# Instagram Live Stream Checker (`seemuapps/instagram-live-checker`) Actor

Check whether Instagram accounts are live-streaming right now - bulk usernames in, live status, viewer count, and stream metadata out.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/seemuapps/instagram-live-checker.md
- **Developed by:** [Andrew](https://apify.com/seemuapps) (community)
- **Categories:** Social media, Marketing
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $5.00 / 1,000 account checkeds

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## Instagram Live Stream Checker

Check whether any public Instagram account is live-streaming right now — enter a list of usernames and get one clean live-status record per account, no login required.

### What you get

For every username you enter, one record with:

- **`isLive`** — a simple true/false flag telling you whether the account is actively broadcasting at the moment of the check
- **Stream details when live** — `broadcastId`, `viewerCount`, and `startedAt` (ISO timestamp), plus `rawBroadcast` with the full stream metadata (playback URLs, status, and more)
- **Profile context** — `userId`, `fullName`, `isVerified`, and `followerCount` so each row is useful on its own
- **`checkedAt`** timestamp for every check, so scheduled runs build a clean live-activity timeline
- Export everything to JSON, CSV, Excel, or Google Sheets directly from the Apify console

Live-stream metadata fields (`broadcastId`, `viewerCount`, `startedAt`, `rawBroadcast`) populate only while an account is actively broadcasting — for accounts that are not live they are `null`, and `isLive` is `false`.

### Use cases

- **Creator monitoring** — track when the creators you manage or follow go live, and how many viewers they pull
- **Fan alerts** — feed the `isLive` flag into a notification workflow so your community never misses a stream
- **Competitor analysis** — measure how often rival brands and creators go live and at what times
- **Automation pipelines** — schedule the actor and trigger recording, clipping, or engagement tools the moment a stream starts
- **Live-activity research** — build datasets of streaming frequency and viewer counts across hundreds of accounts

### How to use

1. Enter one or more Instagram **usernames** (with or without @) or full profile URLs
2. Optionally set **Max Items** to limit how many accounts are checked (0 = check them all)
3. Run the actor — one result per account appears in the **Dataset** tab
4. Schedule the actor to run every few minutes to catch streams as they start

### Output format

Each dataset record:

```json
{
  "username": "natgeo",
  "userId": "787132",
  "fullName": "National Geographic",
  "isVerified": true,
  "followerCount": 268713821,
  "isLive": false,
  "broadcastId": null,
  "viewerCount": null,
  "startedAt": null,
  "rawBroadcast": null,
  "profileUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/natgeo/",
  "checkedAt": "2026-08-25T03:52:27.628Z"
}
```

When an account is live, `isLive` is `true`, `broadcastId`, `viewerCount`, and `startedAt` are filled in, and `rawBroadcast` carries the complete stream metadata object.

### FAQ

**How current is the result?** Each run checks live status in real time — the result reflects the moment of the check. For alerting, schedule the actor on a short interval.

**Do I need to log in or provide cookies?** No. No login, no cookies, no risk to your own account.

**What happens with invalid or missing usernames?** Invalid entries are skipped with a warning in the log; accounts that do not exist are logged and skipped, and the run continues with the rest of your list.

# Actor input Schema

## `usernames` (type: `array`):

Instagram usernames or profile URLs to check for an active live stream (with or without @). One check per entry.

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

Maximum number of accounts to check in this run. Set 0 to check every username in the list.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "usernames": [
    "natgeo"
  ],
  "maxItems": 0
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

One record per checked account: username, userId, fullName, isVerified, followerCount, isLive, broadcastId, viewerCount, startedAt, rawBroadcast (full stream metadata when live, null otherwise), checkedAt.

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "usernames": [
        "natgeo"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("seemuapps/instagram-live-checker").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "usernames": ["natgeo"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("seemuapps/instagram-live-checker").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "usernames": [
    "natgeo"
  ]
}' |
apify call seemuapps/instagram-live-checker --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,seemuapps/instagram-live-checker"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/zVcSdw4rBuHLlr9K8/builds/PpqzuX4SDUMbN3Txh/openapi.json