Platforms/Instagram
Instagram API
Read public Instagram profiles with their posts, reels and story highlights, a post's comments, and the posts on a place or topic page, as JSON. Every call reads what a logged-out visitor sees: no Instagram account and no developer app.
Instagram endpoints
10 endpoints, each a GET request with your key in the x-api-key header.
| Endpoint | Request | Returns |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | GET /v1/instagram/profile?handle=nike | A profile's card: name, bio, links, followers, following and post count. |
| Profile posts | GET /v1/instagram/profiles/posts?handle=nike | A profile's posts and reels, as its grid shows them: the newest first, 12 a page. |
| Profile reels | GET /v1/instagram/profiles/reels?handle=nike | A profile's latest reels, with their plays: the 12 its reels tab shows logged out. |
| Profile highlights | GET /v1/instagram/profiles/highlights?handle=nasa | A profile's story highlights: their titles and covers. |
| Highlight | GET /v1/instagram/highlights?highlight_id=17975319242920589 | A story highlight and every story in it: their images, videos and times. |
| Location | GET /v1/instagram/locations?location_id=212988663 | A place: its name, category, post count, coordinates and address. |
| Location posts | GET /v1/instagram/locations/posts?location_id=212988663 | The top posts tagged at a place: the 12 to 15 its page shows logged out. |
| Topic | GET /v1/instagram/topics?topic=harry+potter | Instagram's page for a topic or a hashtag: its summary, related searches, and the posts and reels it shows. |
| Post | GET /v1/instagram/posts?code=Dehl7Xohfah | A post or reel: its caption, counts, author, images and videos, tagged accounts, place, sound and topics. |
| Post comments | GET /v1/instagram/posts/comments?code=Dek_RAKjMDJ | A post's or reel's first comments, in Instagram's order: the 12 to 15 its page shows logged out. |
Your first request
Save your key and the base URL, then call the profile endpoint:
export API_KEY="your-api-key"
export API_URL="https://api.socialparse.dev"
curl -H "x-api-key: $API_KEY" "$API_URL/v1/instagram/profile?handle=nike"Every answer has the same envelope on every platform: data, page for the next page, and meta. See Responses and Errors.
Compared with Instagram's own API
Meta's Instagram API is built for business and creator accounts that connect to your app, and most of its permissions need App Review. Reading any public profile or post isn't what it's for. Social Parse needs neither: it reads the public pages, and you pay per successful call.
Pricing
One credit per successful call, whichever endpoint; errors cost nothing and credits never expire. New accounts start with 100 free credits. See pricing for the packs.
FAQ
Do I need Instagram credentials or developer approval?
No. Social Parse reads Instagram's public pages as a logged-out visitor does, so you only need an API key.
What does each Instagram call cost?
One credit per successful call, live or cached; a page of results is one call, and errors cost nothing. New accounts get 100 free credits.
What about private Instagram content?
Only what a logged-out visitor can see is read. Content behind a login answers 403 LOGIN_REQUIRED, and something deleted answers 404 NOT_FOUND.
How fresh is the data?
Each call reads the live page. The same call within a few minutes is answered from a short cache, and deleted content is never served from it.