# Instagram Hashtag Scraper (`instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper`) Actor

Scrape posts and reels from any Instagram hashtag with views, likes, comments, saves and shares on reels — from $0.38 per 1,000. Top posts of the last days, the newest posts, or reels searched by #hashtag going back months. Minimum-views and date filters, any language. No login.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Instagram Data API](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api) (community)
- **Categories:** Social media, Marketing, Videos
- **Features:** Limited permissions
- **Stats:** 3 total users, 3 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $0.38 / 1,000 hashtag posts

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

### Instagram hashtag scraper: posts and reels with views, saves and shares

**Paste hashtags and get their posts and reels with every number — views, likes, comments, saves and shares on reels — plus the hashtag's total post count.** $0.39 per 1,000 posts on Starter.

**Real row, 28 Oct 2026:** a #skincare reel by dailymail — 236,738 views · 215 saves · 224 shares; the hashtag itself has 153,368,632 posts.

- 🔥 **Viral reels only** — set **Minimum views**; reels below it aren't returned and cost $0.07 instead of $0.39 per 1,000.
- 🎬 **Reels only or photos only** — pick the **Content type**; the rest isn't returned.
- 🗓️ **Three feeds** — **Top**: the hashtag page (popular posts of the last ~3 days); **Recent**: the newest posts first, minutes old, like the app's Recent tab; **Reels**: search by `#hashtag`, which reaches back months.
- 🧹 **No duplicates** — a post under two of your hashtags is returned and charged once.
- 🌍 **Any language** — `#스킨케어` or `#уходзакожей` work as well as `#skincare`.

**Try it:** press **Start** — the prefilled `skincare` returns 50 posts with their numbers in under a minute.

### Why scrape Instagram hashtag posts?

- **Trend research:** what works in a niche right now — the hashtag's top posts with views, saves and shares.
- **Viral reels by topic:** set *Minimum views* and get only the reels that took off.
- **UGC and campaign monitoring:** schedule it with *Only items newer than* to collect fresh posts under your hashtag.
- **Influencer discovery:** the creators behind a hashtag's best posts.

### What data can I scrape from Instagram hashtag posts?

| Data | What it is |
|---|---|
| Link | Link to the post or reel on instagram.com |
| Type | Kind of post: reel, photo, carousel or video |
| Author | Username of the author |
| Posted | When it was posted (UTC, ISO 8601) |
| Views | Plays (reels) or views as Instagram counts them |
| Likes | Likes; empty if the author hid the counts (likesHidden) |
| Comments | Number of comments |
| Saves | How many people saved the reel (Instagram gives saves only for reels) |
| Shares | How many times the post was sent or shared |
| Hashtag | The hashtag from your input |

Up to 64 fields per row in total — the **Output** tab lists every one of them.

### Compared with Apify's Instagram Hashtag Scraper

| | This Actor | Apify's Instagram Hashtag Scraper (Starter) |
|---|---|---|
| Price per 1,000 posts | $0.39 | $2.30 |
| Saves on reels | ✅ | not in the output |

Their prices and fields as listed on Apify on 28 October 2026 — check their page for today's.

### How to scrape Instagram hashtag posts

1. Paste hashtags into the input — `skincare`, `#skincare` or a hashtag link — one per line.
2. Press **Start** — rows stream into the Output tab while the run goes.
3. Download them as JSON, CSV, Excel or HTML, or get them through the API.

Works with any public profile on [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/) — no login, no cookies, no Instagram account
of yours.

**No input at hand?** Press **Start** with an empty input — you get a 3-row sample.

### Input example

```json
{
  "hashtags": [
    "skincare"
  ],
  "feed": "top",
  "maxPostsPerHashtag": 50,
  "mediaType": "all"
}
```

### Output example: Instagram hashtag posts data

```json
{
  "type": "reel",
  "productType": "clips",
  "shortCode": "DfCO4KEFYRu",
  "url": "https://www.instagram.com/reel/DfCO4KEFYRu/",
  "ownerUsername": "dailymail",
  "ownerFullName": "Daily Mail",
  "ownerVerified": true,
  "ownerPrivate": false,
  "takenAt": "2026-10-28T10:36:50Z",
  "views": 236738,
  "likes": 1324,
  "comments": 162,
  "saves": 215,
  "shares": 224,
  "reposts": 17,
  "durationSec": 12.09,
  "caption": "Barry Keoghan has offered a glimpse into his skincare routine…",
  "captionEdited": false,
  "hashtags": [
    "barrykeoghan",
    "celebrity",
    "news",
    "skincare"
  ],
  "audio": {
    "type": "original",
    "id": "29179626725006757",
    "title": "Original audio",
    "artist": "dailymail",
    "artistUsername": "dailymail",
    "durationSec": 12.09,
    "coverUrl": null,
    "isExplicit": false,
    "isTrending": false,
    "muted": false,
    "muteReason": null
  },
  "videoUrl": "https://scontent-bos5-1.cdninstagram.com/…mp4",
  "inputHashtag": "skincare",
  "feed": "top",
  "hashtagInCaption": true,
  "hashtagPosts": 153368632
}
```

Each row has up to 64 fields — the **Output** tab describes every one of them. Fields Instagram
doesn't show come as `null`, never as a fake `0`.

**Coming from Apify's official Instagram scrapers?** Turn on *Also add Apify-style field names*: every row also gets
`likesCount`, `commentsCount`, `videoPlayCount`, `timestamp`, `displayUrl`, `followersCount`, `followsCount`, `verified`
and more with the same values, and the post type as `Video`, `Image` or `Sidecar` — your sheets, code and n8n flows keep
working. Long list of usernames? Upload it as a CSV or TXT file in *Or upload a list*.

### Limits

- Hashtag page = Instagram's top posts of the last ~3 days. For older reels choose the **Reels** feed.
- Instagram doesn't show every post under a hashtag — only what its pages and search return.
- **Free Apify plan:** the first 20 results of each run (looking through up to 15 pages of Instagram), up to 300 results a month across our Actors, from a daily free pool shared by all free users. Any paid Apify plan gets every result — no cap.

### How much does it cost to scrape Instagram hashtag posts?

Pay per event: you pay for the rows you get, plus $0.0005 per run. No subscription to this Actor.

| Apify plan | Per 1,000 posts | What $5 of free credit gets you |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0.39 | ≈ 12,800 posts |
| Starter | $0.39 | — |
| Business and higher | $0.38 | — |

Every event of this Actor on the Starter plan:

| Event | What it is | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Hashtag post | Each post or reel returned for the hashtag | $0.39 per 1,000 |
| Reel below your filter | A reel checked but under your minimum views — not returned | $0.07 per 1,000 |

**Typical jobs on Starter:**

- 100 posts from each of 5 hashtags = 500 ≈ $0.20

**Always free:** hashtags with no posts and duplicates. Set **Maximum cost per run** in the run options to cap any run.

### Instagram hashtag posts API: Python, n8n, Make, Zapier and AI agents

Python:

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN")
run = client.actor("instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper").call(run_input={'hashtags': ['skincare'], 'feed': 'top', 'maxPostsPerHashtag': 50, 'mediaType': 'all'})
for row in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(row)
```

**n8n, Make, Zapier or any HTTP client:** one request runs the Actor and returns the rows —
`POST https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/instagram-data-api~instagram-hashtag-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN`
with the input JSON as the body.

**AI agents (MCP)** — your agent gets this Actor as a tool:

- **Claude Code:** `claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper"`
- **Claude, Cursor, VS Code, n8n:** add `https://mcp.apify.com?tools=instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper` as a remote MCP server and sign in to Apify.
- **Ask it:** *“Get the top reels under #skincare with views and saves.”* · *“Which #fitness reels from this week passed 100k views?”*

### FAQ: scraping Instagram hashtag posts

**How do I scrape Instagram hashtag posts?**
Paste hashtags — `skincare`, `#skincare` or a hashtag link — one per line, choose the feed and press **Start**. Download the rows as JSON, CSV or Excel, or get them through the API.

**Can I get only reels from a hashtag?**
Yes — set **Content type** to *Reels only*, or choose the **Reels** feed for reels found by `#hashtag` search, older ones too. Add **Minimum views** to keep only the reels that took off.

**Why does the top feed cover only the last few days?**
That's what Instagram's hashtag page shows: popular posts of the last days. For the newest posts choose the **Recent** feed — posts published minutes ago, newest first (Instagram gives only a few per page, so large limits take a bit longer). For older reels choose the **Reels** feed — it searches by `#hashtag` and reaches back months.

**A post is under two of my hashtags — do I pay twice?**
No. Each post is returned and charged once per run.

**What is `hashtagInCaption`?**
Whether the caption itself contains the hashtag. Instagram also lists posts that put it in a comment.

**Does the input of Apify's Instagram Hashtag Scraper work?**
Yes — `hashtags`, `resultsLimit` and `resultsType` work as they are, so you can switch by changing only the Actor ID.

**Do I need an Instagram account or cookies?**
No. You only paste usernames, links or keywords. Nothing to log in, nothing to install, and your own Instagram account is never involved.

**What am I charged for — and what's free?**
Only the events in the pricing table, plus $0.0005 per run. Rows with an `error` field are free, and duplicates are never returned or charged. Each run's `SUMMARY` record shows results and free rows.

**Can I try it for free?**
Yes. On Apify's free plan you get the first 20 results of every run (up to 300 a month across our Actors), paid from the monthly free credit Apify gives every account. Paid plans get every result, with no cap.

**Can I cap what a run costs?**
Yes. Set **Maximum cost per run** in the run options — the run stops at your limit and `SUMMARY` shows `stoppedAtChargeLimit: true`.

**Can I use it from n8n, Make, Zapier or an AI agent?**
Yes, like any Apify Actor: REST API, webhooks, the n8n, Make and Zapier integrations, and the Apify MCP server for Claude, Cursor, VS Code and other MCP clients. Short timeout in your workflow or agent? Set *Return what's ready after (seconds)*: the run stops on time with what it has collected, and you pay only for that.

### For AI agents

```text
Actor:   instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper
Does:    Scrape Instagram hashtags: posts and reels with views, saves and shares, plus each hashtag's post count. Top, recent or reels. No login.
Input:   {"hashtags": ["skincare"], "feed": "top", "maxPostsPerHashtag": 50, "mediaType": "all"}
Output:  one JSON row per result, up to 64 fields; main: url, type, ownerUsername, takenAt, views, likes, comments, saves, shares, inputHashtag
Free:    hashtags with no posts and duplicates
Price:   event "hashtag-post" $0.39 per 1,000 on Starter + $0.0005 per run
Run:     POST https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/instagram-data-api~instagram-hashtag-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=APIFY_TOKEN
```

### More Instagram Actors from us

| Content | People | Stories |
|---|---|---|
| [All-in-one Instagram Scraper](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-scraper) · [Reels](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-reels-scraper) · [Posts](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-posts-scraper) · [Post details](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-post-details) · [Reel views checker](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-reel-views-checker) · [Hashtags](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper) · [Search](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-search-scraper) · [Transcripts](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-reels-transcript) · [Tagged posts](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-tagged-scraper) · [Audio](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-audio-scraper) · [Locations](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-location-scraper) · [Hashtag stats](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-stats) |[Profiles](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-profile-scraper) · [Followers count](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-followers-count-checker) · [Account age](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-account-age-checker) · [Emails & phones](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-email-phone-scraper) · [Similar accounts](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-similar-accounts) · [Similar accounts with profiles](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-lookalike-accounts) · [Followers](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-followers-scraper) · [Comments](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-comments-scraper) · [Likers](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-likers-scraper) · [Engagement rate](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-engagement-rate-calculator) · [Username checker](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-username-checker) · [User ID](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-user-id-finder) · [Follower checker](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-follower-checker) | [Stories](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-stories-scraper) · [Highlights](https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-highlights-scraper) |

What changed and when — see the **Changelog** tab.

# Changelog

This Actor's version history is a separate document: https://apify.com/instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper/changelog.md

# Actor input Schema

## `hashtags` (type: `array`):

One per line, with or without <code>#</code>, in any language, or a hashtag link.

## `inputFile` (type: `string`):

A CSV or TXT file: one username or link per line, or a table — we take the column named <code>username</code>, <code>url</code> or <code>link</code> (otherwise every cell). Added to the list above; duplicates are skipped.

## `feed` (type: `string`):

Top — Instagram's popular posts under the hashtag. Recent — posts published minutes ago, newest first (Instagram gives only a few per page, so big limits take longer). Reels — reels found by #hashtag search, including older ones.

## `maxPostsPerHashtag` (type: `integer`):

How many posts to return per hashtag.

## `mediaType` (type: `string`):

Everything, only reels, or only photos and carousels.

## `newerThan` (type: `string`):

A date (<code>2026-10-01</code>) or a period (<code>7 days</code>, <code>2 weeks</code>). Empty — no date limit. Older pinned items are left out too.

## `olderThan` (type: `string`):

A date (<code>2026-09-01</code>) or a period (<code>30 days</code>). With “Only items newer than” — a date range. Newer items are skipped and aren't charged.

## `minViews` (type: `integer`):

Only reels with at least this many views are returned. Reels below it are not returned and cost 4× less (we still checked them); photos have no views and are skipped for free.

## `officialFieldNames` (type: `boolean`):

Every row also gets <code>likesCount</code>, <code>commentsCount</code>, <code>videoPlayCount</code>, <code>timestamp</code>, <code>displayUrl</code>, <code>followersCount</code>, <code>followsCount</code>, <code>verified</code>… with the same values, and the post type as Video, Image or Sidecar. Sheets, code and n8n flows made for the official scrapers keep working. Our own fields stay. No extra charge.

## `addSummaryRow` (type: `boolean`):

One free row at the end of the results: rows returned, what was charged (events and USD) and why the run stopped — for n8n, Make, Zapier and AI agents that read only the dataset. The same summary is always saved as SUMMARY in the run's key-value store.

## `includeRaw` (type: `boolean`):

Every row also gets <code>raw</code>: the whole object Instagram returned for it — every field it sends, untouched, for your own parsing or an AI agent. Heavy (about 30 KB a post), so it is added to the first 1,000 rows of a run. No extra charge.

## `returnWithinSecs` (type: `integer`):

Stop after this many seconds and return the results collected so far — you pay only for them. Handy for AI agents with a short tool timeout. Empty — run until everything is collected.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "hashtags": [
    "skincare"
  ],
  "feed": "top",
  "maxPostsPerHashtag": 50,
  "mediaType": "all",
  "officialFieldNames": false,
  "addSummaryRow": false,
  "includeRaw": false
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

All rows of this run (JSON, CSV, Excel).

## `summary` (type: `string`):

What was returned, what was free and why (SUMMARY record).

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "hashtags": [
        "skincare"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "hashtags": ["skincare"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "hashtags": [
    "skincare"
  ]
}' |
apify call instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,instagram-data-api/instagram-hashtag-scraper"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/2aOICRTPRFsYv0Ypi/builds/4XeoYdJVKa3NuYnYy/openapi.json