Instagram Channel Posts API

The Instagram Channel Posts API retrieves all posts from an Instagram profile — images, videos, and carousels — with cursor-based pagination. Each item includes media URLs, view/like/comment counts, captions, and author details.

Endpoint

https://api.socialkit.dev/instagram/channel-posts

Example Request

GET https://api.socialkit.dev/instagram/channel-posts?access_key=<your-access-key>&url=https://www.instagram.com/natgeo&limit=2

Response

{
	"success": true,
	"data": {
		"profileUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/natgeo",
		"username": "natgeo",
		"items": [
			{
				"id": "3890548995286221889",
				"shortcode": "DX-AbK9ScRB",
				"url": "https://www.instagram.com/p/DX-AbK9ScRB/",
				"type": "reel",
				"isVideo": true,
				"caption": "One trip to Italy is never enough. @StanleyTucci returns for a second season of...",
				"likes": 104690,
				"comments": 1438,
				"views": 4813905,
				"plays": 4813905,
				"duration": 73.32,
				"timestamp": 1778009597,
				"thumbnailUrl": "https://scontent-iad3-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/...",
				"videoUrl": "https://scontent-iad3-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t50.82787-16/...",
				"width": 1216,
				"height": 2160,
				"productType": "clips",
				"author": {
					"id": "787132",
					"username": "natgeo",
					"fullName": "National Geographic",
					"isVerified": true,
					"profilePicUrl": "https://scontent-iad3-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-19/..."
				}
			},
			{
				"id": "3889794756554018042",
				"shortcode": "DX7lTu0Pq2W",
				"url": "https://www.instagram.com/p/DX7lTu0Pq2W/",
				"type": "carousel",
				"isVideo": false,
				"caption": "Photos by @paulnicklen | Polar bears traverse the sea ice...",
				"likes": 218450,
				"comments": 893,
				"views": 0,
				"plays": 0,
				"duration": 0,
				"timestamp": 1777920984,
				"thumbnailUrl": "https://scontent-iad3-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.29350-15/...",
				"videoUrl": "",
				"width": 1080,
				"height": 1080,
				"productType": "carousel_container",
				"author": {
					"id": "787132",
					"username": "natgeo",
					"fullName": "National Geographic",
					"isVerified": true,
					"profilePicUrl": "https://scontent-iad3-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-19/..."
				}
			}
		],
		"count": 2,
		"hasMore": true,
		"cursor": "3889718998899684009_25025320"
	}
}

Parameters

url string Required
The Instagram profile URL to fetch posts from (e.g., https://www.instagram.com/username). Both instagram.com/username and instagram.com/username/ formats are accepted.

access_key string Required
Your API access key. Can be provided via the access_key query parameter, x-access-key header, or request body.

limit number Optional Defaults to 12
The number of posts to return per request (maximum 100). To retrieve more posts beyond the limit, use the cursor parameter for pagination.

cursor string Optional
Pagination cursor to retrieve the next page of posts. Pass the cursor value from a previous response to resume. When hasMore is true, more posts are available.

Response Fields

Top-level Fields

• profileUrl: The original profile URL that was queried
• username: The Instagram handle (without @ prefix)
• count: Number of items returned in this response
• cursor: Pagination cursor — pass this value in the next request to fetch more posts. null when there are no more posts.
• hasMore: true if more posts are available

Post Item

Each entry in the items array contains:

• id: Unique Instagram media identifier
• shortcode: The post shortcode used in instagram.com/p/<shortcode>/
• url: Canonical Instagram post URL
• type: Media type — "image", "video", "reel", "carousel", or "unknown"
• isVideo: true if the post is a single video (does not flag carousels even when they contain videos)
• caption: Post caption text (may include emojis, hashtags, mentions)
• likes: Number of likes on the post
• comments: Number of comments on the post
• views: View count for video posts and reels (0 for images and carousels without video)
• plays: Play count for video posts and reels
• duration: Video duration in seconds (0 for non-video posts)
• timestamp: Post creation time as a Unix timestamp (seconds)
• thumbnailUrl: Best-quality thumbnail image URL
• videoUrl: Direct video URL for video posts (empty string for images)
• width: Original media width in pixels
• height: Original media height in pixels
• productType: Instagram product type (e.g., "clips", "feed", "carousel_container")
• author: Object containing the post author’s id, username, fullName, isVerified, and profilePicUrl

Use Cases

• Content Audit: Pull a complete catalog of a creator’s posts for performance analysis
• Influencer Research: Evaluate a creator’s content mix, posting cadence, and engagement
• Competitor Monitoring: Track competitors’ latest posts and engagement metrics
• Engagement Benchmarks: Calculate median like / comment / view rates across posts
• Content Planning: Reference top-performing posts for inspiration and editorial strategy
• Brand Safety: Spot-check accounts before partnering or featuring them
• Bulk Processing: Pull post URLs to feed into the Comments, Stats, or Transcript endpoints
• Reporting Dashboards: Build feed views of an Instagram channel inside your own product

Notes

• Posts are returned in reverse chronological order (newest first)
• The cursor is an opaque token — pass it back verbatim to resume pagination
• Carousels return the cover image in thumbnailUrl and an empty videoUrl
• For reels-only feeds, use the Instagram Channel Reels API instead
• View counts populate only for videos and reels (Instagram does not expose view counts for static images)
• Profile picture and media URLs are signed CDN links and may expire after several hours
• The first call for a previously-unseen username runs a one-time profile resolution (~5–10 s); subsequent calls are fast