Extract public profiles, posts, hashtags, comments and follower data — without writing code. We compared the leading tools on pricing, reliability and ease of use so you don't have to.
Free tier available · No credit card required · ~2 min setupDisclosure: this site is reader-supported. If you sign up through links on this page we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It doesn't affect our rankings.
Our picks after testing for reliability, output quality, pricing transparency and how fast you can get from zero to a usable dataset.
Pricing verified July 2026. Per-result rates drop on paid plans.
| Tool | Pricing model | Free tier | No-code | API access | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apify | Pay per result — from $1.50 / 1k posts | ✓ ~3,300 posts/mo | ✓ | ✓ | Marketers, researchers, most people |
| Bright Data | Volume / custom + datasets | Trial only | ✓ (datasets) | ✓ | Enterprise & data teams |
| Phantombuster | Monthly subscription (execution time) | 14-day trial | ✓ | ✓ | Lead-gen & outreach workflows |
| Instaloader | Free, open source | ✓ Unlimited* | ✕ Python CLI | ✕ (library) | Developers & hobbyists |
*Subject to Instagram rate limits — expect blocks on larger jobs without proxies.
Using our #1 pick — no code, no installs, first results in about two minutes.
Sign up on Apify — the free plan includes $5 of monthly credit (≈3,300 posts) and doesn't ask for a card.
Drop in profile URLs, hashtags or search terms, choose what to collect (posts, comments, followers, reels), and hit Start.
Download results as CSV, Excel or JSON — or pull them straight into Sheets, Make, Zapier or your own code via API.
Deeper dives for specific setups — free tools, code, and APIs.
Every way to scrape Instagram for $0 in 2026 — free tiers, open source, and where each one hits its limits.
Three working approaches with copy-paste code: Instaloader, the Apify client, and what to avoid.
The best APIs for pulling Instagram data into your product or pipeline, with real pricing.
Export any public account's follower list for audience audits, influencer vetting and lead gen.
Pull every comment from any post — giveaway winners, sentiment analysis, UGC mining.
Turn any hashtag feed into a dataset for trend research and creator sourcing.
What case law, Instagram's terms and GDPR actually say — in plain English.
All of these use publicly available data only.
Pull follower counts, engagement rates and bios to shortlist creators for campaigns instead of paying influencer-database subscriptions.
Track competitors' post cadence, hashtags and engagement over time to see what's working in your niche.
Build lists of businesses or creators from hashtags and locations, then enrich and reach out.
Collect public post datasets for sentiment analysis, trend research and training data.
Scraping publicly accessible data is generally lawful in the US (see hiQ v. LinkedIn), but it can still violate Instagram's Terms of Use, and collecting personal data may trigger GDPR/CCPA obligations depending on what you do with it. Never scrape private accounts, don't log in with accounts you care about, respect rate limits, and consult a lawyer for commercial projects. The tools above only access public data.
For most people it's the Apify Instagram Scraper: it's no-code, pay-per-result ($1.50 per 1,000 posts), has a genuinely free tier of roughly 3,300 posts per month, and exports to CSV, Excel, JSON or an API. Enterprises needing millions of records should look at Bright Data instead.
Yes, two ways. Apify's free plan includes about 3,300 posts per month with no credit card. If you're comfortable with Python, Instaloader is fully free and open source — but you'll hit Instagram rate limits quickly without proxies. See our full guide to free Instagram scrapers.
Yes. The two reliable routes are Instaloader (free, runs locally) and the Apify Python client (cloud-based, no proxy management). Our Instagram scraper Python guide has working code for both.
No. Cloud scrapers like Apify and Bright Data collect public data without your credentials, which also means your own account is never at risk of a ban.
Public profile details (bio, follower/following counts, verification status), posts and reels with captions, likes and timestamps, comments, hashtag and location feeds, and follower lists — anything visible to a logged-out visitor.
Meta's official Graph API only covers accounts you own or manage — it can't pull competitor or influencer data. That's why third-party Instagram scraper APIs exist.
Cloud tools (Apify, Bright Data, Phantombuster) run on their own rotating infrastructure, so your IP is never exposed. Running open-source scrapers from home is where bans happen.
Start with the free tier — about 3,300 posts a month, no credit card, results in minutes.
Try Apify Instagram Scraper free →