# FAQ

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<summary>What's the difference between "Public profiles info" and "Public profiles posts"?</summary>

**Public profiles info** gives you a snapshot of the profile itself: follower count, following count, post count, bio, verification status, and profile picture. This is account-level data.

**Public profiles posts** gives you individual post data: captions, like counts, comment counts, post URLs, and publish dates. This is post-level data.

Use both if you want to track both account growth and post performance. For most use cases, you'll want one or the other, not both in the same flow.

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<summary>Can I track private Instagram accounts?</summary>

No. This source only works with public accounts. If an account is private, you will not be able to pull any data, even if you follow them personally.

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<summary>Does "Public profiles posts" include Stories or Reels?</summary>

No. This report type includes feed posts only (photos and videos posted to the main feed). Stories and Reels are not included.

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<summary>How often does follower count update?</summary>

Follower counts update in near real-time on Instagram, but the API may lag by a few minutes. If you schedule a daily refresh, you'll get yesterday's final count, not the live count at the exact moment of the run. For the most current numbers, run the data flow manually.

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<summary>Can I filter posts by date range?</summary>

"Public profiles posts" returns all available posts from the profile's history. If you need only recent posts, run the data flow and then filter the data in your destination (Google Sheets, BigQuery, etc.) to show posts from the last 30 days.

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<summary>What should I do if I keep getting "Error 400" or "Error 429"?</summary>

These are rate limit errors from Instagram's API. **Stop running the data flow immediately** and wait at least 1 hour. Then try again with fewer profiles or a less frequent refresh schedule. If you're monitoring many accounts, split them into separate flows or reduce refresh frequency (e.g., daily instead of hourly).

{% hint style="info" %}
See the [Common Issues](https://docs.coupler.io/sources/category/marketing/instagram-public-data/common-issues) article for detailed troubleshooting steps.
{% endhint %}

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<summary>Can I combine Instagram data with data from other sources (like my analytics platform)?</summary>

Yes! Use Coupler.io's **Join** transformation to combine Instagram Public Data with other data sources on a common column (like profile username). For example, join Instagram follower counts with your own website analytics to correlate audience growth with traffic.

{% hint style="info" %}
Learn more about transformations in the Coupler.io docs.
{% endhint %}

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<summary>How many profiles can I track in one data flow?</summary>

Technically, you can add dozens of profiles, but we recommend keeping it to **5–10 per flow** to avoid hitting Instagram's rate limits. If you need to monitor more, create separate data flows for different profile groups and schedule them at different times.

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<summary>Why does my data flow fail after running successfully for weeks?</summary>

Common causes:

1. **Instagram account permission changes**: Your account permissions may have been reset. Try disconnecting and reconnecting your Instagram account in Coupler.io.
2. **Tracked profiles went private**: If a public account you're monitoring switched to private, you'll get no data for that profile. Verify the profile is still public on Instagram.com.
3. **Rate limit**: Instagram may be throttling requests if you've been running frequent refreshes. Increase the time between runs.

Start by running the flow manually with a single profile to isolate the issue, then reconnect your Instagram account if needed.

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<summary>Can I export data to AI destinations like Claude or ChatGPT?</summary>

Yes! You can send Instagram Public Data to Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, Gemini, Perplexity, or OpenClaw. This is helpful if you want to analyze trends, generate content recommendations, or create reports automatically.

{% hint style="info" %}
See the [Data Overview](https://docs.coupler.io/sources/category/marketing/instagram-public-data/data-overview) article for use cases by role, which includes examples of how to leverage AI destinations.
{% endhint %}

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<summary>What happens to my data if a post is deleted?</summary>

Deleted posts will no longer appear in "Public profiles posts" reports. If you need a permanent record, make sure to archive old snapshots of your data regularly (monthly is recommended). This way, you'll have historical data even if posts are removed later.

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