# Instagram User Search Scraper — Keyword to Profiles (`toolzerhub/instagram-user-search-scraper`) Actor

Search Instagram for users by keyword, optionally fetching each result's full public profile.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/toolzerhub/instagram-user-search-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ToolzerHub](https://apify.com/toolzerhub) (community)
- **Categories:** Social media, Lead generation, Automation
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 0.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $0.85 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#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 User Search Scraper — Keyword to Profiles

Search Instagram for accounts by keyword and get back the matching profiles, in the order Instagram ranks them. No login, no cookie, no session.

This is where a workflow starts when you don't yet know whose accounts you want.

### Input

| Field | Type | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| `keyword` | string | — | **Required.** Name, brand, topic, or handle fragment. |
| `addonProfile` | boolean | `false` | Swaps each result for its full public profile. |

```json
{
  "keyword": "street photography",
  "addonProfile": false
}
```

One keyword per run, and one request — this is a lookup, not a paginated crawl.

### Output

One row per account.

| Field | What it holds |
|---|---|
| `username` | Account username |
| `full_name` | Display name |
| `is_verified` | Whether it's verified |
| `is_private` | Whether it's private |
| `position` | Where Instagram ranked it, starting at the top |
| `enriched` | Whether the full profile was fetched |

```json
{
  "username": "streetphotographyinternational",
  "full_name": "Street Photography International",
  "is_verified": true,
  "is_private": false,
  "position": 1,
  "enriched": false
}
```

`position` is Instagram's own ranking, preserved. It's a relevance signal in its own right — the top few results for a brand term are usually the accounts that actually own it, and everything after is imitation and fan accounts.

### Questions

**How many accounts come back?**
Whatever Instagram returns for that keyword in a single response — a ranked shortlist, typically a few dozen at most, not an exhaustive index. There's no pagination and no limit field, because there's nothing to page through.

**Why is `position` worth keeping?**
Because relevance ordering is information you can't reconstruct afterwards. Sorting by follower count gives you a different and usually worse answer — the biggest account matching "nike" isn't necessarily Nike.

**Does it search names, or only usernames?**
Both. Instagram matches the keyword against usernames and display names, so a search for a person's real name finds them even when their handle looks nothing like it.

**What does `addonProfile` cost?**
One extra request and one billable event per result. Result sets here are small, so unlike the bulk Actors this addon is usually worth leaving on — enriching thirty accounts is cheap and saves a second run.

**Can I search several keywords in one run?**
No — one keyword per run. Run it once per term, or use [Instagram Hashtag & Keyword Search](https://apify.com/toolzerhub/instagram-hashtag-keyword-scraper) if what you actually want is posts about a subject rather than accounts.

**Do private accounts appear?**
Yes, if they match. They're marked with `is_private`, and their content isn't reachable — but knowing the account exists is often the point.

**Do I need an Instagram login?**
No. Nothing logs in and no session is passed.

### Other Instagram Actors

| Actor | Use when |
|---|---|
| [Instagram Profile Content](https://apify.com/toolzerhub/instagram-profile-content-scraper) | You've found accounts and want their posts |
| [Instagram Followers & Following](https://apify.com/toolzerhub/instagram-profile-follower-followee-scraper) | You want their audience |
| [Instagram Hashtag & Keyword Search](https://apify.com/toolzerhub/instagram-hashtag-keyword-scraper) | You want posts about a subject, not accounts |
| [Instagram Media Engagement](https://apify.com/toolzerhub/instagram-media-engagement-scraper) | You want comments and likers on a post |

### Support

Questions, bugs, or feature requests: **contact@toolzerhub.com**

Browse the rest: [apify.com/toolzerhub](https://apify.com/toolzerhub)

# Actor input Schema

## `keyword` (type: `string`):

Search keyword. Only used when Search Mode is Keyword Posts, Keyword Reels, or for User Search.

## `addonProfile` (type: `boolean`):

Swap each row for the account's full public profile (slower, adds a billable event per row)

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "keyword": "tokyo",
  "addonProfile": false
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `dataset` (type: `string`):

Dataset containing all scraped data

# 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 = {
    "keyword": "tokyo"
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("toolzerhub/instagram-user-search-scraper").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 = { "keyword": "tokyo" }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("toolzerhub/instagram-user-search-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

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

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

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "keyword": "tokyo"
}' |
apify call toolzerhub/instagram-user-search-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "mcp-remote",
                "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=toolzerhub/instagram-user-search-scraper",
                "--header",
                "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_TOKEN>"
            ]
        }
    }
}

```

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/s5Wqd69vMjj4jyQXM/builds/OQB72IVXDytqjMzAr/openapi.json