Instagram Profile Scraper

Instagram Profile Scraper

The Instagram Profile Scraper is a Playwright-powered Instagram profile data extractor that collects structured public profile information and engagement stats from Instagram accounts — ideal for marketers, developers, data analysts, and researchers. This IG profile scraper solves the tedious task of manual copy-paste by programmatically capturing bios, follower and post stats, profile pictures, external links, latest posts, related profiles, and more. As an Instagram profile scraper tool and Instagram user scraper, it helps teams scrape Instagram profiles at scale to power influencer discovery, competitor analysis, and social analytics workflows — with results saved directly to your Apify dataset for CSV/JSON export. 🚀

What data / output can you get?

Data field	Description	Example value
username	Instagram username (handle)	"humansofny"
fullName	Display name from the profile	"Humans of New York"
biography	Profile bio text	"New York City, one story at a time..."
followersCount	Number of followers	12802590
followsCount	Number of accounts the user follows	673
postsCount	Total number of posts on the profile	5839
verified	Whether the account is verified	true
isBusinessAccount	Whether the account is a business account	false
externalUrl	Main external URL listed in bio	"https://bit.ly/dearnewyorkbook"
profilePicUrlHD	High-definition profile picture URL	"https://instagram.cdn/.../profile_hd.jpg"
latestPosts[].type	Post media type: Image, Video, or Sidecar	"Sidecar"
latestPosts[].shortCode	Post shortcode used to build the post URL	"DPwJzEVDbwC"

Bonus outputs include:

• externalUrls: full array of bio links from Instagram’s API (e.g., with title, lynx_url, link_type)
• relatedProfiles: similar/related accounts (with id, full_name, username, profile_pic_url, is_verified, is_private)
• latestIgtvVideos: IGTV entries with id, shortCode, displayUrl, dimensions, timestamp
• about (when enabled): joinedDate and country

All results are saved to the Apify dataset, ready to export as JSON, CSV, or Excel.

Key features

• 🌐 Always-on residential proxy Automatically uses Apify Residential Proxy with 3 retries for maximum reliability when you scrape Instagram profiles — no manual proxy setup required.

• 🛰️ Playwright-powered interception Uses a headless Chromium browser to intercept Instagram’s web_profile_info responses for accurate, up-to-date public profile data.

• 💾 Real-time dataset saving Each Instagram account scraper result is pushed to the dataset as soon as it’s processed, minimizing data loss and enabling early insights.

• 🧩 Rich content coverage Collects profile info, audience stats, external links, related profiles, and latest posts with captions, hashtags, mentions, media URLs, and engagement.

• 🔍 Optional About section Toggle includeAboutSection to also get the account’s joinedDate and country direct from the API response.

• 🧑‍💻 Developer-friendly on Apify Run headlessly on Apify infrastructure and fetch results via the Apify API as JSON, CSV, or Excel — perfect for pipelines and dashboards.

• ✅ No login required Works on publicly accessible Instagram profiles without authentication or cookies.

• 🛡️ Production-ready reliability Built with retries, strict timeouts, and structured error logging for consistent outcomes in your Instagram profile data scraping workflows.

How to use Instagram Profile Scraper - step by step

1. Create or sign in to your Apify account.
2. Open the Instagram Profile Scraper actor in the Apify Console.
3. Add input data:
   • Paste targets into startUrls. You can use:
     • Full URLs: https://www.instagram.com/username/
     • Usernames: username
     • Short or @ formats: instagram.com/username or @username
4. (Optional) Toggle includeAboutSection to also extract joinedDate and country.
5. (Optional) Proxy settings are available under proxyConfiguration, but the actor always uses a residential proxy automatically.
6. Click Start to run the actor. The scraper will process profiles sequentially and push each result to the dataset.
7. Monitor logs for status updates and per-profile results.
8. Download results from the Dataset as JSON, CSV, or Excel — or access them via the Apify API.

Pro tip: Use Apify’s API to schedule runs and pipe dataset items into your internal BI tools or CRM for automated enrichment. This works great for teams building an Instagram profile scraper API pipeline.

Use cases

Use case	Description
Influencer marketing + vetting	Identify and evaluate creators by extracting verified status, followersCount, postsCount, and latestPosts to qualify partnerships faster.
Competitor analysis + benchmarking	Track competitor audience growth and profile changes while reviewing content types, captions, and engagement.
Social analytics + reporting	Aggregate profile stats and bios across segments for dashboards and periodic performance reporting.
Academic research + datasets	Build structured datasets of public Instagram profiles and content attributes for analysis or studies.
API pipeline + enrichment	Automate ingestion via the Apify API and enrich internal records with verified, standardized Instagram profile fields.
Brand monitoring + discovery	Discover relatedProfiles to map ecosystems of similar accounts and expand reach targets.

Why choose Instagram Profile Scraper?

This Instagram public profile scraper is engineered for precision, automation, and reliability at scale.

• 🎯 Accurate, structured fields from Instagram’s web_profile_info responses
• 🌍 Works on publicly available profiles without login
• 📈 Scales to batches with consistent, real-time dataset output
• 🧑‍💻 Built on Apify — easy programmatic access via API for developers
• 🛡️ Ethical by design — public data only, no private content
• 💰 Cost-effective automation compared to unstable extensions
• 🔗 Flexible exports — JSON, CSV, Excel for analytics and integrations

Unlike browser extensions or unstable DIY tools, this Instagram profile scraper software runs on robust infrastructure with enforced residential proxy and retry logic, delivering consistent results for teams that need dependable Instagram profile data scraping.

Is it legal / ethical to use Instagram Profile Scraper?

Yes — when used responsibly. This Instagram account scraper accesses only publicly available profile information and does not log in or bypass authentication.

Guidelines for compliant use:

• Scrape only public Instagram profiles and data.
• Respect Instagram’s Terms of Service and applicable laws (e.g., GDPR, CCPA).
• Avoid collecting or using data for spam or harassment.
• Do not attempt to access private accounts or protected content.
• Consult your legal team for edge cases or jurisdiction-specific requirements.

Input parameters & output format

Example input JSON

{
  "startUrls": [
    "https://www.instagram.com/humansofny/",
    "natgeo",
    "@nike"
  ],
  "includeAboutSection": true,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": false
  }
}

Field	Type	Required	Default	Description
startUrls	array	Yes	—	Target profiles to scrape. Accepts full profile URLs, usernames, short URLs, and @usernames.
includeAboutSection	boolean	No	false	When true, also returns about.joinedDate and about.country from the API response.
proxyConfiguration	object	No	—	Configurable in UI, but the actor always uses a residential proxy with 3 automatic retries regardless of this selection.

Example output JSON

[
  {
    "inputUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/humansofny",
    "url": "https://www.instagram.com/humansofny",
    "id": "242598499",
    "username": "humansofny",
    "fullName": "Humans of New York",
    "biography": "New York City, one story at a time.",
    "externalUrls": [
      {
        "title": "Dear New York Book",
        "lynx_url": "https://l.instagram.com/...",
        "url": "https://bit.ly/dearnewyorkbook",
        "link_type": "external"
      }
    ],
    "externalUrl": "https://bit.ly/dearnewyorkbook",
    "externalUrlShimmed": "https://l.instagram.com/...",
    "followersCount": 12802590,
    "followsCount": 673,
    "hasChannel": false,
    "highlightReelCount": 12,
    "isBusinessAccount": false,
    "joinedRecently": false,
    "businessCategoryName": null,
    "private": false,
    "verified": true,
    "profilePicUrl": "https://instagram.cdn/.../profile.jpg",
    "profilePicUrlHD": "https://instagram.cdn/.../profile_hd.jpg",
    "igtvVideoCount": 0,
    "postsCount": 5839,
    "relatedProfiles": [
      {
        "id": "123456789",
        "full_name": "Example Profile",
        "is_verified": false,
        "profile_pic_url": "https://instagram.cdn/.../rel.jpg",
        "username": "exampleprofile",
        "is_private": false
      }
    ],
    "latestIgtvVideos": [],
    "latestPosts": [
      {
        "id": "3742534382104984578",
        "type": "Sidecar",
        "shortCode": "DPwJzEVDbwC",
        "caption": "A few years ago I received a DM...",
        "hashtags": [],
        "mentions": ["zohrankmamdani"],
        "url": "https://www.instagram.com/p/DPwJzEVDbwC/",
        "commentsCount": 3841,
        "dimensionsHeight": 1080,
        "dimensionsWidth": 1080,
        "displayUrl": "https://instagram.cdn/.../post.jpg",
        "alt": "Photo description...",
        "likesCount": 254147,
        "timestamp": "2025-10-13T20:14:46.000Z",
        "ownerUsername": "humansofny",
        "ownerId": "242598499",
        "images": [
          "https://instagram.cdn/.../post1.jpg",
          "https://instagram.cdn/.../post2.jpg"
        ],
        "childPosts": [
          {
            "id": "3742534382104984579",
            "type": "Image",
            "shortCode": "DPwJzEVDbwC",
            "caption": "",
            "hashtags": [],
            "mentions": [],
            "url": "https://www.instagram.com/p/DPwJzEVDbwC/",
            "commentsCount": 0,
            "dimensionsHeight": 1080,
            "dimensionsWidth": 1080,
            "displayUrl": "https://instagram.cdn/.../child.jpg",
            "alt": null,
            "likesCount": 0,
            "timestamp": "2025-10-13T20:14:46.000Z",
            "ownerUsername": "humansofny",
            "ownerId": "242598499",
            "firstComment": "",
            "latestComments": [],
            "images": [],
            "childPosts": [],
            "taggedUsers": []
          }
        ],
        "taggedUsers": [
          {
            "id": "987654321",
            "full_name": "Tagged User",
            "is_verified": true,
            "profile_pic_url": "https://instagram.cdn/.../tagged.jpg",
            "username": "taggeduser"
          }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "about": {
      "joinedDate": "2010-11-10T00:00:00.000Z",
      "country": "United States"
    }
  ]
}

Notes:

• Some fields may be null if the data is not present on the public profile (e.g., businessCategoryName).
• Private accounts cannot return full details of posts; the scraper operates on public data only.

FAQ

Do I need to log in to use this Instagram profile scraper?

No. The actor works without login and does not use cookies. It extracts publicly available profile data from Instagram’s web responses.

Can I scrape private Instagram accounts?

No. This Instagram public profile scraper only accesses public information. Private profiles and protected content are not available.

How many profiles can I scrape in one run?

There’s no hard-coded limit in the actor. It processes the list in startUrls sequentially and saves each result to the dataset. Your limits are primarily defined by your Apify plan resources and runtime.

What post data do I get from each profile?

You’ll receive the latestPosts array with media type (Image/Video/Sidecar), captions, hashtags, mentions, engagement counts, dimensions, displayUrl, timestamp, images, taggedUsers, and childPosts for carousels.

Does it extract followers and profile metadata?

Yes. Fields include followersCount, followsCount, postsCount, verified, isBusinessAccount, profilePicUrl/profilePicUrlHD, externalUrl/externalUrls, and more.

Does it support IGTV data?

Yes. The latestIgtvVideos array includes id, shortCode, displayUrl, dimensions, and timestamp when available, plus igtvVideoCount at the profile level.

What proxies does it use?

The actor always uses Apify Residential Proxy with 3 automatic retries for reliability. Proxy options are visible in the UI, but residential proxy is enforced by the code.

How can I export or integrate the results?

All items are saved to the Apify dataset. You can export to JSON, CSV, or Excel from the UI or fetch data programmatically via the Apify API for pipeline automation.

Closing CTA / Final thoughts

The Instagram Profile Scraper is built for accurate, reliable Instagram profile data scraping at scale. It delivers structured profile insights, latest posts, and related accounts directly into your dataset for easy export and analysis.

Whether you’re in marketing, analytics, research, or development, this IG profile scraper helps you automate discovery, benchmark competitors, and enrich datasets with verified public signals. Developers can trigger runs and consume results via the Apify API to power dashboards, enrichment jobs, or data pipelines.

Start extracting smarter with a robust Instagram profile scraper tool — and turn public Instagram data into actionable insights today.