ParseForge
Instagram Posts & Comments Scraper
parseforge/instagram-scraper
Social mediaDeveloper toolsAutomation
Scrape Instagram posts, comments, hashtag posts, and profile metadata. Returns each item as a flat row with caption, media URL, timestamp, and engagement data. No API key required.
- Total users
- 77
- Monthly active
- 10
- Total runs
- 445
- Bookmarked
- 1
- Rating
- Not rated yet
- Last modified
- 12 days ago
Overview
Instagram Posts & Comments Scraper
Scrape Instagram posts, comments, hashtags, and profiles without an API key. Collect up to a million items per run with media type and date filters. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.
Instagram's official API requires a Facebook app, business verification, and strict rate limits. This Instagram scraper reads public data directly from profile pages, post URLs, and hashtag feeds. Filter by image, video, or reel, set a date range, and get every matching item in one consistent row.
| Who uses it | What they scrape Instagram for |
|---|---|
| Social media managers | Track competitor content calendars and post frequency. |
| Market researchers | Analyze trending hashtags and audience engagement on specific topics. |
| Influencer agencies | Audit a creator's recent posts and media mix before outreach. |
| E-commerce brands | Monitor user-generated content tagged with a campaign hashtag. |
What it does
This Actor collects Instagram posts, comments, hashtag posts, or profile metadata and returns each item as a flat row.
- 📸 Posts mode: Collect posts from one or more public profiles with full caption text and media URLs.
- 💬 Comments mode: Extract all comments from a list of post URLs, including replies and timestamps.
- #️⃣ Hashtags mode: Gather every post under a hashtag, filtered by media type and date.
- 👤 Profile mode: Pull profile metadata like bio, follower count, website, and post count.
Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.
What you can do with Instagram data
📈 Track competitor content strategies.
A social media manager enters a list of competitor @usernames in posts mode with a 90-day date filter and exports a CSV of posting frequency and media types.
🔍 Research trending hashtags.
A market researcher runs hashtags mode on a niche tag, filters to the last 30 days, and analyzes which posts get the most engagement.
📋 Audit influencer profiles before outreach.
An agency runs profile mode on a batch of @usernames to compare follower counts, bios, and recent post counts in one spreadsheet.
💬 Collect feedback from campaign posts.
A brand takes the URLs of its latest campaign posts, runs comments mode, and reads every user reply in a single dataset.
Why choose this scraper
| What you get | |
|---|---|
| No API key | Reads public pages directly, no app registration or OAuth flow. |
| Four modes | One scraper for posts, comments, hashtags, and profiles. |
| Media filters | Keep only images, videos, or reels with one dropdown. |
| Date filter | Collect posts from the last 30 days, 3 months, or a fixed date onward. |
| Per-source caps | Set a max items limit per profile or hashtag when scraping many sources. |
How it compares
This Actor combines posts, comments, hashtags, and profiles in one scraper, while the competitors below each focus on a single data type.
| Feature | ParseForge | Instagram Scraper | Instagram Reel Scraper | Instagram Profile Scraper |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Posts mode | Yes | Yes | Not listed | Not listed |
| Comments mode | Yes | Yes | Not listed | Not listed |
| Hashtags mode | Yes | Yes | Not listed | Not listed |
| Profile metadata mode | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| Media type filter (image/video/reel) | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| Date filter | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| Video file download | Not listed | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |
Configure the run
Drive the Actor from profile URLs, @usernames, post URLs, or hashtags, alone or together. Filters run as each item is read so only matches reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.
A first run with the defaults:
{
"mode": "posts",
"startUrls": [
"https://www.instagram.com/nasa/",
"https://www.instagram.com/natgeo/",
"https://www.instagram.com/apple/"
],
"maxItems": 1000,
"mediaTypeFilter": "all"
}
A larger pull:
{
"mode": "posts",
"startUrls": [
"https://www.instagram.com/nasa/",
"https://www.instagram.com/natgeo/",
"https://www.instagram.com/apple/"
],
"maxItems": 200,
"mediaTypeFilter": "all"
}
Pricing
Pay-per-result: $0.0026 per result collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.
| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $0.26 |
| 1,000 results | $2.60 |
| 10,000 results | $26.00 |
New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.
Free users
Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. Upgrade your Apify plan to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.
Run it
- Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit.
- Open the Instagram Posts & Comments Scraper.
- Set your inputs and any filters, then click Start.
- Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the Dataset tab.
Run it programmatically through the Apify API (run-sync-get-dataset-items) or the ApifyClient for JavaScript and Python.
Use with AI agents (MCP)
Give an AI agent live access to Instagram through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=parseforge/instagram-scraper"
Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.
Troubleshooting
Why am I getting no results?
Check that the profile or post URL is public and spelled correctly. If you are using a date filter, try widening the range. Also confirm your max items is set above zero.
The run stopped early and I did not hit my max items.
Instagram may rate-limit requests. The Actor handles this with automatic retries. If the profile has fewer posts than your max items, the run finishes when all posts are collected.
Why are some posts missing captions?
Some posts have no caption text. The caption field will be empty in those cases. This is expected behavior.
I get an error when using a hashtag.
Enter the hashtag without the # symbol. For example, use 'travel' not '#travel'. Also ensure the hashtag is still active and public.
The comments mode is not collecting replies.
The Actor collects top-level comments and threaded replies. If a post has a very large number of comments, increase your max items to ensure replies are captured.
FAQ
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do I need an Instagram login or API key? | No. The Actor reads public pages directly. You do not need to register an app, provide a password, or manage an access token. |
| Can I scrape private profiles? | No. The Actor can only access public profiles and posts. Private accounts require authentication and are not supported. |
| How many items can I collect per run? | Free users are limited to 100 items. Paid Apify plans can collect up to 1,000,000 items per run. |
| What format does the data export to? | You can export your dataset to CSV, JSON, Excel, XML, or push it directly to a webhook or cloud storage. |
| Can I filter posts by date? | Yes. Use the date filter to collect only posts published after a specific date or within a relative window like 30 days or 3 months. |
| Does it download images or videos? | The Actor returns media URLs in the dataset. It does not download the binary files. For video downloads, use the Instagram Reel Scraper. |
| Can I scrape multiple profiles at once? | Yes. Add as many profile URLs or @usernames as you need in the start URLs field. Use the per-source cap to limit items from each one. |
| What is the difference between posts mode and profile mode? | Posts mode collects the actual posts from a profile. Profile mode collects only the account metadata like bio, follower count, and website. |
| Can I scrape Instagram Reels? | Yes. Set the media type filter to 'Reels Only' in posts or hashtags mode to collect only reels. |
| How do I scrape comments on a post? | Switch the mode to 'Comments', paste the post URLs into the start URLs field, and run. The Actor will collect every comment and reply. |
Related actors
- instagram-reel-scraper: Use this if you need to download the actual video files from Instagram Reels.
- instagram-profile-scraper: Use this if you only need profile metadata and related profiles, without posts or comments.
Browse the full ParseForge collection for more scrapers.
🆘 Need help? Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.
⚠️ Disclaimer. This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Meta Platforms, Inc. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.
Input
| Field | Type | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| mode | string (4 options) | What to scrape: - **posts** - Collect posts from one or more profiles - **comments** - Collect comments from post URLs - **hashtags** - Collect posts matching a hashtag - **profile** - Collect profile metadata only | posts |
| startUrls | array | Instagram usernames or URLs. For posts and profile mode use profile URLs or @usernames. For comments mode use post URLs (e.g. https://instagram.com/p/ABC123). For hashtags mode use the hashtags field below. | ["https://www.instagram.com/nasa/","http |
| maxItems | integer | Free users: Limited to 100. Paid users: Optional, max 1,000,000. | 1000 |
| maxItemsPerSource | integer | Maximum items to collect per profile, post, or hashtag. Useful when scraping multiple sources and you want a per-source cap. Optional. | not set |
| hashtags | array | Hashtags to collect posts from. Enter without the # symbol. Example: travel, food, photography. | not set |
| mediaTypeFilter | string (4 options) | Filter posts by media type. Applies to posts and hashtags modes. | all |
| dateFilter | string | Only collect posts from this date onward. Accepts YYYY-MM-DD or relative formats like 30 days, 3 months, 1 year. | not set |
| enrichOutput | boolean | Toggle on to add a global top-trends snapshot + per-creator brand momentum (Trends MCP: works on every post regardless of caption format) OR company profile (Apollo: business accounts only). Auto-detects which connector you picked. Snapshot fetched once per run; momentum cached per username. | false |
| enrichConnector | string | Pick Trends MCP (recommended: adds hashtag momentum to every post) or Apollo (business accounts only). Click '+' to authorize. | not set |
| mcpProxyUrlOverride | string | Diagnostic only. | not set |
| mcpTokenOverride | string | Diagnostic only. | not set |
Pricing
from $1.30 per 1,000 results
| Charged for | What it is | Price each |
|---|---|---|
| result | Single row in the default dataset. | $0.0013 to $0.0026 |
Tiered: the lower figure is the price on a higher Apify plan. Billing and the free credit live on Apify.
API
One POST returns the dataset directly. Same shape for every scraper in the library, so swapping the slug is the only change.
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/parseforge~instagram-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"helloWorld": 123
}' Examples
Input that runs as-is.
{
"helloWorld": 123
} Reviews
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Issues
We build and maintain this scraper, so a problem with it comes to us. Report it on the Apify listing and the thread stays attached to the scraper where the next person can find it: open an issue.
Broken and urgent, or you would rather not post in public? Write to parseforge@protonmail.com and it reaches the people who wrote it.
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