# Instagram Profile Reels API (https://www.socialcrawl.dev/platforms/instagram/profile-reels)

> Returns a list of reels posted by an Instagram user. Each reel includes view count, like count, comment count, and thumbnail. Note: engagement.shares is null on this endpoint (the upstream carries no per-post share count); to additionally merge in per-reel share counts where a second source exposes them (coverage varies by account), use /v1/instagram/profile/reels/full.

TL;DR: `GET /v1/instagram/profile/reels` costs 1 credit per call and returns SocialCrawl's unified JSON schema. Single x-api-key auth, 100 free credits on signup.

## Parameters

| Parameter | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `user_id` | no | Instagram user id. Use this for faster response times. |
| `handle` | no | Instagram username without the @ symbol |
| `max_id` | no | Max id to get more reels. Get 'max_id' from previous response. |
| `trim` | no | Set to true for a trimmed down version of the response |

## Code example

```bash
curl "https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/instagram/profile/reels" \
  -H "x-api-key: sc_YOUR_API_KEY"
```

## FAQ

### How do I list a user's Instagram reels with an API?

Send a GET request to /v1/instagram/user/reels with either the handle parameter (username) or the user_id parameter. SocialCrawl returns a JSON array of the user's reels with view count, like count, comment count, and thumbnail URL.

### Is it faster to pass handle or user_id?

user_id is faster. When you pass handle, SocialCrawl first resolves the username to the numeric ID, then fetches reels. If you already have the user_id from a prior profile call, pass it directly to skip that extra lookup.

### What data does the Instagram Reels API return?

Each reel entry includes the reel ID, shortcode, thumbnail URL, video URL, duration, view count, play count, like count, comment count, caption, audio info, and post timestamp.

### How do I paginate through a user's reels?

Pass the max_id returned from the previous response as the max_id parameter on your next request. The endpoint returns reels in reverse-chronological order and lets you walk back through the user's full reel catalog.

### How much does the Instagram Reels API cost?

One page of reels costs 1 credit on the standard tier. With 100 free credits on signup and no credit card required, you can pull around 100 pages of reels while evaluating the endpoint.

See the full Instagram API: https://www.socialcrawl.dev/platforms/instagram

## Pricing

- Standard endpoints: 1 credit per call
- Advanced endpoints: 5 credits per call
- Premium endpoints: 10 credits per call
- 100 free credits on signup, no credit card required. Cached responses cost 0 credits. Credit packs never expire.
- Full pricing: https://www.socialcrawl.dev/pricing

## Explore with AI

Questions this API answers, phrased for an AI assistant:

- How to track a creator's Instagram reel performance over time
- Instagram reels scraper API with view count and audio metadata