How to Use the Instagram Profile Scraper

*Performance may slow down when email and phone scraping are activated (Step 3).

Step 1: Connect your Instagram account

To let the Phantom act on your behalf:

1. Install the PhantomBuster browser extension and connect your Instagram session in one click.
2. If you’re not using Chrome or Firefox, you can retrieve your session cookie manually (see our cookie guide).

Step 2: Provide your profile URLs

You can provide inputs in any of these formats:

1. Paste a single Instagram profile URL.
2. Provide a Google Sheet with a list of Instagram profile URLs (make sure it’s shared with “Anyone with the link”).
3. Upload a CSV file with a list of Instagram profile URLs (make sure it’s publicly accessible, and note that CSV upload is only available on paid plans).

→ If you’re using a spreadsheet, the Phantom defaults to the first column (A). To use a different column, enter the column’s header name in the field “Name of column containing profile URLs.”

Step 3: Configure extraction options

Fine-tune how much data to collect per launch:

• Number of profiles to scrape per launch (optional):
  • Default = 10, recommended to keep your account safe.
  • If left empty, the Phantom will attempt to process as many profiles as possible.

Advanced settings (dropdown in setup)

1. Extract the profile’s public email address (optional):
   • Enabled by default.
   • Captures any email addresses made public in the profile.
2. Extract the profile’s public phone number (optional):
   • Enabled by default.
   • Captures any public phone numbers listed.

Result file settings (dropdown in setup)

1. Name your results file (optional)

   • You can customize the file name.

     If you rename the file between launches, the Phantom will create a new results file and start processing inputs from scratch.

2. Fields to keep (optional)
   • Export only the fields you care about by listing them (comma-separated).
     Example: profileUrl, location.
   • This generates a second CSV file with just those fields.
   • Learn more in our guide: Customize how your Phantom results files are saved.

Step 4: Select launch frequency

Choose how often the Phantom should run:

1. Launch manually: Start the Phantom yourself whenever you need.
2. Launch once at a specific time: schedule a one-time run at a set date and time.
3. Launch repeatedly: schedule regular runs (e.g. once per day, several times during working hours).
4. Launch after another Phantom: chain automations together so this Phantom starts right after another finishes.
5. Advanced scheduling: customize the exact minutes, hours, days, or months when the Phantom should run.

→ For a complete walkthrough of scheduling options, see our guide to scheduling Phantoms automatically.

Step 5 (Optional): Advanced settings

Advanced settings are available if you want to fine-tune how your Phantom runs, but by default they’re already optimized for most use cases.

We recommend leaving them as they are unless a guide specifically instructs you to change something.

→ For a detailed overview of all advanced options (like execution limits, retries, email notifications, proxies, webhooks, and file management), see our Advanced settings guide.

Launch and results

When you’re ready:

1. Click Launch to start your Phantom.
2. Once it finishes, open the Results tab in the Phantom console to see the data collected.
3. Download your results as a CSV or JSON file.

→ To learn how to export your data to Google Sheets, integrate with other tools, or reuse it in more automations, check our Access and Export your Phantom Results guide.

Export and input limits on the Free plan
If you’re on the Free plan or Free trial, some features are limited:
- CSV exports include only the first 10 rows of results.
- CSV download links (for dynamic viewing in Google Sheets or integrations) are not available.
- JSON exports are not available.
- CSV upload as an input method is not supported.
To unlock all features, you’ll need to upgrade to a paid plan.

About profile visibility and notifications

The Instagram Profile Scraper only extracts publicly available data.
It doesn't send notifications to the profile owner and doesn't alert them that their profile was visited.

Scraping a profile is different from engaging with it: no follow, like, comment, or message action is performed.

What you give (Input) and What you get (Output)

This section gives you a detailed breakdown of everything you need to provide to run this Phantom, and everything you’ll receive once it completes.

What you give (Input)

What you get (Output)

Tips and troubleshooting

Common pitfalls

• Using a private spreadsheet (make sure it’s set to “Anyone with the link”).
• Private or restricted profiles: Only publicly available data can be extracted. Hidden information (like private emails or phone numbers) won’t be retrieved.
• Exceeding limits: If you extract more than ~100 profiles per day, Instagram may require you to refresh your session cookie more often.

If you run into errors or account issues

• Check how to troubleshoot your phantom using Logs.
• Browse the Fix Issues & Troubleshoot Errors section for solutions to common problems.
• Review our Automation Rate Limits by Platform guide.
• Check our Best Practices for Social Media Automation guide.

Suggested automations

These automations pair well with the Instagram Profile Scraper Phantom:

• Instagram Hashtag Search Export → Collect posts by hashtag and build a list of profiles to scrape.
• Instagram Follower Collector → Extract a target account’s followers and enrich them with the Instagram Profile Scraper Phantom.
• Instagram Following Collector → Gather the accounts someone follows, then analyze them with the Instagram Profile Scraper Phantom.
• Instagram Profile URL Finder → Start with names or companies to find matching Instagram profile URLs, then extract those profiles with the Instagram Profile Scraper Phantom.