How to Use the Instagram Photo Likers

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 post URLs

You can provide inputs in any of these formats:

1. Paste a single Instagram post URL.
2. Provide a Google Sheet with a list of Instagram post URLs (make sure it’s shared with “Anyone with the link”).
3. Upload a CSV file with a list of Instagram post 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 post URLs.”

Step 3: Configure liker extraction

Fine-tune how much data to collect per launch:

1. Number of likers to extract per photo (optional):
   • Default = all available likers.
   • Enter a limit if you only want part of the list.
2. Number of posts to process per launch (optional):
   • Default = 10.
   • If left empty, the Phantom will attempt to process all posts in one launch.

Advanced settings (dropdown in setup)

• Remove duplicate profiles between different photos (optional):
  • Enable to skip profiles already collected from other posts in your input list.

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: username, fullName, isVerified.
   • This generates a second CSV file with just those fields.
   • Learn more in our guide: Customize how your Phantom results files are saved.

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.

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 posts: The Phantom can only access likers of public posts or private posts you already have permission to view.
• Video posts: This Phantom does not work with video content, only photos.
• Results discrepancy: Instagram’s app often shows more likers than are accessible in the web version; the Phantom extracts only the visible subset.
• Large batch extractions: Trying to pull too many likers in a single launch may slow processing or increase the risk of session expiry.
• Duplicate profiles: If you don’t enable “Remove duplicate profiles,” the same account may appear multiple times if it liked multiple posts in your list.

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

• Instagram Auto Follow → Turn likers into followers by automatically following people who engage with a target post.
• Instagram Auto Commenter → Engage directly by posting tailored comments on posts where you’ve identified likers.
• Instagram Profile Scraper → Enrich the likers you’ve collected with detailed bio and profile data.