API tutorial · October 2026

How to Get Instagram User Data via API

Fetch profile data, recent posts, and engagement metrics for any public account. Full working code in Node.js and Python.

· 7 minute read

Instagram’s official Graph API requires the account owner to authenticate your app. If you need public data — follower count, bio, recent posts, engagement metrics — for accounts you don’t own, you need a third-party data API.

This tutorial uses the GramScraper API to fetch profile data, recent posts, and calculate basic metrics. Full working code in both Node.js and Python.

Setup

Sign up at gramscraper.com for 100 free credits (no credit card required). Grab your API key from the dashboard.

The API base URL is https://gramscraper.com/api/instagram/v1/. All requests need your API key in the x-api-key header.

Fetch a Profile

Python

Python
import requests

API_KEY = "YOUR_API_KEY"
BASE = "https://gramscraper.com/api/instagram/v1"

def get_profile(username):
    r = requests.get(
        f"{BASE}/user/by/username",
        params={"username": username},
        headers={"x-api-key": API_KEY},
    )
    r.raise_for_status()
    return r.json()

profile = get_profile("natgeo")
print(f"@{profile['username']}")
print(f"Followers: {profile['follower_count']:,}")
print(f"Following: {profile['following_count']:,}")
print(f"Posts: {profile['media_count']:,}")
print(f"Bio: {profile['biography']}")
print(f"Verified: {profile['is_verified']}")

Node.js

JavaScript
const API_KEY = "YOUR_API_KEY";
const BASE = "https://gramscraper.com/api/instagram/v1";

async function getProfile(username) {
  const url = `${BASE}/user/by/username?username=${username}`;
  const res = await fetch(url, {
    headers: { "x-api-key": API_KEY },
  });
  if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`HTTP ${res.status}`);
  return res.json();
}

const profile = await getProfile("natgeo");
console.log(`@${profile.username}`);
console.log(`Followers: ${profile.follower_count.toLocaleString()}`);
console.log(`Following: ${profile.following_count.toLocaleString()}`);
console.log(`Posts: ${profile.media_count.toLocaleString()}`);
console.log(`Bio: ${profile.biography}`);
console.log(`Verified: ${profile.is_verified}`);

Both return the same data. Node.js 18+ includes fetch natively — no dependencies needed.

Fetch Recent Posts

Once you have the profile, grab the user ID to fetch their posts:

Python

Python
def get_posts(user_id, count=12):
    r = requests.get(
        f"{BASE}/user/posts",
        params={"user_id": user_id, "count": count},
        headers={"x-api-key": API_KEY},
    )
    r.raise_for_status()
    return r.json()

user_id = profile["pk"]
posts = get_posts(user_id)

for post in posts.get("items", [])[:5]:
    print(f"\n--- Post {post.get('code', '?')} ---")
    print(f"  Likes: {post.get('like_count', 0):,}")
    print(f"  Comments: {post.get('comment_count', 0):,}")
    caption = post.get("caption", {})
    if caption:
        print(f"  Caption: {caption.get('text', '')[:100]}...")

Node.js

JavaScript
async function getPosts(userId, count = 12) {
  const url = `${BASE}/user/posts?user_id=${userId}&count=${count}`;
  const res = await fetch(url, {
    headers: { "x-api-key": API_KEY },
  });
  if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`HTTP ${res.status}`);
  return res.json();
}

const posts = await getPosts(profile.pk);

for (const post of (posts.items || []).slice(0, 5)) {
  console.log(`\n--- Post ${post.code || "?"} ---`);
  console.log(`  Likes: ${(post.like_count || 0).toLocaleString()}`);
  console.log(`  Comments: ${(post.comment_count || 0).toLocaleString()}`);
  console.log(`  Caption: ${(post.caption?.text || "").slice(0, 100)}...`);
}

Calculate Engagement Rate

With profile and post data, calculate engagement:

Python
followers = profile["follower_count"]
items = posts.get("items", [])

if followers > 0 and items:
    total_engagement = sum(
        p.get("like_count", 0) + p.get("comment_count", 0)
        for p in items
    )
    avg_engagement = total_engagement / len(items)
    rate = (avg_engagement / followers) * 100
    print(f"\nEngagement rate: {rate:.3f}%")
    print(f"Based on {len(items)} recent posts")

For a more detailed engagement script, see the engagement calculator tutorial.

Check if a Username Exists

Quick utility:

Python
def username_exists(username):
    try:
        get_profile(username)
        return True
    except requests.HTTPError as e:
        if e.response.status_code == 404:
            return False
        raise

print(username_exists("natgeo"))        # True
print(username_exists("xyzzy_fake_99")) # False

Credit Costs

Each API call costs 1 credit. The examples above use 2 credits total (1 profile + 1 posts). With the free 100 credits, you can run this 50 times before needing a paid plan.

The Standard plan at $29 gives you 15,400 credits. Credits don’t expire, so unused ones roll over indefinitely.

What Else Can You Fetch?

Beyond profiles and posts:

Full endpoint list: API documentation. Test any endpoint interactively: playground.

Related

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Or review all GramScraper packs and the API documentation.