Instagram API
The TrueScrape Instagram API exposes 19 public endpoints covering Reels using a sound and Replies under one comment. Every call is a GET against public, logged-out pages and returns the same unified schema as every other platform here. Calls cost 1 credit each. A cache hit is free, and a failed or empty response is never charged.
Endpoints
| Endpoint | Returns | Credits | Cacheable | Batchable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| /v1/instagram/audio-reels | Reels using a sound | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/comment-replies | Replies under one comment | 1 | yes | no |
| /v1/instagram/hashtag-posts | Posts under a hashtag | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/highlight | Stories inside a highlight | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/popular-search | Top posts for a keyword | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/post | Post or reel details | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/post-comments | Comments on a post or reel | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/profile | Profile details | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/profile-post-count | Post count for a profile | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/profile-search | Search accounts | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/reels-search | Search reels by keyword | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/search | Search accounts, hashtags and places | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/transcript | Reel or video transcript | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/trending-reels | Reels trending on Explore | 1 | yes | no |
| /v1/instagram/user-embed | Profile via the public embed card | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/user-highlights | Story highlight covers | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/user-posts | Posts and reels from a profile | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/user-reels | Reels from a profile | 1 | yes | yes |
| /v1/instagram/user-tagged-posts | Posts a profile is tagged in | 1 | yes | yes |
Reference
GET
/v1/instagram/audio-reels1 creditcacheablebatchableReels using a sound
Reels built on one audio track, the "N reels using this audio" list. Takes the numeric audio id or a /reels/audio/ URL. Falls back to the public audio page, which lists its first grid of reels only once rendered, as links and cover images.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| audio_id | string | yes | Numeric audio id, or a /reels/audio/<id>/ URL |
| cursor | string | no | pagination.cursor from a previous response |
| count | number | no | Reels per page, 1-50. Default 12. |
Also accepts cache_max_age (a hit costs 0 credits) and include_raw (returns the untouched upstream payload under raw).
Returns a list of Post in data.items.
Fields
| Field | Type | Present | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| platform | one of 47 strings | always | |
| id | string | always | |
| type | video | short | image | carousel | text | live | story | reel | audio | album | episode | unknown | always | What kind of post this is. `short` and `reel` are short-form video formats, `live` is a live stream or a recording of one, `carousel` holds several images or videos, `audio` is a music track, `album` is an album, `episode` is a podcast episode, and `unknown` covers anything else. |
| url | string | null | always | |
| title | string | null | always | |
| text | string | null | always | The post's text: a caption, a description or the message body. |
| authorId | string | null | always | |
| authorHandle | string | null | always | |
| authorName | string | null | always | |
| thumbnailUrl | string | null | always | |
| mediaUrls | string[] | always | |
| durationSeconds | number | null | always | |
| viewCount | number | null | always | Views. Null means the platform did not expose a count, which is not the same as zero. |
| likeCount | number | null | always | Likes, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| commentCount | number | null | always | Comments. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| shareCount | number | null | always | Shares, reposts, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| hashtags | string[] | always | Hashtags or the platform's own topic tags, without the leading #. |
| mentions | string[] | always | Handles mentioned in the post text, without the leading @. |
| taggedUsers | string[] | may be absent | Usernames tagged in the media itself, as distinct from `mentions`, which come from the caption text. Absent when the platform does not report tags; an empty array means it reports none. |
| isSponsored | boolean | null | always | Whether the platform labels the post as an ad, promoted content or a paid partnership. |
| publishedAt | string | null | always | When the post was published. Usually an ISO 8601 timestamp; some platforms expose only a date or relative text such as "3 days ago". |
| fetchedAt | string | always | When this record was fetched from the platform, as an ISO 8601 timestamp. A cached response keeps the time of the original fetch. |
curl
curl "$API/v1/instagram/audio-reels?audio_id=%3Caudio_id%3E&cache_max_age=7d" \
-H "x-api-key: $KEY"TypeScript
const query = new URLSearchParams({
audio_id: '<audio_id>',
cache_max_age: '7d',
});
const response = await fetch(`${API}/v1/instagram/audio-reels?${query}`, {
headers: { 'x-api-key': KEY },
});
const body = await response.json();
if (!body.success) throw new Error(body.error.code);
// 1 credit, 0 on a cache hit
console.log(body.data, body.meta.creditsCharged);Python
Python
import os, httpx
r = httpx.get(
f"{os.environ['API']}/v1/instagram/audio-reels",
params={
"audio_id": "<audio_id>",
"cache_max_age": "7d",
},
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["KEY"]},
timeout=30,
)
body = r.json()
if not body["success"]:
raise RuntimeError(body["error"]["code"])
print(body["data"], body["meta"]["creditsCharged"])Response codes
| 200 | Success |
| 400 | invalid_request. Not charged |
| 401 | missing_api_key / invalid_api_key / revoked_api_key. Never a billing error |
| 402 | insufficient_credits. The key is valid, the balance is not |
| 429 | daily_cap_exceeded or rate_limited (hourly calls to servers you named outside our known list). Not charged |
| 501 | not_configured. This deployment is not set up to serve this endpoint. Not charged. |
| 502 | upstream_schema_drift. Not charged |
| 503 | upstream_unavailable. We could not get this from the platform. Not charged |
| 504 | upstream_timeout. Not charged |
GET
/v1/instagram/comment-replies1 creditcacheableReplies under one comment
The full reply thread under a single comment. Take comment_id from data.items[].id on /v1/instagram/post-comments; the post URL is still required because Instagram addresses replies through the media that carries them.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| url | string | yes | Post, reel or IGTV URL, or a bare shortcode |
| comment_id | string | yes | data.items[].id from /v1/instagram/post-comments |
| cursor | string | no | pagination.cursor from a previous response |
| count | number | no | Replies per page, 1-50. Default 24. |
Also accepts cache_max_age (a hit costs 0 credits) and include_raw (returns the untouched upstream payload under raw).
Returns a list of Comment in data.items.
Fields
| Field | Type | Present | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| platform | one of 47 strings | always | |
| id | string | always | |
| postId | string | null | always | |
| parentId | string | null | always | Id of the comment this one replies to. Null on a top-level comment. |
| text | string | always | |
| authorId | string | null | always | |
| authorHandle | string | null | always | |
| authorName | string | null | always | |
| authorAvatarUrl | string | null | always | |
| likeCount | number | null | always | |
| replyCount | number | null | always | |
| isPinned | boolean | null | always | |
| isAuthorReply | boolean | null | always | Whether the comment was written by the author of the post. |
| publishedAt | string | null | always | When the comment was posted. Usually an ISO 8601 timestamp; some platforms expose only relative text such as "2 days ago". |
curl
curl "$API/v1/instagram/comment-replies?url=8XkPqR2nLvE&comment_id=%3Ccomment_id%3E&cache_max_age=7d" \
-H "x-api-key: $KEY"TypeScript
const query = new URLSearchParams({
url: '8XkPqR2nLvE',
comment_id: '<comment_id>',
cache_max_age: '7d',
});
const response = await fetch(`${API}/v1/instagram/comment-replies?${query}`, {
headers: { 'x-api-key': KEY },
});
const body = await response.json();
if (!body.success) throw new Error(body.error.code);
// 1 credit, 0 on a cache hit
console.log(body.data, body.meta.creditsCharged);Python
Python
import os, httpx
r = httpx.get(
f"{os.environ['API']}/v1/instagram/comment-replies",
params={
"url": "8XkPqR2nLvE",
"comment_id": "<comment_id>",
"cache_max_age": "7d",
},
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["KEY"]},
timeout=30,
)
body = r.json()
if not body["success"]:
raise RuntimeError(body["error"]["code"])
print(body["data"], body["meta"]["creditsCharged"])Response codes
| 200 | Success |
| 400 | invalid_request. Not charged |
| 401 | missing_api_key / invalid_api_key / revoked_api_key. Never a billing error |
| 402 | insufficient_credits. The key is valid, the balance is not |
| 429 | daily_cap_exceeded or rate_limited (hourly calls to servers you named outside our known list). Not charged |
| 501 | not_configured. This deployment is not set up to serve this endpoint. Not charged. |
| 502 | upstream_schema_drift. Not charged |
| 503 | upstream_unavailable. We could not get this from the platform. Not charged |
| 504 | upstream_timeout. Not charged |
GET
/v1/instagram/hashtag-posts1 creditcacheablebatchablePosts under a hashtag
Posts carrying a hashtag. tab=top is Instagram's ranking (one fixed page, no cursor); tab=recent is chronological and paginates. Falls back to the server-rendered tag page when the JSON surface declines, which returns the top grid only. Set extra_fetch=true to fill each post's publish date, like and comment counts and caption from its own page: 1 credit per item fetched, up to the page size.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| hashtag | string | yes | Hashtag (#nasa or nasa), or an /explore/tags/ URL |
| tab | top | recent | no | Instagram's ranking, or chronologicaldefaults to top |
| cursor | string | no | pagination.cursor from a previous response. recent only |
| extra_fetch | boolean | no | When true, fetches each item's own page to fill fields the list page leaves null. Costs 1 extra credit per page fetched, up to the page size. |
Also accepts cache_max_age (a hit costs 0 credits) and include_raw (returns the untouched upstream payload under raw).
Returns a list of Post in data.items.
Fields
| Field | Type | Present | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| platform | one of 47 strings | always | |
| id | string | always | |
| type | video | short | image | carousel | text | live | story | reel | audio | album | episode | unknown | always | What kind of post this is. `short` and `reel` are short-form video formats, `live` is a live stream or a recording of one, `carousel` holds several images or videos, `audio` is a music track, `album` is an album, `episode` is a podcast episode, and `unknown` covers anything else. |
| url | string | null | always | |
| title | string | null | always | |
| text | string | null | always | The post's text: a caption, a description or the message body. |
| authorId | string | null | always | |
| authorHandle | string | null | always | |
| authorName | string | null | always | |
| thumbnailUrl | string | null | always | |
| mediaUrls | string[] | always | |
| durationSeconds | number | null | always | |
| viewCount | number | null | always | Views. Null means the platform did not expose a count, which is not the same as zero. |
| likeCount | number | null | always | Likes, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| commentCount | number | null | always | Comments. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| shareCount | number | null | always | Shares, reposts, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| hashtags | string[] | always | Hashtags or the platform's own topic tags, without the leading #. |
| mentions | string[] | always | Handles mentioned in the post text, without the leading @. |
| taggedUsers | string[] | may be absent | Usernames tagged in the media itself, as distinct from `mentions`, which come from the caption text. Absent when the platform does not report tags; an empty array means it reports none. |
| isSponsored | boolean | null | always | Whether the platform labels the post as an ad, promoted content or a paid partnership. |
| publishedAt | string | null | always | When the post was published. Usually an ISO 8601 timestamp; some platforms expose only a date or relative text such as "3 days ago". |
| fetchedAt | string | always | When this record was fetched from the platform, as an ISO 8601 timestamp. A cached response keeps the time of the original fetch. |
curl
curl "$API/v1/instagram/hashtag-posts?hashtag=%3Chashtag%3E&cache_max_age=7d" \
-H "x-api-key: $KEY"TypeScript
const query = new URLSearchParams({
hashtag: '<hashtag>',
cache_max_age: '7d',
});
const response = await fetch(`${API}/v1/instagram/hashtag-posts?${query}`, {
headers: { 'x-api-key': KEY },
});
const body = await response.json();
if (!body.success) throw new Error(body.error.code);
// 1 credit, 0 on a cache hit
console.log(body.data, body.meta.creditsCharged);Python
Python
import os, httpx
r = httpx.get(
f"{os.environ['API']}/v1/instagram/hashtag-posts",
params={
"hashtag": "<hashtag>",
"cache_max_age": "7d",
},
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["KEY"]},
timeout=30,
)
body = r.json()
if not body["success"]:
raise RuntimeError(body["error"]["code"])
print(body["data"], body["meta"]["creditsCharged"])Response codes
| 200 | Success |
| 400 | invalid_request. Not charged |
| 401 | missing_api_key / invalid_api_key / revoked_api_key. Never a billing error |
| 402 | insufficient_credits. The key is valid, the balance is not |
| 429 | daily_cap_exceeded or rate_limited (hourly calls to servers you named outside our known list). Not charged |
| 501 | not_configured. This deployment is not set up to serve this endpoint. Not charged. |
| 502 | upstream_schema_drift. Not charged |
| 503 | upstream_unavailable. We could not get this from the platform. Not charged |
| 504 | upstream_timeout. Not charged |
GET
/v1/instagram/profile-search1 creditcacheablebatchableSearch accounts
Accounts matching a query, as unified Creators. The follower counts on a search result are Instagram's own summary and are thinner than /v1/instagram/profile. Fetch that for one account you care about. One page only; this surface has no cursor.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| query | string | yes | Handle or name to search for |
Also accepts cache_max_age (a hit costs 0 credits) and include_raw (returns the untouched upstream payload under raw).
Returns a list of Creator in data.items.
Fields
| Field | Type | Present | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| platform | one of 47 strings | always | |
| id | string | always | The platform's own id for the account, such as a channel id or a numeric user id, always as a string. |
| handle | string | null | always | The account handle without the leading @. Null when the platform has no handles. |
| displayName | string | null | always | |
| bio | string | null | always | |
| avatarUrl | string | null | always | |
| bannerUrl | string | null | always | |
| url | string | null | always | |
| verified | boolean | null | always | Whether the platform shows a verification badge on the account. Null where the platform has no public badge or does not expose it. |
| followerCount | number | null | always | Followers, subscribers, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null when the account hides the count or the platform does not expose it. |
| followingCount | number | null | always | |
| postCount | number | null | always | Posts, videos, tracks, repositories, or the platform's nearest equivalent that the account has published. |
| viewCount | number | null | always | Lifetime views across the account, where the platform exposes a total. |
| likeCount | number | null | may be absent | Total likes received across all of the creator's posts. Distinct from `viewCount`. Absent when the platform does not expose it. |
| isPrivate | boolean | null | always | |
| isBusiness | boolean | null | always | Whether the platform classifies the account as a business or organisation rather than a person or creator. Null where the platform draws no such line or does not expose it. On Facebook every Page counts, including Pages for public figures. |
| category | string | null | always | A label the platform attaches to the account, such as a business category, a genre or an account type. What it holds varies by platform. |
| location | string | null | always | Location as the platform shows it: a city, a country, a region code or an address, depending on the platform. |
| externalLinks | string[] | always | Links the account lists on its profile, such as a website or other social accounts. |
| createdAt | string | null | always | When the account was created. Usually an ISO 8601 timestamp; some platforms expose only the date as shown on the profile. |
| fetchedAt | string | always | When this record was fetched from the platform, as an ISO 8601 timestamp. A cached response keeps the time of the original fetch. |
curl
curl "$API/v1/instagram/profile-search?query=ai%20agents&cache_max_age=7d" \
-H "x-api-key: $KEY"TypeScript
const query = new URLSearchParams({
query: 'ai agents',
cache_max_age: '7d',
});
const response = await fetch(`${API}/v1/instagram/profile-search?${query}`, {
headers: { 'x-api-key': KEY },
});
const body = await response.json();
if (!body.success) throw new Error(body.error.code);
// 1 credit, 0 on a cache hit
console.log(body.data, body.meta.creditsCharged);Python
Python
import os, httpx
r = httpx.get(
f"{os.environ['API']}/v1/instagram/profile-search",
params={
"query": "ai agents",
"cache_max_age": "7d",
},
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["KEY"]},
timeout=30,
)
body = r.json()
if not body["success"]:
raise RuntimeError(body["error"]["code"])
print(body["data"], body["meta"]["creditsCharged"])Response codes
| 200 | Success |
| 400 | invalid_request. Not charged |
| 401 | missing_api_key / invalid_api_key / revoked_api_key. Never a billing error |
| 402 | insufficient_credits. The key is valid, the balance is not |
| 429 | daily_cap_exceeded or rate_limited (hourly calls to servers you named outside our known list). Not charged |
| 501 | not_configured. This deployment is not set up to serve this endpoint. Not charged. |
| 502 | upstream_schema_drift. Not charged |
| 503 | upstream_unavailable. We could not get this from the platform. Not charged |
| 504 | upstream_timeout. Not charged |
GET
/v1/instagram/reels-search1 creditcacheablebatchableSearch reels by keyword
Reels matching a keyword, from Instagram's own keyword search rather than its hashtag index. The two return genuinely different sets, so this never quietly substitutes one for the other. Results are whatever Instagram ranked for the query at that moment.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| query | string | yes | Keyword to search for |
| cursor | string | no | pagination.cursor from a previous response |
Also accepts cache_max_age (a hit costs 0 credits) and include_raw (returns the untouched upstream payload under raw).
Returns a list of Post in data.items.
Fields
| Field | Type | Present | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| platform | one of 47 strings | always | |
| id | string | always | |
| type | video | short | image | carousel | text | live | story | reel | audio | album | episode | unknown | always | What kind of post this is. `short` and `reel` are short-form video formats, `live` is a live stream or a recording of one, `carousel` holds several images or videos, `audio` is a music track, `album` is an album, `episode` is a podcast episode, and `unknown` covers anything else. |
| url | string | null | always | |
| title | string | null | always | |
| text | string | null | always | The post's text: a caption, a description or the message body. |
| authorId | string | null | always | |
| authorHandle | string | null | always | |
| authorName | string | null | always | |
| thumbnailUrl | string | null | always | |
| mediaUrls | string[] | always | |
| durationSeconds | number | null | always | |
| viewCount | number | null | always | Views. Null means the platform did not expose a count, which is not the same as zero. |
| likeCount | number | null | always | Likes, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| commentCount | number | null | always | Comments. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| shareCount | number | null | always | Shares, reposts, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| hashtags | string[] | always | Hashtags or the platform's own topic tags, without the leading #. |
| mentions | string[] | always | Handles mentioned in the post text, without the leading @. |
| taggedUsers | string[] | may be absent | Usernames tagged in the media itself, as distinct from `mentions`, which come from the caption text. Absent when the platform does not report tags; an empty array means it reports none. |
| isSponsored | boolean | null | always | Whether the platform labels the post as an ad, promoted content or a paid partnership. |
| publishedAt | string | null | always | When the post was published. Usually an ISO 8601 timestamp; some platforms expose only a date or relative text such as "3 days ago". |
| fetchedAt | string | always | When this record was fetched from the platform, as an ISO 8601 timestamp. A cached response keeps the time of the original fetch. |
curl
curl "$API/v1/instagram/reels-search?query=ai%20agents&cache_max_age=7d" \
-H "x-api-key: $KEY"TypeScript
const query = new URLSearchParams({
query: 'ai agents',
cache_max_age: '7d',
});
const response = await fetch(`${API}/v1/instagram/reels-search?${query}`, {
headers: { 'x-api-key': KEY },
});
const body = await response.json();
if (!body.success) throw new Error(body.error.code);
// 1 credit, 0 on a cache hit
console.log(body.data, body.meta.creditsCharged);Python
Python
import os, httpx
r = httpx.get(
f"{os.environ['API']}/v1/instagram/reels-search",
params={
"query": "ai agents",
"cache_max_age": "7d",
},
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["KEY"]},
timeout=30,
)
body = r.json()
if not body["success"]:
raise RuntimeError(body["error"]["code"])
print(body["data"], body["meta"]["creditsCharged"])Response codes
| 200 | Success |
| 400 | invalid_request. Not charged |
| 401 | missing_api_key / invalid_api_key / revoked_api_key. Never a billing error |
| 402 | insufficient_credits. The key is valid, the balance is not |
| 429 | daily_cap_exceeded or rate_limited (hourly calls to servers you named outside our known list). Not charged |
| 501 | not_configured. This deployment is not set up to serve this endpoint. Not charged. |
| 502 | upstream_schema_drift. Not charged |
| 503 | upstream_unavailable. We could not get this from the platform. Not charged |
| 504 | upstream_timeout. Not charged |
GET
/v1/instagram/search1 creditcacheablebatchableSearch accounts, hashtags and places
Instagram's blended search, the one behind the search box. Returns three buckets: users as unified Creators, plus hashtags and places, which have no unified equivalent and keep Instagram's own shape. One page only; this surface has no cursor.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| query | string | yes | What to search for |
| type | all | users | hashtags | places | no | Restrict to one kind of resultdefaults to all |
Also accepts cache_max_age (a hit costs 0 credits) and include_raw (returns the untouched upstream payload under raw).
Returns an object with users, hashtags, places.
Fields
| Field | Type | Present |
|---|---|---|
| users | Creator[] | always |
| hashtags | object[] | always |
| hashtags[].name | string | always |
| hashtags[].id | string | null | always |
| hashtags[].mediaCount | number | null | always |
| hashtags[].url | string | always |
| hashtags[].thumbnailUrl | string | null | always |
| places | object[] | always |
| places[].id | string | null | always |
| places[].name | string | always |
| places[].slug | string | null | always |
| places[].address | string | null | always |
| places[].city | string | null | always |
| places[].latitude | number | null | always |
| places[].longitude | number | null | always |
| places[].url | string | null | always |
curl
curl "$API/v1/instagram/search?query=ai%20agents&cache_max_age=7d" \
-H "x-api-key: $KEY"TypeScript
const query = new URLSearchParams({
query: 'ai agents',
cache_max_age: '7d',
});
const response = await fetch(`${API}/v1/instagram/search?${query}`, {
headers: { 'x-api-key': KEY },
});
const body = await response.json();
if (!body.success) throw new Error(body.error.code);
// 1 credit, 0 on a cache hit
console.log(body.data, body.meta.creditsCharged);Python
Python
import os, httpx
r = httpx.get(
f"{os.environ['API']}/v1/instagram/search",
params={
"query": "ai agents",
"cache_max_age": "7d",
},
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["KEY"]},
timeout=30,
)
body = r.json()
if not body["success"]:
raise RuntimeError(body["error"]["code"])
print(body["data"], body["meta"]["creditsCharged"])Response codes
| 200 | Success |
| 400 | invalid_request. Not charged |
| 401 | missing_api_key / invalid_api_key / revoked_api_key. Never a billing error |
| 402 | insufficient_credits. The key is valid, the balance is not |
| 429 | daily_cap_exceeded or rate_limited (hourly calls to servers you named outside our known list). Not charged |
| 501 | not_configured. This deployment is not set up to serve this endpoint. Not charged. |
| 502 | upstream_schema_drift. Not charged |
| 503 | upstream_unavailable. We could not get this from the platform. Not charged |
| 504 | upstream_timeout. Not charged |
GET
/v1/instagram/transcript1 creditcacheablebatchableReel or video transcript
The caption track Instagram published for a reel or video, as one text block plus timed cues. This is Instagram's own track, never a transcription of the audio, so a transcript here is what the platform published rather than what a model guessed. Instagram has published no caption track on any reel checked so far, so most requests return empty_result, which is free.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| url | string | yes | Reel, post or IGTV URL, or a bare shortcode |
Also accepts cache_max_age (a hit costs 0 credits) and include_raw (returns the untouched upstream payload under raw).
Returns one Transcript.
Fields
| Field | Type | Present | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| platform | one of 47 strings | always | |
| postId | string | always | |
| url | string | null | always | |
| language | string | null | always | The transcript's language as the platform labels it, usually a language code such as `en`. |
| isAutoGenerated | boolean | null | always | Whether the platform generated the captions automatically, by speech recognition or machine translation, rather than a person writing them. |
| text | string | always | The full transcript as a single block of text. |
| cues | object[] | always | Timed segments of the transcript. |
| cues[].start | number | always | Seconds from the start of the media. |
| cues[].end | number | null | always | Seconds from the start of the media. Null when the platform gives no end time. |
| cues[].text | string | always | |
| durationSeconds | number | null | always | |
| source | captions | asr | null | always | Where the transcript came from. `captions`: the platform's own caption track, whether a person wrote it or the platform generated it (see `isAutoGenerated`). `asr`: produced by speech recognition on the audio. Null when this cannot be told. |
| fetchedAt | string | always | When this record was fetched from the platform, as an ISO 8601 timestamp. A cached response keeps the time of the original fetch. |
curl
curl "$API/v1/instagram/transcript?url=8XkPqR2nLvE&cache_max_age=7d" \
-H "x-api-key: $KEY"TypeScript
const query = new URLSearchParams({
url: '8XkPqR2nLvE',
cache_max_age: '7d',
});
const response = await fetch(`${API}/v1/instagram/transcript?${query}`, {
headers: { 'x-api-key': KEY },
});
const body = await response.json();
if (!body.success) throw new Error(body.error.code);
// 1 credit, 0 on a cache hit
console.log(body.data, body.meta.creditsCharged);Python
Python
import os, httpx
r = httpx.get(
f"{os.environ['API']}/v1/instagram/transcript",
params={
"url": "8XkPqR2nLvE",
"cache_max_age": "7d",
},
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["KEY"]},
timeout=30,
)
body = r.json()
if not body["success"]:
raise RuntimeError(body["error"]["code"])
print(body["data"], body["meta"]["creditsCharged"])Response codes
| 200 | Success |
| 400 | invalid_request. Not charged |
| 401 | missing_api_key / invalid_api_key / revoked_api_key. Never a billing error |
| 402 | insufficient_credits. The key is valid, the balance is not |
| 429 | daily_cap_exceeded or rate_limited (hourly calls to servers you named outside our known list). Not charged |
| 501 | not_configured. This deployment is not set up to serve this endpoint. Not charged. |
| 502 | upstream_schema_drift. Not charged |
| 503 | upstream_unavailable. We could not get this from the platform. Not charged |
| 504 | upstream_timeout. Not charged |
GET
/v1/instagram/user-tagged-posts1 creditcacheablebatchablePosts a profile is tagged in
Public posts by other accounts that tagged this user (the "Tagged" tab). Note this is other people's content: authorHandle is the poster, not the tagged account. Users can hide the tab, which returns empty_result. **Required:** Pass either handle or user_id.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| handle | string | no | Handle (@nike), or a full instagram.com profile URL. Optional if user_id is given. |
| user_id | string | no | Numeric user id. Skips a lookup. Take it from data.items[].authorId. |
| cursor | string | no | pagination.cursor from a previous response |
| count | number | no | Posts per page, 1-50. Default 12. |
Also accepts cache_max_age (a hit costs 0 credits) and include_raw (returns the untouched upstream payload under raw).
Returns a list of Post in data.items.
Fields
| Field | Type | Present | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| platform | one of 47 strings | always | |
| id | string | always | |
| type | video | short | image | carousel | text | live | story | reel | audio | album | episode | unknown | always | What kind of post this is. `short` and `reel` are short-form video formats, `live` is a live stream or a recording of one, `carousel` holds several images or videos, `audio` is a music track, `album` is an album, `episode` is a podcast episode, and `unknown` covers anything else. |
| url | string | null | always | |
| title | string | null | always | |
| text | string | null | always | The post's text: a caption, a description or the message body. |
| authorId | string | null | always | |
| authorHandle | string | null | always | |
| authorName | string | null | always | |
| thumbnailUrl | string | null | always | |
| mediaUrls | string[] | always | |
| durationSeconds | number | null | always | |
| viewCount | number | null | always | Views. Null means the platform did not expose a count, which is not the same as zero. |
| likeCount | number | null | always | Likes, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| commentCount | number | null | always | Comments. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| shareCount | number | null | always | Shares, reposts, or the platform's nearest equivalent. Null means not exposed, not zero. |
| hashtags | string[] | always | Hashtags or the platform's own topic tags, without the leading #. |
| mentions | string[] | always | Handles mentioned in the post text, without the leading @. |
| taggedUsers | string[] | may be absent | Usernames tagged in the media itself, as distinct from `mentions`, which come from the caption text. Absent when the platform does not report tags; an empty array means it reports none. |
| isSponsored | boolean | null | always | Whether the platform labels the post as an ad, promoted content or a paid partnership. |
| publishedAt | string | null | always | When the post was published. Usually an ISO 8601 timestamp; some platforms expose only a date or relative text such as "3 days ago". |
| fetchedAt | string | always | When this record was fetched from the platform, as an ISO 8601 timestamp. A cached response keeps the time of the original fetch. |
curl
curl "$API/v1/instagram/user-tagged-posts?cache_max_age=7d" \
-H "x-api-key: $KEY"TypeScript
const query = new URLSearchParams({
cache_max_age: '7d',
});
const response = await fetch(`${API}/v1/instagram/user-tagged-posts?${query}`, {
headers: { 'x-api-key': KEY },
});
const body = await response.json();
if (!body.success) throw new Error(body.error.code);
// 1 credit, 0 on a cache hit
console.log(body.data, body.meta.creditsCharged);Python
Python
import os, httpx
r = httpx.get(
f"{os.environ['API']}/v1/instagram/user-tagged-posts",
params={
"cache_max_age": "7d",
},
headers={"x-api-key": os.environ["KEY"]},
timeout=30,
)
body = r.json()
if not body["success"]:
raise RuntimeError(body["error"]["code"])
print(body["data"], body["meta"]["creditsCharged"])Response codes
| 200 | Success |
| 400 | invalid_request. Not charged |
| 401 | missing_api_key / invalid_api_key / revoked_api_key. Never a billing error |
| 402 | insufficient_credits. The key is valid, the balance is not |
| 429 | daily_cap_exceeded or rate_limited (hourly calls to servers you named outside our known list). Not charged |
| 501 | not_configured. This deployment is not set up to serve this endpoint. Not charged. |
| 502 | upstream_schema_drift. Not charged |
| 503 | upstream_unavailable. We could not get this from the platform. Not charged |
| 504 | upstream_timeout. Not charged |
Questions
- How much does the Instagram API cost?
- Calls cost 1 credit each. Every endpoint is cacheable, and a cache hit costs nothing. A failed request and an empty result are both free, on every endpoint.
- Does the Instagram API need a login or cookies?
- No. Every endpoint reads public, logged-out pages only — no account, no cookies, no session. An API key identifies your own TrueScrape account and nothing else.
- Can I fetch many Instagram targets in one request?
- Yes. 17 of 19 are batchable: one POST to /v1/jobs/batch takes many targets and returns a job id to poll.
- Can I watch Instagram endpoints for changes?
- Yes, 12 of 19. A subscription polls on your schedule and fires your webhook only when the content changed; the rest carry x-subscribable: false in the spec.