Export Instagram Comments from Posts, Reels & Carousels
Paste a public Instagram URL and download every comment and reply in seconds — CSV, Excel, or JSON. No coding, no Instagram login, no API key.
5,800+ creators · Posts, Reels & Carousels · Includes replies & likes
Running a giveaway? Try the Instagram comment picker — same data pipeline, verifiable random winner.
By the ExportComments Team ·
How to export Instagram comments (step-by-step)
Three steps. The whole flow takes under a minute for a typical post and a few minutes for Reels with tens of thousands of comments.
- 1
Paste the Instagram URL
Copy the link to any public Instagram post, Reel, IGTV video, or carousel and drop it in. The picker validates the URL and queues the comment fetch.
- 2
Choose your format
CSV is free. Starter and above unlock Excel (.xlsx) and JSON. Every row includes comment text, username, timestamp, likes, reply count, and parent ID.
- 3
Download & analyze
Your export is ready in seconds. Open in Excel or Google Sheets, or send it through AI sentiment analysis to surface the signal without reading every comment.
Prefer to skip the URL copy step? Install the Chrome extension for one-click exports — it adds an Export button directly to every Instagram post and Reel.
Supported content types — posts, Reels & carousels
If it has a public Instagram URL, you can export its comments. The same export pipeline handles every Instagram content type with consistent field names.
Feed posts
Standard photo and video posts. The export captures every top-level comment and reply, ordered by post-time.
Reels
Short-form video with high comment density. Same fields as feed posts, plus an is_owner_reply flag for creator replies.
Carousels
Multi-image / multi-video posts. Comments are global to the post (not per slide), so a single export covers the whole carousel.
Giveaway posts
Same export, plus a one-click handoff to the Instagram comment picker for fair random winner selection.
One quirk worth knowing: when you export carousel comments, Instagram itself stores them as a single thread for the whole post — you can't split them by slide because Instagram doesn't tell anyone which slide a viewer was on when they commented.
What's included in each export
One comment per row, with replies linked back to their parent. All the metadata Instagram exposes publicly, none of the stuff it doesn't.
Fields included in every row
comment_idparent_id (for replies)usernamecomment_textcreated_at (ISO 8601)like_countreply_countis_owner_replyauthor_profile_urlpost_urlpost_type
Sample row (CSV)
Here's what a single comment row looks like after export:
Replies populate parent_id with the parent comment's comment_id — a single self-join rebuilds the full thread tree.
Public vs private accounts — what you can and can't export
Short version: if you can see the comments without logging into Instagram, ExportComments can export them. If Instagram hides them behind privacy, we don't touch them.
What you can export
- • Comments on any public Instagram post, Reel, or carousel
- • Replies and threaded conversations
- • Public profile metadata (username, profile URL)
- • Like counts and timestamps
- • Comments on Business and Creator accounts (which are always public by definition)
What you can't export
- • Posts from private accounts
- • Comments on a post the account owner has removed
- • DMs, Stories, or other non-comment content
- • Private profile fields (email, phone, follower lists)
- • Anything that requires login to see
If a post is private when you submit it, the export returns empty with a clear error. We don't silently produce partial results or attempt to bypass Instagram's privacy controls.
Run a giveaway? Pick a random winner from comments
We built a dedicated Instagram comment picker on top of this export pipeline. Paste the giveaway post URL, apply rules (must tag a friend, must contain a keyword, dedupe by user), and draw a verifiable random winner. Every draw publishes a public proof URL anyone in your audience can audit.
- Cryptographic seed published with every draw
- Tag-a-friend, keyword, and minimum-likes filters
- Multi-winner draws with auto-dedupe
- Public proof URL — no PDF certificates
Workflow
- 1Paste the giveaway post URL into the Instagram comment picker.
- 2Set your rules: must contain word, must @mention, dedupe by user, exclude spam.
- 3Pick 1 or many winners. Share the proof URL on your Stories.
Already exported the comments? You can also pipe a CSV straight into the picker.
Bulk export for agencies & researchers
The free tool is built for one post at a time. For agencies, academics, and in-house insights teams pulling comments across dozens or hundreds of posts, the paid plans add the pieces you actually need.
REST API (Agency plan)
Programmatic access at up to 500 req/min. Trigger Instagram exports from Make, Zapier, n8n, or your own backend — useful for nightly research pulls and live dashboards.
10 team seats & white-label reports
Onboard analysts without sharing credentials. White-label exports with your agency's logo so they drop straight into client decks.
Continuous post monitoring
Pin specific Instagram posts and the platform re-pulls comments on a schedule — track sentiment shifts after a launch, ad campaign, or PR moment. Creator monitors 3 posts, Pro 20, Agency unlimited.
Up to 200,000 comments per export
Agency-plan exports cap at 200,000 comments per post — enough for the longest-running viral Reels. Pro handles 50,000, which covers ~99% of Instagram posts in the wild.
AI analysis: sentiment, topics, spam detection
An Excel file with 5,000 Instagram comments isn't insight on its own — somebody still has to read it. ExportComments runs every export through an AI analysis pipeline so the spreadsheet does the reading for you.
- Per-comment sentiment (positive / negative / neutral)
- Per-post sentiment score (–1 to +1)
- Trending topics extracted automatically
- Spam, bot, and growth-pod detection
- Executive summary of audience reaction
- Sentiment delta vs. previous exports of the same post
Free plan includes 3 AI analyses per month. Starter and Creator: 50 each. Pro and Agency: unlimited. Spam detection is especially useful for sponsored Instagram posts where a chunk of comments are growth-pod chatter rather than real audience reaction.
Ready to extract comments from your first Instagram post? Try it free — 25 exports/month, no credit card (or grab the $3 Starter pass for 3 days of unlimited exports).
Instagram's rules on comment scraping — what's allowed
The honest version, in plain English. Instagram comment scraping is a contested topic, but the legal and policy landscape is more settled than most blog posts make it sound.
Public data is public
Comments on public Instagram posts are visible to anyone in the world without logging in. Reading that public-page data isn't a computer-misuse violation under US law (hiQ v. LinkedIn, 9th Circuit 2022). ExportComments only accesses what Instagram already shows publicly.
What Meta's Platform Terms restrict
Meta's Platform Terms restrict automated access to protected APIs (Graph API endpoints that require login or developer credentials). They don't apply to public-page data the same way. We don't use the Graph API for export — we read what's publicly rendered.
GDPR / CCPA still apply to public personal data
Public doesn't mean unregulated. If you store, re-publish, or process exported comments containing usernames, you have lawful-basis and minimization obligations under GDPR (EU/UK) and CCPA (California). Most legitimate use cases — your own giveaway, sentiment analysis on your own brand, academic research — fall under legitimate interests or research exemptions.
Don't do these things
Don't use exported comments to dox individuals, send unsolicited DMs, build advertising audiences without consent, or train commercial AI models on people's personal posts. Most platforms also prohibit using scraped data to harm or harass users — common sense, but worth saying.
Limits, pricing & free tier
No surprises. Here's exactly what each plan unlocks.
| Plan | Price | Exports | Comments / export | Formats | AI analyses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 25 / month | 1,000 | CSV | 3 / month |
| Starter 3-day pass | $3 one-time | Unlimited (3 days) | 2,000 | CSV, Excel, JSON | 50 |
| Creator | $9 / month | Unlimited | 5,000 | CSV, Excel, JSON | 50 / month |
| Pro | $19 / month | Unlimited | 50,000 | All + Google Sheets | Unlimited |
| Agency | $49 / month | Unlimited | 200,000 | All + API + 10 seats | Unlimited |
Only need the data for a single campaign? Starter is a one-time $3 charge that unlocks 3 days of unlimited exports — no subscription. See the full breakdown on the pricing page. Yearly billing on Creator, Pro, and Agency saves 25%.
More from ExportComments
Instagram comment picker
Verifiable random winner from any Instagram giveaway post.
Export TikTok comments
Same flow, for TikTok videos and Reels.
Export YouTube comments
Full thread, pinned comments, channel-owner flag.
Export tweet replies
Replies and quote-tweets from any X post.
Related deep-dives: the complete Instagram comment export guide and best tools to download Instagram comments for market research. More on the ExportComments blog.
Frequently asked questions
The questions creators and analysts ask before their first Instagram export.
How do I export comments from an Instagram post?
+
How do I export comments from an Instagram post?
+Paste the public Instagram post URL into ExportComments, choose CSV / Excel / JSON, and click Export. The full comment thread — including replies — is ready to download in under 30 seconds. No Instagram login, no API key, no copy-paste.
Can I export comments from Reels?
+
Can I export comments from Reels?
+Yes. Reels are treated the same as feed posts — paste the reel URL and you get every top-level comment and reply. The export also flags comments left by the account owner, which is useful when the creator pinned a reply.
Does the export include replies?
+
Does the export include replies?
+Yes. Replies are exported as their own rows with a parent_id linking back to the top-level comment, so you can either flatten the data for quick analysis or rebuild the thread tree programmatically.
Can I export comments from a private Instagram account?
+
Can I export comments from a private Instagram account?
+No. We only access publicly visible posts. If an account is private or a post has been removed, the export returns empty with a clear error — we never attempt to bypass privacy settings or scrape protected content.
Is Instagram comment scraping legal?
+
Is Instagram comment scraping legal?
+Exporting public comments for analysis is generally allowed. In the US, accessing public web data isn't a CFAA violation (hiQ v. LinkedIn, 2022). Meta's Platform Terms restrict automated access to protected APIs, not public-page data. You're still responsible for handling personal data lawfully under GDPR / CCPA — don't use exported comments to dox, spam, or target users without a lawful basis.
How many comments can I export per post?
+
How many comments can I export per post?
+Free plan: 1,000 comments per export. Starter ($3 one-time, 3 days): 2,000. Creator: 5,000. Pro: 50,000. Agency: 200,000. That covers virtually every Instagram post in the wild — most posts have fewer than 500 comments, even on viral content.
What formats can I export to?
+
What formats can I export to?
+CSV on the free plan; CSV, Excel (.xlsx), and JSON from Starter upward; plus direct Google Sheets push on Pro and Agency. Excel is best for sharing reports with non-technical stakeholders because it preserves emoji and non-Latin scripts cleanly.
Do I need an Instagram API key?
+
Do I need an Instagram API key?
+No. You don't need a Meta developer account, an Instagram Graph API token, or a Business / Creator profile. The tool reads public-page data the same way a browser does, so all you provide is the post URL.
Can I extract comments from a Carousel post?
+
Can I extract comments from a Carousel post?
+Yes. Instagram treats comments as global to the entire carousel (not per slide), so a single export captures every comment regardless of which carousel slide a viewer was on when they commented.
Can I pick a random comment for a giveaway?
+
Can I pick a random comment for a giveaway?
+Yes — and we built a dedicated tool for exactly that. The Instagram comment picker takes any post URL, fetches every comment, dedupes by user, applies giveaway filters (must tag a friend, must contain a keyword), and draws a verifiable random winner with a public proof URL. See /tools/instagram-comment-picker.
Does the export include usernames and timestamps?
+
Does the export include usernames and timestamps?
+Yes. Every row includes the commenter's username, profile URL, ISO 8601 timestamp, like count, reply count, and a flag for whether the comment was posted by the account owner.
How do I analyze the exported comments?
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How do I analyze the exported comments?
+Two paths: (1) open the CSV / Excel in your spreadsheet of choice and pivot, filter, or chart. (2) Send the export through our built-in AI analysis to get per-comment sentiment labels, trending topics, spam detection, and an executive summary — useful when you have thousands of comments and no time to read them.
Start exporting Instagram comments today
25 free exports per month. CSV included. No credit card. Save your first export in under a minute.
Running a giveaway? Open the Instagram comment picker · Also export from TikTok · YouTube · X