Export Instagram Data to Google Sheets

You want Instagram data in a spreadsheet. Follower counts, engagement rates, post performance—updated automatically.

Google Sheets is perfect for this:

• Share with your team
• Create charts and dashboards
• Set up alerts with conditional formatting
• No database required

Here's how to set it up.

Need Instagram data? Get started at sociavault.com/free/social-media-api.

What We're Building

A Google Sheet that:

1. Pulls Instagram profile data
2. Tracks posts and engagement
3. Updates automatically (daily/hourly)
4. Calculates engagement rates

Method 1: Google Apps Script (Best)

Step 1: Create the Spreadsheet

1. Go to sheets.google.com
2. Create a new spreadsheet
3. Name it "Instagram Tracker"

Create these sheets/tabs:

• Profiles - Account metrics
• Posts - Individual post data
• Config - Settings and API key

Step 2: Add Apps Script

1. Go to Extensions > Apps Script
2. Delete any existing code
3. Paste this:

// Config
const API_KEY = PropertiesService.getScriptProperties().getProperty('SOCIAVAULT_API_KEY');
const API_BASE = 'https://api.sociavault.com/v1/scrape/instagram';

// Main function to update all data
function updateAllData() {
  updateProfiles();
  updatePosts();
  SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().toast('Data updated!', 'Success', 3);
}

// Fetch Instagram profile
function fetchProfile(username) {
  const url = `${API_BASE}/profile?username=${encodeURIComponent(username)}`;
  
  const options = {
    method: 'get',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${API_KEY}`
    },
    muteHttpExceptions: true
  };
  
  const response = UrlFetchApp.fetch(url, options);
  const data = JSON.parse(response.getContentText());
  
  if (!data.success) {
    throw new Error(data.error?.message || 'API error');
  }
  
  return data.data;
}

// Fetch user's posts
function fetchPosts(username, count = 20) {
  const url = `${API_BASE}/posts?username=${encodeURIComponent(username)}&count=${count}`;
  
  const options = {
    method: 'get',
    headers: {
      'Authorization': `Bearer ${API_KEY}`
    },
    muteHttpExceptions: true
  };
  
  const response = UrlFetchApp.fetch(url, options);
  const data = JSON.parse(response.getContentText());
  
  if (!data.success) {
    throw new Error(data.error?.message || 'API error');
  }
  
  return data.data.posts;
}

// Update Profiles sheet
function updateProfiles() {
  const ss = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet();
  const configSheet = ss.getSheetByName('Config');
  const profilesSheet = ss.getSheetByName('Profiles');
  
  // Get usernames from Config sheet
  const usernamesRange = configSheet.getRange('A2:A');
  const usernames = usernamesRange.getValues()
    .flat()
    .filter(u => u !== '');
  
  // Clear existing data (keep headers)
  const lastRow = profilesSheet.getLastRow();
  if (lastRow > 1) {
    profilesSheet.getRange(2, 1, lastRow - 1, 10).clearContent();
  }
  
  // Fetch and write data
  const data = [];
  const timestamp = new Date();
  
  for (const username of usernames) {
    try {
      const profile = fetchProfile(username);
      
      data.push([
        profile.username,
        profile.full_name,
        profile.followers,
        profile.following,
        profile.posts_count,
        profile.bio,
        profile.is_verified,
        profile.external_url,
        calculateEngagementRate(profile),
        timestamp
      ]);
      
      Utilities.sleep(500); // Rate limiting
    } catch (error) {
      data.push([username, 'ERROR', error.message, '', '', '', '', '', '', timestamp]);
    }
  }
  
  if (data.length > 0) {
    profilesSheet.getRange(2, 1, data.length, data[0].length).setValues(data);
  }
}

// Update Posts sheet
function updatePosts() {
  const ss = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet();
  const configSheet = ss.getSheetByName('Config');
  const postsSheet = ss.getSheetByName('Posts');
  
  // Get usernames from Config
  const usernames = configSheet.getRange('A2:A').getValues()
    .flat()
    .filter(u => u !== '');
  
  // Clear existing data
  const lastRow = postsSheet.getLastRow();
  if (lastRow > 1) {
    postsSheet.getRange(2, 1, lastRow - 1, 10).clearContent();
  }
  
  const data = [];
  const timestamp = new Date();
  
  for (const username of usernames) {
    try {
      const posts = fetchPosts(username, 12); // Last 12 posts
      
      for (const post of posts) {
        data.push([
          username,
          post.post_id,
          post.caption ? post.caption.substring(0, 200) : '',
          post.like_count,
          post.comment_count,
          post.media_type,
          post.timestamp,
          post.url,
          (post.like_count + post.comment_count),
          timestamp
        ]);
      }
      
      Utilities.sleep(500);
    } catch (error) {
      data.push([username, 'ERROR', error.message, '', '', '', '', '', '', timestamp]);
    }
  }
  
  if (data.length > 0) {
    postsSheet.getRange(2, 1, data.length, data[0].length).setValues(data);
  }
}

// Calculate engagement rate
function calculateEngagementRate(profile) {
  // This is approximate - would need recent posts for accurate calculation
  if (profile.followers === 0) return 0;
  // Placeholder - real calculation would average recent post engagement
  return 'N/A';
}

// Set up triggers for automatic updates
function setupTriggers() {
  // Remove existing triggers
  const triggers = ScriptApp.getProjectTriggers();
  triggers.forEach(trigger => ScriptApp.deleteTrigger(trigger));
  
  // Add daily trigger
  ScriptApp.newTrigger('updateAllData')
    .timeBased()
    .everyDays(1)
    .atHour(9)
    .create();
}

// Menu for manual updates
function onOpen() {
  const ui = SpreadsheetApp.getUi();
  ui.createMenu('Instagram Tracker')
    .addItem('Update All Data', 'updateAllData')
    .addItem('Update Profiles Only', 'updateProfiles')
    .addItem('Update Posts Only', 'updatePosts')
    .addSeparator()
    .addItem('Setup Daily Updates', 'setupTriggers')
    .addToUi();
}

Step 3: Set Up Your API Key

1. In Apps Script, go to Project Settings (gear icon)
2. Scroll to Script Properties
3. Click Add Script Property
4. Name: SOCIAVAULT_API_KEY
5. Value: Your API key from SociaVault

Step 4: Set Up the Sheets

Config Sheet:

A (Usernames)
natgeo
nike
nasa

Profiles Sheet (headers in row 1):

Username	Name	Followers	Following	Posts	Bio	Verified	Website	Eng Rate	Updated

Posts Sheet (headers in row 1):

Username	Post ID	Caption	Likes	Comments	Type	Posted	URL	Total Eng	Updated

Step 5: Run It

1. Reload your spreadsheet
2. Click Instagram Tracker > Update All Data
3. Authorize the script when prompted
4. Data will populate!

Step 6: Set Up Automatic Updates

Click Instagram Tracker > Setup Daily Updates

This creates a trigger that runs every day at 9 AM.

Method 2: Zapier/Make (No-Code)

If you prefer no-code tools:

With Zapier

1. Create a Zap: Webhook > Google Sheets
2. Use Zapier's webhook to call SociaVault API
3. Map response fields to columns

With Make (Integromat)

Trigger: Schedule (daily)
    ↓
HTTP Request: GET SociaVault API
    ↓
JSON Parser: Parse response
    ↓
Google Sheets: Add/Update Row

Advanced: Dashboard Sheet

Create a Dashboard sheet with formulas:

=QUERY(Profiles!A:J, "SELECT A, C, E ORDER BY C DESC LIMIT 5")

This shows your top 5 accounts by followers.

Engagement Trends

=SPARKLINE(FILTER(Posts!D:D, Posts!A:A = "natgeo"))

Shows a mini chart of likes over time.

Conditional Formatting

1. Select the Followers column
2. Format > Conditional formatting
3. Color scale from red (low) to green (high)

Tracking Engagement Over Time

To track historical data, modify the script to append rather than replace:

function appendProfileHistory() {
  const ss = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet();
  const historySheet = ss.getSheetByName('History') || ss.insertSheet('History');
  const configSheet = ss.getSheetByName('Config');
  
  const usernames = configSheet.getRange('A2:A').getValues()
    .flat()
    .filter(u => u !== '');
  
  const timestamp = new Date();
  
  for (const username of usernames) {
    try {
      const profile = fetchProfile(username);
      
      historySheet.appendRow([
        timestamp,
        profile.username,
        profile.followers,
        profile.following,
        profile.posts_count
      ]);
      
      Utilities.sleep(500);
    } catch (error) {
      historySheet.appendRow([timestamp, username, 'ERROR', error.message]);
    }
  }
}

Then create a chart from the History sheet to visualize follower growth.

Tips

1. Stay Within Rate Limits

Add delays between API calls:

Utilities.sleep(500); // 500ms delay

2. Handle Errors

Always wrap API calls in try/catch:

try {
  const data = fetchProfile(username);
} catch (error) {
  Logger.log(`Error for ${username}: ${error.message}`);
}

3. Optimize for Large Lists

If tracking 50+ accounts, consider:

• Running updates in batches
• Using caching
• Spreading updates throughout the day

4. Protect Your API Key

Never put your API key directly in the code. Use Script Properties.

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Ready to track Instagram data in Google Sheets?

Get your API key at sociavault.com with 50 free credits.

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