Instagram Following Scraper

Instagram Following Scraper

Instagram Following Scraper collects structured data from public Instagram following lists for one or more profiles and saves results to your Apify dataset in real time. It solves the pain of manual copy-paste and unreliable browser extensions by programmatically extracting clean, ready-to-analyze account records for influencer research, competitor analysis, outreach, and social graph studies. Built for marketers, developers, data analysts, and researchers, it scales from a single profile to bulk lists with resilient proxy fallback and clear progress logs.

What data / output can you get?

Below are the exact fields pushed to the dataset for each followed user. These are taken directly from the actor’s output logic.

Data field	Description	Example value
pk	Primary user identifier	1234567890
pk_id	Secondary user identifier (falls back to pk if missing)	1234567890
id	User ID (falls back to pk if missing)	1234567890
full_name	Display name	Jimmy Donaldson
is_private	Privacy flag	false
fbid_v2	Facebook/IG ID variant	17841400000000000
third_party_downloads_enabled	Downloads setting flag	false
strong_id__	Strong ID value used by IG	1234567890
profile_pic_id	Profile picture identifier	314159265358979
profile_pic_url	Profile picture URL	https://instagram.fxyz1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t51.2885-19/xyz.jpg
is_verified	Verification badge flag	true
username	Handle without @	mrbeast
has_anonymous_profile_picture	Anonymous avatar flag	false
account_badges	Badge list	[]
latest_reel_media	Latest reel timestamp (epoch)	1713379200
is_favorite	Favorite flag	false
followed_by	The input profile that follows this user	mrbeast

Notes:

• account_badges is always an array (empty if none are present).
• pk_id and id automatically fall back to pk when the API omits them, ensuring consistent identifiers.
• Export results from the dataset to CSV or JSON in one click on Apify.

Key features

• 🔗 Bulk input for multiple profiles
  Provide an array of profile URLs or plain usernames in urls. The actor extracts usernames from both formats to process at scale.

• 🛡️ Smart proxy fallback (direct → datacenter → residential with retries)
  Starts with direct requests, then automatically escalates to datacenter and residential proxies if blocked. Residential becomes sticky after fallback, with retries for resilience.

• 💾 Live dataset streaming
  Results are pushed to the dataset as soon as they’re collected, so you can monitor progress and download partial outputs anytime.

• 🍪 Optional sessionId for stability
  You can supply your Instagram sessionid cookie to reduce blocks and improve reliability. The actor will still run without it, but logs a helpful warning.

• 🧭 Clear, informative logging
  The run logs include targets, limit info, proxy events, progress counters, and profile-level results to keep you informed end-to-end.

• ⚙️ Production-grade Python on Apify
  Implemented with apify SDK and aiohttp for performance and control, with strict field ordering and robust pagination until maxItems or the end of data.

How to use Instagram Following Scraper - step by step

1. Sign in to Apify
   Create or log in to your Apify account to run the actor.

2. Open the actor and add targets
   In the Input, add one or more profiles to urls. You can paste full profile URLs (https://www.instagram.com/username/) or plain usernames (username).

3. Set collection limits
   Use maxItems to control how many followed users you collect per input profile. Set 0 to collect all available results until pagination ends.

4. Optional: Add sessionId
   For higher stability, paste your Instagram sessionid cookie value into sessionId. This is optional but recommended.

5. Configure proxy behavior (optional)
   By default, the actor starts with no proxy. You can keep that default or adjust proxyConfiguration. If Instagram blocks requests, the actor automatically falls back to datacenter, then residential (sticky) proxies.

6. Start the run
   Click Start. The actor resolves each username, handles pagination, and pushes results to the dataset in real time.

7. Monitor logs and progress
   You’ll see logs for proxy fallbacks, per-profile progress counters, and summary stats at the end of the run.

8. Download results
   Open the dataset and export to CSV or JSON. A combined array is also saved to the default key-value store under the key OUTPUT.

Pro tip: Set maxItems to 0 for full pagination when you want complete following lists for smaller accounts.

Use cases

Use case	Description
Influencer research + list building	Identify who target creators follow to map niches and find outreach opportunities.
Competitor analysis	Examine competitor follow graphs to discover partners, brands, and strategies they track.
Outreach targeting	Build targeted lists of followed accounts to fuel personalized campaigns and prospecting.
Social graph and network analysis	Model audience and relationship networks for clustering, influence scoring, and discovery.
CRM enrichment	Append verified handles and profile metadata to existing leads or contacts.
Academic and market research	Collect reproducible, structured following data for studies, surveys, and trend analysis.

Why choose Instagram Following Scraper?

This actor is purpose-built for precision, automation, and reliability in extracting Instagram following lists.

• ✅ Accurate, structured output with strict field ordering that matches the dataset view
• 🚀 Bulk-ready input handling with URLs and usernames to scale across many profiles
• 🛡️ Resilient proxy strategy with automatic fallback and sticky residential mode
• 💾 Real-time dataset streaming for immediate visibility and partial exports
• 🍪 Optional sessionId support to minimize blocks and maximize continuity
• 🔧 Developer-friendly on Apify with clean logs and predictable behavior
• 🧱 More reliable than browser extensions or manual tools that break under scale

In short, it’s a production-grade Instagram following scraper vs. unstable alternatives and copy-paste workflows.

Is it legal / ethical to use Instagram Following Scraper?

Yes—when used responsibly. This actor scrapes only publicly available data. You are responsible for ensuring your use complies with Instagram’s terms and applicable laws and regulations (e.g., GDPR, CCPA). Avoid scraping private profiles or data behind authentication barriers beyond your provided sessionId, and use the data ethically. If in doubt, consult your legal team.

Input parameters & output format

Example JSON input

{
  "urls": [
    "https://www.instagram.com/mrbeast/"
  ],
  "maxItems": 100,
  "sessionId": "YOUR_SESSIONID_COOKIE_VALUE",
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": false
  }
}

Input parameters

Field	Type	Required	Default	Description
urls	array	Yes	—	One or more Instagram profiles to scrape. Accepts full profile URLs (https://www.instagram.com/username/) or plain usernames.
maxItems	integer	No	100	Maximum number of followed users to collect per input profile. 0 = unlimited (collect until pagination ends).
sessionId	string	No	—	Optional but strongly recommended. Paste the value of the Instagram sessionid cookie from a logged-in browser session.
proxyConfiguration	object	No	{"useApifyProxy": false}	Default is no proxy. If blocked, the actor auto-fallbacks to datacenter, then residential (sticky) proxies. All proxy events are logged.

Example dataset item

{
  "pk": 1234567890,
  "pk_id": 1234567890,
  "id": 1234567890,
  "full_name": "Jimmy Donaldson",
  "is_private": false,
  "fbid_v2": "17841400000000000",
  "third_party_downloads_enabled": false,
  "strong_id__": "1234567890",
  "profile_pic_id": "314159265358979",
  "profile_pic_url": "https://instagram.fxyz1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t51.2885-19/xyz.jpg",
  "is_verified": true,
  "username": "mrbeast",
  "has_anonymous_profile_picture": false,
  "account_badges": [],
  "latest_reel_media": 1713379200,
  "is_favorite": false,
  "followed_by": "mrbeast"
}

Notes:

• Some fields depend on Instagram’s response and may be null or empty (e.g., account_badges).
• pk_id and id are auto-filled from pk if the API omits them, ensuring identifiers are always present.
• Results are pushed to the dataset as individual items. A combined array is also stored under the key OUTPUT in the default key-value store.

FAQ

Is there a free trial or pricing?

Yes. The actor includes 120 trial minutes and is offered at a flat price per month of $19.99. Check the Apify actor page for the latest pricing details and inclusions.

Do I need to log in or provide cookies?

No, you can run without cookies, but providing your Instagram sessionId cookie is recommended to reduce blocks and improve stability. If you don’t provide it, the actor will still run and log a warning.

What exactly does it scrape?

It scrapes public following lists for the profiles you provide in urls. Each result item includes identifiers, username, verification and privacy flags, profile picture info, badges, latest reel timestamp, favorite flag, and the followed_by source profile.

How many profiles can I run at once?

As many as you add to urls. The actor iterates through them in a single run. Use maxItems to control how many followed users are collected per profile; set 0 for unlimited pagination.

How does it handle blocking?

The actor starts with no proxy (direct). If blocked, it automatically falls back to a datacenter proxy, and then to a residential proxy with sticky mode and retries. All proxy events are clearly logged.

Does it scrape followers too?

This actor targets following lists only. It resolves each target profile and paginates through the accounts they follow.

Where do results go and how can I export them?

Results are pushed to the Apify dataset in real time and can be exported to CSV or JSON. A combined array is also saved in the default key-value store under the key OUTPUT.

What input formats are supported?

In urls you can mix full profile URLs like https://www.instagram.com/username/ and plain usernames like username. The actor normalizes these before scraping.

Closing CTA / Final thoughts

Instagram Following Scraper is built to reliably extract structured, real-time data from Instagram following lists. With bulk inputs, resilient proxy fallback, and clean dataset exports, it empowers marketers, analysts, researchers, and developers to build accurate lead lists, analyze networks, and automate enrichment workflows. Developers can plug directly into Apify datasets and the OUTPUT key for programmatic pipelines. Start extracting smarter following data at scale today.