  },
  {
    "displayUrl": "https://scontent-iad3-2.cdninstagram.com/...jpg",
    "caption": "Atlantic Canada has its own rhythms, its own culture, and far more gorgeous scenery...",
    "ownerFullName": "Natgeo",
    "ownerUsername": "natgeo",
    "url": "https://www.instagram.com/p/DPPHHjlkTgr/",
    "commentsCount": 36,
    "firstComment": "👏👏👏",
    "likesCount": 8498,
    "timestamp": "2025-09-30T18:17:30.000Z"
  }
]

FAQ

Is there a free trial?

Yes. You can start with Apify’s free credits to test this Instagram reels web scraper on a limited number of profiles and posts.

Does it work for private profiles?

No. It only processes public Instagram profiles provided in urls. Private or restricted content is not accessed.

Do I need to log in or provide cookies?

No. The actor fetches public pages without login and operates on publicly available data.

How many reels or posts can I scrape per profile?

Set resultsLimit up to 10,000 per profile (0 = all available). Note that if you set a value between 1 and 9, the run will use 10 as a minimum.

Can I scrape multiple profiles at once?

Yes. Provide multiple usernames/URLs in the urls array for bulk-mode processing across profiles.

What engagement data is included?

When extractEngagement is true, likesCount and commentsCount are included. If set to false, those fields are returned as 0 for performance.

Does it extract comments?

It captures a firstComment where available when extractComments is true. Some posts may not surface a first comment, in which case the field may be empty.

Can I download the results to CSV or JSON?

Yes. After the run, export the Apify dataset in JSON or CSV for downstream use, or access it programmatically via the Apify API.

Does it download video files?

No. The output includes the post permalink (url), thumbnail image (displayUrl), captions, engagement metrics, and a first comment where available — it does not include a direct video file URL.

Final thoughts

Instagram Profile Reels Scraper is built to turn public Instagram profile activity into structured, analysis-ready data. With bulk username inputs, flexible limits, resilient proxy handling, and exportable JSON/CSV, it serves marketers, analysts, and developers who need a dependable Instagram reels metadata scraper. Connect it to the Apify dataset API for automation, and start extracting smarter insights from public reels/posts at scale.