Instagram Reels API: A Complete Developer Guide (2026)

Key Takeaways:

• The Instagram Reels API launched on June 28, 2022 and is available for Business and Creator accounts only.
• Developers can post Reels using POST /{ig-user-id}/media with media_type=REELS.
• Maximum video length via the API is 90 seconds for most accounts.
• Engagement insights require accounts with 1,000+ followers.
• Phyllo's universal API simplifies Instagram Reels data access across platforms.

Social media users still can’t get enough of short-form video content, and that’s why Instagram Reels remains the fastest-growing feature on the platform in 2026. According to Meta, Reels now contribute to over 75% of Instagram’s engagement growth, and global watch time is up 18% year-over-year. Search interest for Reels continues to trend high, and brands are doubling down. For instance, Nike’s recent Reels campaign garnered over 5.4 million views in just three days. This strong performance has reinforced Reels as a critical tool in every creator’s and marketer’s content strategy.

However, when it comes to growing on social media, consistency is the name of the game. In light of this, the need for an API allowing users to post, share, and extract insights from Reels videos became an imperative. Creators and marketers needed a way to integrate third-party software with the Instagram Graph API to reap the benefits of posting Instagram Reels videos — and the Instagram platform has finally expanded its API to support the Reels function. 

Related Read:

• How to Use Instagram API Integration
• ‍How to use Instagram API to get followers
• How To Use Instagram API To Post Photos On Instagram‍
• Instagram Scraping - How to Scrap Instagram Data
• How to find audience demographics on Instagram

In this blog, we will explore the Instagram API for Reels, its features, and its use cases, and enlighten you on how to post Reels videos to Instagram using the Instagram API. 

What is the Instagram Reels API?

The Instagram Reels API is an extension of the Instagram Graph API. It was launched on June 28, 2022, initially rolled out to 25% of accounts, and made fully available by July 6, 2022. Before this API existed, developers using the Instagram Graph API integration could only manage photos, standard videos, and Stories.

Reels — which had become a core engagement driver — were not supported programmatically. This API closes that gap. With the Instagram Reels API, developers can:

• Publish Reels to Instagram Business and Creator accounts.
• Schedule Reels in advance using third-party tools.
• Fetch Reels content and performance metrics.
• Manage comments — reply, hide, delete, or disable them.
• Access hashtag data to optimize content strategy.
• Track mentions and tags of Business or Creator accounts.

Note: The Reels API is only available for Instagram Business and Creator accounts linked to a Facebook Page. Personal accounts do not have API access.

Now, let's check out some features of the Instagram Reels API.

Key Features of the Instagram Reels API

Here are some of the common features of Instagram Reels API:

1. Fetching Reel Content: 

You can fetch reel content from a particular Instagram profile using the field query string parameter, media_type, and media_url. The first specifies the media type being fetched; here, it will be REEL. The second highlights the reel's URL link. You need to have the user's access token and relevant permissions for the purpose.

2. Parameters for Reel Content: 

Here are the specifications for Reels content on the Instagram platform:

• Container: MOV or MP4 (MPEG-4 Part 14), no edit lists, moov atom at the front of the file
• Maximum frame rate: 23–60 FPS
• File size: 100MB maximum
• Maximum columns (horizontal pixels): 1920
• Aspect ratio: It is between 0.01:1 and 10:1, but 9:16 is the recommended ratio to avoid cropping or blank spaces.
• Audio codec: AAC, 48khz sample rate maximum, 1 or 2 channels (mono or stereo)
• Video codec: HEVC or H264, progressive scan, closed GOP, 4:2:0 chroma sub-sampling
• Video bitrate: VBR, 5Mbps maximum
• Audio bitrate: 128kbps

For Reel thumbnail images:

• Format: JPEG
• Maximum file size: 8 MB.
• Color Space: sRGB. Other color spaces can be converted to sRGB for images in Reels videos.
• Aspect ratio: 9:16 recommended (image is center-cropped if ratio differs). If the image does not have the proper aspect ratio, it is cropped, and the middlemost 9:16 rectangle is used as the reel's cover photo. Similarly, when you share a reel, the middlemost 1:1 square of the cover shot is used for your feed post.

3. Limits Specifications for Reels: 

Here are the limits to Instagram Reels API:

• Reels cannot be shown in album carousels.
• Account privacy settings are respected upon publication. If "allow remixing" is enabled, published reels will have remixing enabled upon publication, but remixing can be turned off on published reels manually through the Instagram app.
• Insights are not available for accounts with fewer than 1,000 followers.
• Organic engagement metrics only — ad interactions are excluded.

4. Posting to Reels Through the API: 

Recent updates indicate that the maximum Reels video length that can be posted using the Graph API is 90 seconds. However, some accounts still face the 60-second limit.

To make a video appear both in the feed and under the Reels tab, set share_to_feed=true. Use thumb_offset (in milliseconds) to select which frame becomes the thumbnail.

Related Read:

• Instagram API get post: Use Display API to access user info‍
• How to use Instagram API to pull photos based on hashtag

5. Commenting and Engagement Features:

The API lets you build full engagement workflows on top of Reels content:

• Reply to comments programmatically
• Delete, hide, or reveal comments
• Enable or disable comments on specific Reels
• Track likes and shares across content

6. User Profile and Reels Insights: 

The API endpoint, GET /{ig-media-id}/insights, allows you to access social interaction metrics on all Instagram media, including Reels. This feature does not work for accounts with less than 1,000 followers, and the API only informs on organic engagement metrics, which do not include user interactions with ads.

7. Hashtag Search: 

The API endpoint, GET /{ig-hashtag-id}, can get you data about a certain hashtag, while the GET /{ig-hashtag-id}/top_media and the GET /{ig-hashtag-id}/recent_media requests help you gain insights into the top-performing and must recently-updated Instagram posts with the specific hashtag. This feature allows developers to supply marketers with data that they can use to optimize content for user experience.

Next, we will explore some common use cases of the Instagram Reels API.

Instagram Reels API vs. Other Instagram API Capabilities

Here's how the Reels API compares to other parts of the Instagram Graph API:

Use Cases of the Instagram Reels API

Before we get into the use cases of Reels APIs, you need to enable Instagram Graph API on your third-party application. Once you have done that, you can then work out which functionalities you need the Reels API for.

To make the Graph API work for Instagram Reels, the Instagram POST endpoint POST/{ig-user-id}/media has been configured to accept media_type REELS. This marks the video as a Reel, and you can then use the Reels API for the use cases highlighted below:

1. Fetching the Latest Reels From a Profile

To get started, you need the user’s Instagram access token and authorization to access their content, which you can get using the Meta guide for access tokens and permissions. Once the user authorizes access, you will need to query the instagram_graph_user_profile and the instagram_graph_media_profile permissions. Following this, you have to query the media node using the command: GET /me/media?fields={fields}&access_token={access-token}. Once you replace {media-id} with the ID of the Reel video you want to query, the {fields} with a comma-separated list of Media fields you want to be returned, and {access-token} with the user’s access token, you can successfully fetch your Reel video.

Here is a sample request:

Here is the sample response:

2. Posting a Reel with Custom Metadata

You can use the IG User Media Publish API, POST /{ig-user-id}/media_publish, to post your Reel video with custom metadata. 

Here is the sample request:

Curl -i -X POST \

"https://graph.facebook.com/v18.0/90010177253934/
media_publish?creation_id=17969578066508312&access_token=EAAOc"

Here is the sample response:

{

  "id": "90010778325754"

}

If you are successful, the Reels API will return an IG Media ID.

3. Analyzing Engagement on a Specific Reel

To use the Instagram Graph API for Reels and uncover social engagement metrics (such as likes, comments, and shares), you can use the GET /{ig-media-id}/insights request.

Here is a sample request:

Here is the sample response:

How To Post a Reels Video To Instagram Using the Instagram Graph API?

One of the major reasons the Instagram API for Reels was created was to enable creators and businesses to consistently post Reels videos to Instagram, possibly using third-party applications. Here is how you can do it:

You need to use the POST endpoint POST/{ig-user-id}/media and set the media_type to REELS. It is not very different from posting a normal video on Instagram, and the code is as illustrated below:

Besides marking the video you publish as a Reel on Instagram, you must also set the share_to_feed parameter as true if you want the video to appear in your Instagram feed and under your Reels tab. You would, however, need to meet Meta’s requirements for video length, duration, and encoding. Similar to videos, you also have the thumb_offset field. This lets you choose which frame in the video to use as the thumbnail's location (in milliseconds).

Developers can easily invoke the REST API and choose any programming language, such as PHP, JavaScript, Ruby, Python, or C# to make these calls. Here is an example using JavaScript language and the fetch command to post a reel to Instagram.

const access_token = "Js82ks92jald"; // The access token given from FB 

const instagram_user_id = "12345"; // The IG user's ID 

const reelUrl = "https://www.website.com/reel.mp4"; 

const caption = "This is the best real ever #Reels4Real"; 

const postUrl = `https://graph.facebook.com/${instagram_user_id}/media?

video_url=${encodeURIComponent(reelUrl)}

&caption=${encodeURIComponent(caption)}&access_

token=${access_token}&media_type=REELS&share_to_feed=true&thumb_offset=2000`; 

const postOptions = { 

method: "POST", 

headers: { 

"Content-Type": "application/JSON," 

}, 

}; 

fetch(postUrl, postOptions) 

.then((res) => res.json()) 

.then(json => console.log(json)) 

.catch(console.error);

This JavaScript code issues a fetch command to the Facebook Graph media endpoint for your specific (Instagram user ID). It then enables you to post your Reel to Instagram via the Graph API.

How To Use the Instagram Reels API Integration with Phyllo?

While the native Instagram Reels API gives you direct access to Meta's infrastructure, Phyllo's universal creator data API simplifies cross-platform data access and reduces integration complexity significantly.

• Gain access to extensive yet comprehensive creator data, including profile information, content feeds, audience demographics, engagement metrics, and Instagram Stories and Reels;  
• ensure creators that the information being extracted from their accounts is being done ethically and will not be misused, promoting transparency and consent;
• enable cross-platform integration with other platforms like Facebook, YouTube, etc.

Phyllo is one of the best options for retrieving Instagram account data about Reels and much more, owing to the following reasons:

• Phyllo Connect SDK: It informs creators about Phyllo's policies and walks them through the connection process. Users can also disconnect their connected accounts whenever they want to, thus giving them the right to consent and promoting transparency;

• Seamless Instagram Login: It guides Instagram creators through the process of linking their account with their Facebook page with zero hassles; 
• Data Accuracy: Unlike other third-party aggregators, Phyllo provides access to creator data directly from the source, making sure that the information is updated and of premium quality;
• Quicker Data Refresh Frequencies: It ensures that all creator data is refreshed in 24 hours or earlier. This provides developers with access to recent data for their purposes.
• Webhooks: It notifies developers of changes in creator data for real-time accuracy. This further upholds the precision and authenticity of the insights. 
  

Businesses can, therefore, use Phyllo to acquire detailed information about various influencers, including audience demographics and post-, story-, and now reel-level engagement rates. This makes it easier to select the ideal influencers by hand for a marketing campaign and to monitor their effectiveness with up-to-date and accurate data. 

Experts at Phyllo can assist developers in adjusting to new API modifications without sacrificing the functionality of their apps. Set up a free demo with Phyllo right now to learn more about how to get the most out of your using the Instagram Graph API for posting Instagram Reels.

Related Resources:

• How to Use Instagram API Integration
• How to Use Instagram API to Get Followers
• How to Use Instagram API to Post Photos on Instagram‍
•  Instagram Scraping: How to Scrape Instagram Data‍
• How to Find Audience Demographics on Instagram

FAQs:

1. What is the Instagram Reels API used for?

The Instagram Reels API is part of the Instagram Graph API that allows developers to publish Reels, fetch Reel content, access engagement insights, manage comments, and analyze audience interaction. It supports programmatic management of Reels for Instagram Business and Creator accounts.

2. Can I post Instagram Reels using the Graph API?

Yes, you can publish Reels using the endpoint POST /{ig-user-id}/media with the parameter media_type=REELS. You also need to use POST /{ig-user-id}/media_publish to complete the upload. The video must meet Meta’s specifications for format, duration, and encoding.

3. What is the maximum video length for Reels via API?

As of 2025, most accounts using the Instagram Graph API can post Reels up to 90 seconds long. However, some business accounts may still have a 60-second cap depending on account history and rollout phases.

4. Can I access Reel insights like views, likes, and comments via the API?

Yes. Using the endpoint GET /{ig-media-id}/insights, you can retrieve organic engagement metrics such as likes, reach, comments, plays, saves, and shares. Note that this data is only available for accounts with more than 1,000 followers.

5. Is the Reels API available for personal Instagram accounts?

No. The Instagram Reels API is only available for Instagram Business and Creator accounts that are linked to a Facebook Page. Personal accounts are not eligible for API-based publishing or analytics access.

 6. How does Phyllo simplify Instagram Reels data access?

Phyllo provides a single API to access creator data — including Reels engagement and audience demographics — across multiple platforms. It handles creator consent, data refresh, and cross-platform integration, reducing the complexity of working directly with the Instagram Graph API.

Ready to get started with Instagram Reels data? Book a free demo with Phyllo to see how their API simplifies access to Reels insights and creator data across platforms.