How to download your Instagram data

A complete walkthrough for requesting your Instagram data export — every saved post, every like, every collection. Once you have the ZIP, UnplugMe turns it into a real local archive on your hard drive.

What you'll get

Instagram's official "Download Your Information" feature gives you a ZIP file containing your account data in JSON format. Inside, you'll find:

• Every post you've saved (with URLs and the collections they belong to)
• Every post you've liked
• Every reel, story, and post you've published yourself
• Your followers and following lists
• Your messages, comments, and search history
• Your profile information

Important: the ZIP contains a list of links to your saved and liked content — not the actual photos and videos. UnplugMe is what turns those links into a real archive.

Step-by-step instructions

1. Open Instagram on the web Go to instagram.com in your browser and make sure you're logged into the account whose data you want to archive. The web version gives you the most reliable export flow — the mobile app sometimes hides options.
   Screenshot slot Instagram homepage with the user logged in. Profile icon visible top-right.
2. Open Settings Click the menu icon (☰) in the bottom-left of the sidebar, then click Settings. (On mobile: tap your profile, then the menu icon at the top-right.)
3. Open Accounts Center At the top of the settings panel, click Accounts Center. This is Meta's unified account management area, shared across Instagram, Facebook, and Threads.
   Screenshot slot Settings sidebar with "Accounts Center" highlighted at the top.
4. Go to Your information and permissions Inside Accounts Center, click Your information and permissions in the left sidebar.
5. Click "Download your information" You'll see a few options including "Access your information," "Transfer your information," and Download your information. Click that one.
6. Click "Download or transfer information" Instagram will ask whether you want to download or transfer. Choose download — that's the option that gives you a usable ZIP file.
7. Select your Instagram account If you have multiple Meta accounts linked, pick the Instagram one you're archiving, then click Next.
8. Choose "Some of your information" or "All available information" For a full archive, choose All available information. If you only want specific categories (e.g., just saved posts), pick Some of your information and tick the boxes — at minimum: Likes, Saved, Followers and following, Your posts.
   Screenshot slot The category checklist with relevant boxes ticked.
9. Click "Download to device" On the destination screen, pick Download to device (not "Transfer to a destination" — that sends to Google Drive/Dropbox and is harder to work with).
10. Set the format and date range These are the critical settings:
    • Date range: All time
    • Format: JSON (UnplugMe requires JSON — the "HTML" format won't work)
    • Media quality: High
11. Click "Create files" and wait Instagram will queue your export and email you when it's ready. This typically takes a few hours, but for large accounts it can take up to 48 hours. You'll get a notification both in-app and via email.
    While you wait: Instagram sometimes splits the export into multiple ZIP parts (numbered like "instagram-username-part-1.zip"). All parts contain valid data — UnplugMe handles either single-file or multi-part exports.
12. Download the ZIP from your email Click the link in Instagram's email. You'll be asked to confirm your password before the download starts. The ZIP can range from a few megabytes to several gigabytes depending on your account size.
    Screenshot slot The email from Instagram with "Download files" button.

Other platforms

Got data on more than one platform? We're working on all of them.