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Instagram Public Data

The PublicDataAPI provides a comprehensive suite of methods to fetch, analyze, and track Instagram data without requiring user authentication. This module is specifically designed to be compatible with Supermetrics-style reporting, offering extensive analytics capabilities through anonymous access.

Overview

Unlike standard anonymous endpoints, PublicDataAPI aggregates multiple endpoints, tracks rating limits (e.g., hashtag quotas limits), computes engagement metrics, and allows you to build standard analytics reports out of the box.

from instaharvest_v2 import Instagram

ig = Instagram.anonymous()

# Fetch deep profile analytics
profile = ig.public_data.get_profile_info("nike")
print(f"Followers: {profile.followers:,}")

# Look up recent posts by hashtag
top_posts = ig.public_data.search_hashtag_top("fitness")
print(f"Found {len(top_posts)} top posts")

Features

  • No login required: Works 100% anonymously using the AnonClient.
  • Supermetrics Compatibility: Allows exporting data seamlessly to PROFILES, POSTS, and HASHTAGS tables.
  • Engagement Analysis: Instantly compute average likes, comments, and engagement scores (Poor to Excellent).
  • Competitor Tracking: Track account growth over time with ProfileSnapshot.
  • Hashtag Quota Tracking: Automatically tracks the Instagram anonymous limit of 30 unique hashtag searches per profile per 7 days.
  • Async Parity: Available as AsyncPublicDataAPI.

👤 Profile Information

Fetch detailed statistics and information about a public account or multiple accounts.

get_profile_info(username: str) -> PublicProfile

Retrieves a single profile's analytics.

profile = ig.public_data.get_profile_info("cristiano")
print(profile.is_verified)

📸 Profile Posts

Fetch a user's recent posts along with metadata such as likes, comments, and engagements.

get_profile_posts(username: str, max_count: int = 50) -> List[PublicPost]

posts = ig.public_data.get_profile_posts("nike", max_count=20)
for post in posts:
    print(post.post_url, post.likes, post.comments)

Search for public posts using a specific hashtag.

⚠️ Quota Warning: Instagram anonymously restricts you to 30 unique hashtag searches per profile per 7 rolling days. The PublicDataAPI automatically tracks this. You can check your remaining quota using ig.public_data.get_hashtag_quota().

search_hashtag_top(hashtag: str) -> List[HashtagPost]

Fetches the "Top Posts" for a given hashtag (always returns a maximum of 100 posts).

search_hashtag_recent(hashtag: str) -> List[HashtagPost]

Fetches the "Recent Posts" for a given hashtag within the last 24 hours (maximum of 250 posts).

results = ig.public_data.search_hashtag_recent("python")
for item in results:
    print(item.post.shortcode)

📊 Analytics & Reporting

compare_profiles(usernames: List[str]) -> Dict

Ranks and compares multiple profiles based on followers and engagement metrics.

metrics = ig.public_data.compare_profiles(["nike", "adidas", "puma"])
print(metrics["ranks"])

engagement_analysis(username: str) -> Dict

Calculates average likes, comments, and assigns an engagement score.

analysis = ig.public_data.engagement_analysis("nike")
print(analysis["rating"]) # Output: 'Excellent', 'Good', etc.

track_profile(username: str) -> ProfileSnapshot

Records the profile's current state and saves it to a local historical database (.InstaHarvest v2/public_history.json). Allowing you to measure follower growth over time.

📤 Export & Supermetrics Reports

build_report(usernames, top_hashtags, recent_hashtags) -> PublicDataReport

Builds an aggregated report containing profiles, posts, and hashtag posts.

report = ig.public_data.build_report(
    usernames=["nike", "adidas"],
    top_hashtags=["shoes"]
)

export_report(report, format, output_file)

Exports the built report to a specific file format (json, csv, or jsonl).

ig.public_data.export_report(report, "csv", "my_analytics.csv")

Or you can use the object mappings to upload standard tables directly:

db.insert_profiles(report.to_profiles_table())
db.insert_posts(report.to_posts_table())
db.insert_hashtags(report.to_hashtags_table())

Available Models

  • PublicProfile
  • PublicPost
  • HashtagPost
  • ProfileSnapshot
  • PublicDataReport

For more details on the models referenced here, see the Reference Models documentation.