Instagram Profile Scraper - Bio & Posts: MCP config, n8n workflow and API

What a run costs

Every run pays a start fee plus a price per result. On the Free plan this Actor's start fee is $0.20 (the start event, $0.05 per GB, times its default 4 GB of memory), $0.04 on Business; results cost $0.70 per 1,000 results (pay per event). Checked 2026-11-12.

Plus Apify platform usage for the run, which the caller pays. A smaller memory setting lowers the start fee if the Actor still finishes. Prices can change; the Store pricing tab is the source of truth.

MCP config

One URL works in every client: https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts. It exposes this Actor as a tool, plus fetch-actor-details so the agent can read the input schema before calling it. Pick your client:

claude mcp add --transport http instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts"

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@apify/actors-mcp-server",
        "--tools",
        "fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts"
      ],
      "env": {
        "APIFY_TOKEN": "YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"
      }
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${env:APIFY_TOKEN}"
      }
    }
  }
}

{
  "inputs": [
    {
      "type": "promptString",
      "id": "apify-token",
      "description": "Apify API token",
      "password": true
    }
  ],
  "servers": {
    "instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${input:apify-token}"
      }
    }
  }
}

https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts

[mcp_servers.instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts]
url = "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts"
bearer_token_env_var = "APIFY_TOKEN"

gemini mcp add -t http -s user -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts"

https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts

n8n workflow

A manual and a daily trigger call the Actor through the HTTP Request node with your Apify token, then hand each record to the destination you pick. The Actor input sits in the request body, already filled with the example below.

• Run by hand
• Every day
• Run Apify Actor

{
  "name": "Instagram Profile Scraper - Bio & Posts to n8n only",
  "nodes": [
    {
      "id": "2f77887a-13e3-472c-a079-d42d138314c3",
      "name": "Run by hand",
      "type": "n8n-nodes-base.manualTrigger",
      "typeVersion": 1,
      "position": [
        0,
        0
      ],
      "parameters": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "cadeb57a-3199-4502-a85c-ef3751fdfcb3",
      "name": "Every day",
      "type": "n8n-nodes-base.scheduleTrigger",
      "typeVersion": 1.2,
      "position": [
        0,
        200
      ],
      "parameters": {
        "rule": {
          "interval": [
            {
              "triggerAtHour": 8
            }
          ]
        }
      },
      "notes": "Activate the workflow to run on this schedule."
    },
    {
      "id": "3efa151e-ea4d-4f1b-ae5e-e6be048a508b",
      "name": "Run Apify Actor",
      "type": "n8n-nodes-base.httpRequest",
      "typeVersion": 4.2,
      "position": [
        260,
        100
      ],
      "parameters": {
        "method": "POST",
        "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/dataspryva~instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts/run-sync-get-dataset-items",
        "authentication": "genericCredentialType",
        "genericAuthType": "httpHeaderAuth",
        "sendBody": true,
        "specifyBody": "json",
        "jsonBody": "{\n  \"usernames\": [\n    \"instagram\"\n  ],\n  \"maxPosts\": 3\n}",
        "options": {
          "timeout": 310000
        }
      },
      "notes": "Actor: dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts. Select a Header Auth credential: name Authorization, value Bearer + your Apify token. Edit the JSON body to change the input.",
      "notesInFlow": false
    },
    {
      "id": "0b4c4b82-1186-4a06-a48b-0edff51a4f17",
      "name": "Setup",
      "type": "n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote",
      "typeVersion": 1,
      "position": [
        0,
        -370
      ],
      "parameters": {
        "content": "## Instagram Profile Scraper - Bio & Posts\n\nSource: [dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts](https://apify.com/dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts) on Apify.\n\n1. In **Run Apify Actor**, create a Header Auth credential: name `Authorization`, value `Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN` with your token.\n2. Click **Execute workflow**. Each record arrives as one n8n item.\n3. Edit the JSON body of **Run Apify Actor** to change the input.\n\nGenerated by recipeforagents.com. Validated, not executed: runs are billed to your Apify account.",
        "height": 340,
        "width": 460,
        "color": 6
      }
    }
  ],
  "connections": {
    "Run by hand": {
      "main": [
        [
          {
            "node": "Run Apify Actor",
            "type": "main",
            "index": 0
          }
        ]
      ]
    },
    "Every day": {
      "main": [
        [
          {
            "node": "Run Apify Actor",
            "type": "main",
            "index": 0
          }
        ]
      ]
    }
  },
  "pinData": {},
  "active": false,
  "settings": {
    "executionOrder": "v1"
  },
  "meta": {
    "templateCredsSetupCompleted": false
  },
  "tags": []
}

All 7 destination variants pass the same checks at build time. Built-in nodes only, at versions n8n has shipped since 1.80: they import on n8n Cloud and older self-hosted instances without community nodes. Prefer Apify's own node? The verified community node @apify/n8n-nodes-apify runs the same Actor with OAuth sign-in on n8n Cloud.

Call it from code

Run the Actor from a script or your own agent framework with the Apify API. The call waits for the run to finish and returns the records. The input is the example below.

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/dataspryva~instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts/run-sync-get-dataset-items" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"usernames":["instagram"],"maxPosts":3}'

import os
from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient(os.environ["APIFY_TOKEN"])
run_input = {
    "usernames": [
        "instagram",
    ],
    "maxPosts": 3,
}

run = client.actor("dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts").call(run_input=run_input)
if run is None:
    raise RuntimeError("The Actor run could not be started")
print(run.status, "dataset", run.default_dataset_id)
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

import { ApifyClient } from "apify-client";

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: process.env.APIFY_TOKEN });
const input = {
  "usernames": [
    "instagram"
  ],
  "maxPosts": 3
};

const run = await client.actor("dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts").call(input);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items.length, items[0]);

Example input

These values come from the Actor's Store prefill and required defaults. Change the search, URL or limit before your first run.

{
  "usernames": [
    "instagram"
  ],
  "maxPosts": 3
}

3 more optional fields on the Store input tab.

What your agent receives

Each run returns a list of records. The Actor publishes 30 fields, starting with post_url, shortcode, post_id, username.

Agent skill

A SKILL.md in the open Agent Skills format. It teaches Claude Code, Codex and other skill-aware agents when to call this Actor, how to build the input and how to read the result, using the API directly.

---
name: instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts
description: "Scrape public Instagram profiles from a list of usernames: bio, followers, following, post count, verified badge and bio links. Add recent posts with captions, hashtags, likes and comments. Export to Excel, CSV or JSON. Runs the Apify Actor dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts. Use when the user needs Instagram data with fields such as post_url, shortcode, post_id, status, username, author_meta and an Apify token is available."
compatibility: "Needs network access, curl, and an APIFY_TOKEN environment variable. Runs are billed to the token owner's Apify account."
metadata:
  actor: "dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts"
  store-url: "https://apify.com/dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts"
---

# Instagram Profile Scraper - Bio & Posts

Use this skill to fetch Instagram data with the Apify Actor `dataspryva/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts` and work with the returned rows.

## Before running

1. Check that `APIFY_TOKEN` is set in the environment. Never print it or write it to a file.
2. Build `input.json` from the user's request using the fields below. Keep limits small for a first run.
3. Confirm the search terms or URLs with the user if the request is ambiguous.

## Input fields

| Field | Type | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `usernames` | array, required | Instagram profiles to scrape. Each entry can be a username (with or without @) or a profile link such as https://www.instagram.com/natgeo/. Each profile is scraped in turn. Example: 'instagram', '@instagram' or 'https://www.instagram.com/instagram/'. |
| `maxPosts` | integer | Maximum number of posts to extract per profile (after the date and pinned-post filters below). Set to 0 to only extract profile data without posts. Public profiles need no sign-in, however many posts you ask for. |

Example `input.json` (the Actor's published prefill):

```json
{
  "usernames": [
    "instagram"
  ],
  "maxPosts": 3
}
```

## Run

```bash
curl -sS -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/dataspryva~instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts/run-sync-get-dataset-items" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d @input.json > results.json
```

The call waits for the run to finish and returns the dataset items as a JSON array. If the run needs more than 300 seconds the API answers with HTTP 408; then start the run with `POST /v2/acts/dataspryva~instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts/runs`, poll `GET /v2/actor-runs/{runId}` until `SUCCEEDED`, and read `GET /v2/datasets/{defaultDatasetId}/items`.

## Output

Each item is one record. Published fields include: `post_url`, `shortcode`, `post_id`, `status`, `username`, `author_meta`, `caption`, `hashtags`, `mentions`, `tagged_users`, `collaborators`, `caption_is_edited`, `pub_date`, `media_type`, `media_count`, `thumbnail_url`, `media_items`, `accessibility_caption`, `like_count`, `comment_count`.

Summarise what was found, cite the record URLs when present, and say how many items came back. Do not invent values for empty fields.

• Claude Code: save it as ~/.claude/skills/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts/SKILL.md, or .claude/skills/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts/SKILL.md in a project.
• Codex and other agents: ~/.agents/skills/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts/SKILL.md, or .agents/skills/instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts/ in a project.
• Or let the skills CLI place it for your agent: npx skills add https://recipeforagents.com --skill instagram-profile-scraper-bio-and-posts
• Set APIFY_TOKEN in the agent's environment.

Good jobs for this Actor

• Build an account review sheet with username, author_meta.full_name, author_meta.followers_count and author_meta.is_verified.
• Group recent posts by hashtags and mentions while retaining caption and post_url for review.
• Flag posts with likes_hidden or comments_disabled before comparing like_count and comment_count.

Prompts to try

• Scrape @natgeo and @instagram using usernames, and return their recent captions, hashtags and post links.
• Use https://www.instagram.com/natgeo/ in usernames and list recent posts with publication dates, media types and engagement counts.
• Scrape @instagram with skipPinnedPosts enabled and show mentions, tagged users and collaborators from the returned posts.

Recipes with this Actor

• Instagram posts to Google Sheets

  Log the latest posts of the Instagram profiles you track in a Google Sheet, with captions, likes, comments and post…

  InstagramGoogle Sheets

• Instagram posts to Slack

  Post the latest posts of the Instagram profiles you watch to a Slack channel, with caption, likes and the post link.

  InstagramSlack

Troubleshooting

Every fix in one place