instaComments

A simple CLI to fetch Instagram comments (parents and optional replies) and export them to JSON, CSV, or TXT.
This project is based on Python and uses Requests, tqdm, and python-dotenv.

InstaComments: Instagram Comment Scraper

A simple, robust Python script to fetch parent comments (and optionally replies) from an Instagram Reel or Post using your session cookies. Output can be JSON, CSV, or TXT.

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Features

• Fetch parent comments for Reels and Posts, with optional replies.
• Pagination until completion with a progress bar.
• CLI with options for data shape and output format.
• Filters and limits (min likes, max comments, per-page).

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Requirements

• Python 3.9+
• An Instagram account session (cookies)

Install dependencies:

python -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate  # macOS/Linux
pip install -r requirements.txt

Create .env (or copy .env.example) and fill in values from your logged-in instagram.com cookies:

SESSIONID="..."
DS_USER_ID="..."
CSRFTOKEN="..."
MID="..."

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Usage

Interactive prompt:

python instacomments.py

Command line options:

python instacomments.py \
	--url "https://www.instagram.com/reel/SHORTCODE/" \
	--data-format usernames \
	--file-format json \
	--output out/usernames.json \
	--per-page 50 \
	--max-comments 200 \
	--min-likes 0 \
	--include-replies \
	--dedupe

Options:

• --url Instagram Reel or Post URL (https://www.instagram.com/reel/... or /p/...)
• --output Output file path (default: listComments.json)
• --data-format Data shape: usernames or detailed (default: usernames)
• --file-format Output format: json, csv, or txt (default: json)
• --per-page Comments per page (default: 50)
• --max-comments Stop after N parent comments (default: unlimited)
• --min-likes Minimum like count to include a parent comment
• --include-replies Include replies for each parent comment
• --dedupe/--no-dedupe Enable/disable duplicate removal (default: dedupe enabled)
  • In usernames mode: dedupe by username
  • In detailed mode: dedupe by parent comment id
• --no-progress Disable progress bar

Output examples:

• usernames + json: ["user1", "user2", ...]
• detailed + json: [{ id, username, text, like_count, created_at, replies: [...] }, ...]

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Notes

• Private content or expired cookies will cause missing data; refresh cookies from instagram.com.
• Too many requests can trigger rate limits (HTTP 429). The script does not bypass rate limits.
• If you use --no-dedupe, the usernames output may contain repeated entries when duplicates exist.