Instagram Profile Scraper

Instagram Profile Scraper

The Instagram Profile Scraper is a Playwright-powered IG profile scraper that extracts structured public profile data — usernames, bios, follower counts, profile images, external links, related profiles, IGTV info, and the latest posts with media and engagement. It solves the manual copy-paste problem for marketers, developers, data analysts, and researchers by exporting clean Instagram profile data at scale. With residential proxies always enabled, automatic retries, and real-time dataset saving, this Instagram profile data scraper accelerates market research, influencer discovery, and analytics workflows.

What data / output can you get?

Below are real output fields produced by this Instagram user profile scraper. Field names match the dataset records exactly.

• inputUrl — Normalized input profile URL used for fetching. Example: https://www.instagram.com/humansofny
• url — Canonical Instagram profile URL. Example: https://www.instagram.com/humansofny
• id — Instagram user ID. Example: 242598499
• username — Profile username. Example: humansofny
• fullName — Display name. Example: Humans of New York
• biography — Bio text. Example: New York City, one story at a time.
• externalUrl — Main link in bio. Example: https://bit.ly/dearnewyorkbook
• externalUrlShimmed — Instagram shimmed URL. Example: https://l.instagram.com/...
• externalUrls — Array of bio links returned by Instagram. Example: []
• followersCount — Followers total. Example: 12802590
• followsCount — Following total. Example: 673
• postsCount — Total posts count. Example: 5839
• igtvVideoCount — IGTV videos count. Example: 0
• verified — Verification flag (boolean). Example: true
• isBusinessAccount — Business account flag (boolean). Example: false
• private — Privacy flag (boolean). Example: false
• profilePicUrl — Profile picture URL. Example: https://instagram.cdn/.../s150x150/...
• profilePicUrlHD — High-definition profile picture URL. Example: https://instagram.cdn/.../s320x320/...
• hasChannel — Has channel flag (boolean). Example: false
• highlightReelCount — Number of highlight reels. Example: 12
• joinedRecently — Recently joined flag (boolean). Example: false
• businessCategoryName — Business category name (if any). Example: Local & travel website
• latestPosts — Array of recent posts with:
  • id, type (Image/Video/Sidecar), shortCode, caption, hashtags, mentions
  • url, commentsCount, likesCount, timestamp
  • dimensionsHeight, dimensionsWidth, displayUrl, alt
  • ownerUsername, ownerId, images, childPosts, taggedUsers
• latestIgtvVideos — Array of IGTV video objects with:
  • id, shortCode, displayUrl, dimensions, timestamp
• relatedProfiles — Array of related account objects with:
  • id, full_name, is_verified, profile_pic_url, username, is_private
• about — Present only when includeAboutSection is true:
  • joinedDate (ISO), country

Note: Results are stored in an Apify dataset and can be exported to JSON, CSV, or Excel from the Apify platform. This Instagram profile info extractor supports clean Instagram profile data export for analytics and reporting.

Key features

• 🌐 Always-on residential proxy Ensures high success rates for this Instagram public profile scraper. The actor always uses residential proxy with 3 automatic retries, regardless of proxy input settings.

• 🧭 Playwright-based interception Uses a headless browser to intercept Instagram’s web_profile_info response for accurate, structured profile metadata and post snapshots.

• 💾 Real-time dataset saving Each scraped profile is pushed to the dataset immediately, enabling incremental results and reliable long-running jobs.

• 🖼️ Rich post metadata Extracts recent posts with captions, hashtags, mentions, media URLs, dimensions, engagement counts, tagged users, and sidecar child posts. Ideal for an Instagram profile metadata scraper.

• 🎬 IGTV and related profiles Captures IGTV video info (if present) and similar/related accounts for discovery workflows using this Instagram account scraper.

• 🧩 Optional “About” enrichment When enabled, adds joinedDate and country from the API response in a dedicated about object.

• 🧑‍💻 Developer-friendly outputs Clean JSON structure designed for pipelines and the Instagram profile scraper API use via Apify. Integrate with data tools and automation platforms easily.

• 🔁 Robust retries and timeouts Built-in retry with delays for stability at scale. Perfect for teams that scrape Instagram user profiles in batches.

How to use Instagram Profile Scraper - step by step

1. Sign in to Apify Create or log in to your Apify account.

2. Open the actor Find “instagram-profile-scraper” in your Apify Console Actors list.

3. Add target profiles In the startUrls field, paste one per line. Accepted formats:

   • Full URL: https://www.instagram.com/username/
   • Username only: username
   • Short URL: instagram.com/username
   • Handles are supported (e.g., @natgeo)

4. Configure options

   • includeAboutSection: Set to true if you also want joinedDate and country in about.
   • proxyConfiguration: You can edit this, but the actor will still use residential proxy automatically.

5. Start the run Click Start. The actor launches Playwright, fetches each profile, and saves results to the dataset as it goes.

6. Monitor progress Watch logs for status messages, retries, and completion summaries.

7. Export your data Go to the Dataset tab to download results as JSON, CSV, or Excel — ready for analytics, enrichment, or reporting.

Pro Tip: Mix usernames and URLs freely in startUrls to accelerate batch runs with this Instagram username scraper for research and lead gen.

Use cases

• Marketing competitor analysis Compare profiles, verification, and content patterns with a reliable Instagram user data extractor.

• Influencer discovery and vetting Build shortlists using followersCount, isBusinessAccount, and recent content signals from this Instagram followers scraper workflow.

• Content strategy and benchmarking Analyze captions, hashtags, and media types from recent posts with an Instagram profile scraping tool.

• Brand and market research Enrich datasets with businessCategoryName, external links, and relatedProfiles for discovery.

• Academic and social research Collect consistent public profile metadata at scale using an Instagram profile data export pipeline.

• Data platform ingestion Feed standardized JSON into BI tools, warehouses, or workflows powered by an Instagram profile scraper API.

Why choose Instagram Profile Scraper?

• 🎯 Precision and structure: Extracts clean, labeled fields ready for dashboards and enrichment.
• 🌐 Built for reliability: Residential proxy is always enabled with automatic retries for consistent results.
• 🧩 Comprehensive scope: Profiles, latest posts, IGTV info, and related profiles in one Instagram profile info extractor.
• 💾 Real-time saves: Incremental dataset writes reduce risk in long runs and large batches.
• 🧑‍💻 Developer-ready: JSON outputs designed for pipelines, scripts, and automation.
• 🔒 Safe alternative: More stable and predictable than browser extensions or ad-hoc scripts.
• 💸 Scales with you: A dependable Instagram profile data scraper you can run repeatedly for monitoring and trend analysis.

In short, this Instagram public profile scraper prioritizes accurate structure and operational reliability over unstable alternatives.

Is it legal / ethical to use Instagram Profile Scraper?

Yes — when done responsibly. This tool extracts data from publicly available Instagram profiles and does not access private accounts or authenticated areas.

Guidelines:

• Only collect public information and respect Instagram’s Terms of Use.
• Ensure compliance with applicable laws (e.g., GDPR, CCPA) for your jurisdiction and use case.
• Do not use the data for spam, harassment, or any illegal activity.
• Consult your legal team for edge cases or regulated workflows.

Input parameters & output format

Example input

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

Parameters

• startUrls (array, required)

  • Description: Add Instagram profiles to scrape. Accepts full URLs (https://www.instagram.com/username/), username only (username), or short URLs (instagram.com/username). Examples: humansofny, https://www.instagram.com/mileycyrus/, @natgeo
  • Default: None (must be provided)

• includeAboutSection (boolean, optional)

  • Description: Enable to extract additional profile information. When enabled, you’ll also get:
    • Date Joined — when the account was created (joinedDate in about)
    • Country — account’s country location (country in about)
  • Default: false

• proxyConfiguration (object, optional)

  • Description: Proxy settings editor. Important: This actor always uses residential proxy with 3 automatic retries for maximum reliability and success rate. You can configure proxy settings here, but the actor will use residential proxy regardless of your selection.
  • Default: None

Example output

[
  {
    "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": [],
    "externalUrl": "https://bit.ly/dearnewyorkbook",
    "externalUrlShimmed": "https://l.instagram.com/...",
    "followersCount": 12802590,
    "followsCount": 673,
    "hasChannel": false,
    "highlightReelCount": 12,
    "isBusinessAccount": false,
    "joinedRecently": false,
    "businessCategoryName": "Local & travel website",
    "private": false,
    "verified": true,
    "profilePicUrl": "https://instagram.cdn/.../s150x150/...",
    "profilePicUrlHD": "https://instagram.cdn/.../s320x320/...",
    "igtvVideoCount": 0,
    "postsCount": 5839,
    "relatedProfiles": [
      {
        "id": "1234567890",
        "full_name": "HONY Stories",
        "is_verified": false,
        "profile_pic_url": "https://instagram.cdn/.../s150x150/...",
        "username": "honystories",
        "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/.../n.jpg",
        "alt": "Photo description",
        "likesCount": 254147,
        "timestamp": "2025-10-13T20:14:46.000Z",
        "ownerUsername": "humansofny",
        "ownerId": "242598499",
        "images": [
          "https://instagram.cdn/.../first.jpg",
          "https://instagram.cdn/.../second.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": []
      }
    ],
    "about": {
      "joinedDate": "2011-05-01T00:00:00.000Z",
      "country": "United States"
    }
  }
]

Notes:

• about appears only when includeAboutSection is true.
• externalUrls is returned as-is from Instagram’s bio_links structure and may be an empty array or a list of objects.

FAQ

Do I need to log in to scrape Instagram profiles?

No. This Instagram user profile scraper works headlessly with Playwright and does not require login or cookies. It targets public profile data only.

Does it always use a proxy?

Yes. The actor always uses a residential proxy with 3 automatic retries for maximum reliability, regardless of the proxyConfiguration input.

Can it scrape private accounts?

No. It collects data from public Instagram profiles. Private accounts and gated content are not accessed.

How many posts does it extract per profile?

It extracts the latest posts exposed in the web_profile_info response on the profile page, including media URLs, captions, hashtags, mentions, and engagement counts.

What IGTV and related profile data can I get?

You’ll receive latestIgtvVideos with id, shortCode, displayUrl, dimensions, timestamp (if present), and relatedProfiles with id, full_name, is_verified, profile_pic_url, username, and is_private.

What formats can I export the data to?

Data is saved to an Apify dataset during the run. From the Apify platform you can export to JSON, CSV, or Excel, making it a practical Instagram profile data export solution.

What happens if a request times out?

The scraper retries automatically (up to 3 attempts) with delays between attempts. Errors are logged, and processing continues for the remaining profiles.

Can I mix usernames and URLs as input?

Yes. The startUrls parameter accepts full profile URLs, username-only entries, and short URLs. Handles like @username are supported too.

Closing CTA / Final thoughts

Built for structured, scalable Instagram profile data extraction, this Instagram Profile Scraper delivers reliable, export-ready records for marketing, research, and analytics teams. With residential proxies, Playwright-based fetching, and real-time dataset saving, it’s a robust Instagram profile scraping tool for developers, analysts, and marketers alike. Start using this Instagram profile metadata scraper to automate discovery, benchmark content, and power your analytics pipelines.