How to Set Up the Instagram API [2026 Edition]: A Complete Guide From Access Token Issuance to Verification

There are plenty of articles explaining how to set up the Instagram API (Instagram Graph API), but a lot of people still get stuck — either because the Meta for Developers dashboard has changed since the article was written, or because they manage to issue an access token but still can’t get their posts to show up on their site.

This guide walks you through the whole process without skipping a step — from creating a Facebook Page, connecting an Instagram professional account, creating an app in Meta for Developers, and adding the required permissions, to issuing an access token, extending it to 60 days, getting your Instagram Business Account ID, and finally verifying that you can actually pull post data through the API — all illustrated with real screenshots.

Note on screenshots: The screenshots in this guide are taken from the Japanese-language versions of Facebook and Meta for Developers. Menu and button labels are given in English with the original Japanese text in quotes (e.g. “Page” 「ページ」) so you can match them to what’s on your screen, whichever language your own account is set to.

This guide and its screenshots reflect the Meta for Developers / Facebook interface as of August 2026. Meta can change its dashboard without notice, so labels and layouts may look slightly different by the time you read this.

About this article: This is not official Meta documentation. It’s a walkthrough based on the author’s own notes and screenshots from actually going through this setup. Since specifications and screens can change, please also check the official Meta for Developers documentation for the latest requirements.

　

What you’ll learn in this article

• How to create a Facebook Page and connect it to an Instagram professional account
• How to create an app in Meta for Developers and add an Instagram tester
• How to add the 5 permissions required to use the API
• How to issue an access token and extend it to about 2 months (60 days)
• How to get your Instagram Business Account ID and confirm you can actually fetch post data
• Common sticking points during setup and how to fix them (troubleshooting)

　

What is the Instagram API? What to know before you start

The Instagram API (Instagram Graph API) is a Meta-provided API that lets you programmatically read and manage post data and insights from Instagram professional accounts (Business or Creator). It’s commonly used to automatically display your latest Instagram posts on your own website, manage comments from one place, or feed insights (analytics data) into external tools.

To use it, you need to meet the following conditions:

• Your Instagram account is a professional account (Business or Creator) connected to a Facebook Page
• You issue an access token through an app you created in Meta for Developers
• The required permissions have been granted to that app

The method in this guide adds your own Instagram account to your app as an “Instagram tester” and fetches your own data. That’s enough if you just want to show your feed on your own site or use it in an internal tool. If you’re building a publicly released app that handles other people’s Instagram accounts, though, Meta may require you to go through App Review — that’s outside the scope of this guide, so if it applies to you, check the official Meta for Developers documentation for the current requirements.

　

What you’ll need

Before you start, make sure you have the following:

• A Facebook account (personal)
• An Instagram account (one you’ll convert to a professional account)
• A smartphone (some steps require the Instagram app)

Note: A brand-new Facebook account may not be able to create a Page yet, due to verification status or temporary restrictions. Repeating actions in a short time can also trigger limits, so we recommend completing email or phone verification first and waiting a few days before starting.

　

STEP 1: Create a Facebook Page

1-1 Open Pages from the Facebook menu

Log in to Facebook and click the 3×3 grid menu icon in the top right (the 4th icon from the right). From the menu that appears, select “Page” (「ページ」).

1-2 Set the Page name and category

Enter a Page name and select the appropriate category.

　

STEP 2: Switch Instagram to a professional account and connect it

2-1 Open Accounts Center

Open “Settings & privacy” (「設定とプライバシー」) on Facebook and click “Accounts Center” (「アカウントセンター」).

2-2 Switch to a professional account

From “Profiles and personal information” (「プロフィールと個人の情報」) in Accounts Center, check the Instagram profile you’ll be connecting.

If you haven’t switched Instagram to a professional account yet, do so from the Instagram app using the steps below.

(How to switch to a professional account)

Settings → Account type and tools → Switch to professional account

• Reference: How to switch Instagram to a professional account (external article, in Japanese)

2-3 Add your Instagram account

Click “Add accounts” (「アカウントを追加」) in Accounts Center and connect the Instagram account you just switched to a professional account.

　

STEP 3: Create an app in Meta for Developers

3-1 Create a developer account

Go to Meta for Developers and click “Get Started” (「開始する」) in the top right, then log in with the Facebook account you just connected to your Page.

3-2 Create a new app

Click “My Apps” (「マイアプリ」) → “Create App” (「アプリを作成」).

3-3 Enter an app name and email address

Enter an app name and a contact email address for the app.

Note: Including “insta” in the app name causes an error. In our own testing, trying to create an app with “insta” anywhere in the name produced the error shown below, and the app couldn’t be created. This is likely because strings resembling the Instagram trademark are restricted (check Meta’s policies for the official naming rules). To avoid this, we recommend using an app name that doesn’t include “insta” at all.

3-4 Choose a use case

On the use case selection screen, choose “Manage messages and content on Instagram” (「Instagramでのメッセージとコンテンツ管理」) under “Content management” (「コンテンツ管理」).

3-5 Choose whether to link a business portfolio

You’ll be asked whether to link a business portfolio. Choose “Don’t add a business portfolio for now” (「現時点でビジネスポートフォリオを追加しない」).

On the requirements/summary screen that follows, review the details and click “Next” (「次へ」) to finish creating the app.

　

STEP 4: Add an Instagram tester to your app

4-1 Add a member

In your app’s dashboard, go to “App roles” (「アプリの役割」) → “Roles” (「役割」) and click “Add members” (「メンバーを追加」).

4-2 Add a username as an Instagram tester

Select “Instagram Tester” (「Instagramテスター」), enter the username of the Instagram account you want to add, and add it.

4-3 Confirm it was added

Confirm that the Instagram account now appears in the app roles list as an “Instagram Tester,” then click the link to go to the invitation screen on Instagram’s side.

4-4 Accept the invitation on Instagram

The Instagram settings screen will open. Under “Apps and Websites” (「アプリとウェブサイト」), accept the invitation for the app you just registered by clicking “Allow” (「許可する」).

4-5 Check the approval status

Go back to Meta for Developers and reload the page. If nothing is shown in the tester’s status column, the approval is complete.

　

STEP 5: Add the required permissions

5-1 Customize the use case

Go to “Use cases” (「ユースケース」) in the left menu and click “Customize” (「カスタマイズ」) next to “Manage messages and content on Instagram.”

5-2 Open the permissions and requests screen

Select “Permissions and requests” (「アクセス許可とリクエスト」) from the left menu.

5-3 Add the 5 permissions

Click “Add” for each of the following 5 items:

• pages_show_list
• business_management
• instagram_basic
• instagram_manage_comments
• instagram_manage_insights

　

STEP 6: Generate your first token via Instagram Login

6-1 Add all required permissions at once

Go to “Use cases” → “Customize” → “API setup with Instagram login” (「InstagramログインによるAPI設定」). Under “1. Add the required message permissions,” click “Add all required permissions,” then under “2. Generate access token,” click “Generate token” (「トークンを生成」).

6-2 Log in to Instagram and authorize

An Instagram login screen will pop up. Log in, confirm the app name and account shown, and click “Authorize” (「許可」).

6-3 Finish the setup

Back in Meta for Developers, check “I understand” (「理解しました」) and click “Done” (「完了」).

　

STEP 7: Issue an access token in the Graph API Explorer

7-1 Open the Graph API Explorer

Go to “Tools” (「ツール」) → “Graph API Explorer” (「グラフAPIエクスプローラ」) in the top menu.

7-2 Select your app

From the “Meta App” (「Metaアプリ」) dropdown, select the app you created earlier.

7-3 Add permissions

Under “Permissions” (「アクセス許可」) → “Add permission” (「許可を追加」), select all the permissions you added in STEP 5.

7-4 Generate the access token

Click “Generate Access Token” to issue an access token.

7-5 Open the Access Token Tool

Click the “!” icon next to the issued token and select “Open in Access Token Tool” (「アクセストークンツールで開く」).

7-6 Choose your data-use setting

If you see a confirmation screen like the one below, select the “current and future …” (「現在および今後の〜」) option for everything.

　

STEP 8: Extend the access token’s expiration

The access token you just issued has a short lifespan, so here we’ll extend it into a long-lived token good for about 2 months (60 days).

8-1 Extend the access token

Scroll to the bottom of the access token details screen and click “Extend Access Token” (「アクセストークンを延長」).

8-2 Debug it

Once the extended access token is shown, click “Debug” (「デバッグ」).

8-3 Check the expiration

Confirm that the expiration now shows “about 2 months” (「約2ヶ月」).

8-4 Copy the extended token

Copy the access token shown at the top of the screen.

8-5 Paste it into the Graph API Explorer

Go back to the Graph API Explorer and paste it into the access token field.

8-6 Confirm the extension again

Click the “!” icon → “Open in Access Token Tool” again, and confirm the expiration now shows “Never” (「受け取らない」) — meaning the extension took effect.

Operational tip: This access token’s lifespan is about 60 days. Once it expires, you won’t be able to fetch data through the API anymore, so repeat the steps in STEP 8 to refresh it as the expiration approaches. Setting a reminder in your calendar or task manager is a good way to make sure your site doesn’t quietly stop updating.

　

STEP 9: Get your Instagram Business Account ID

In the Graph API Explorer’s input field (the /me part), enter the following and click “Submit” (「送信」):

me?fields=accounts{instagram_business_account}

Once you get a result, copy the id value inside instagram_business_account in the response. That’s your Instagram Business Account ID.

If you need to share this with an outside contractor or agency, share these two things:

• Your Instagram Business Account ID (the id inside instagram_business_account)
• The access token (the one you extended in STEP 8)

Both of these let a third party access your Instagram data, so handle them carefully. See “Handling the information you’ve issued” below for how to share them safely.

　

STEP 10: Verify everything with the access token and ID

Finally, let’s use the ID and access token you obtained to confirm you can actually fetch Instagram post data. Enter the following into the Graph API Explorer’s input field and submit it:

{your_instagram_business_account_id}?fields=name%2Cmedia.limit(4)%7Bcaption%2Cmedia_url%2Cthumbnail_url%2Cpermalink%7D&access_token={your_access_token}

Replace {your_instagram_business_account_id} and {your_access_token} — brackets included — with the values you obtained.

If you get back your account name along with the caption, image URL, thumbnail URL, and permalink for your 4 most recent posts in JSON format, your API setup is complete.

　

Common errors and how to fix them (troubleshooting)

Here are the most common issues people run into — especially the ones that trip people up in other guides — along with how to fix them.

Symptom	Cause	Fix
Can’t create a Facebook Page	A newly created Facebook account has a temporary restriction	Complete email/phone verification and try again a few days later
Can’t create the app when entering a name	The app name contains “insta,” “instagram,” etc. (likely a trademark-related restriction)	Use a different app name
The Instagram tester invitation never arrives, or can’t be accepted	You haven’t accepted the invitation from “Apps and Websites” on Instagram	On Instagram, go to Settings → Apps and Websites and click “Allow” on the invitation for that app
instagram_business_account comes back empty even after issuing an access token	Your Instagram account isn’t a professional account connected to a Facebook Page	Go back to STEP 2 and make sure Instagram is a professional account properly connected to your Facebook Page
Permissions aren’t taking effect	You added permissions in STEP 5 but didn’t reselect them in the Graph API Explorer	In the Graph API Explorer, go to “Permissions” → “Add permission” and reselect the same permissions as in STEP 5
The API stops returning data after a while	The access token (about 60 days) has expired	Extend or reissue the access token following STEP 8

　

Handling the information you’ve issued

Your Instagram Business Account ID and access token are sensitive — they let whoever holds them act on your Instagram account. Keep the following in mind:

• Avoid sharing them over unencrypted channels like chat, email, or ticketing tools — use a password manager or another secure method to share and store them
• Don’t hard-code them into your source or repository — load them from environment variables instead
• When handing them to a contractor or other third party, limit the scope and duration of access, and revisit the app’s settings to revoke access once it’s no longer needed

　

Summary

We’ve now walked through the whole process: creating a Facebook Page, switching Instagram to a professional account, creating an app in Meta for Developers, adding an Instagram tester, granting the 5 required permissions, issuing an access token and extending it to about 2 months (60 days), getting your Instagram Business Account ID, and verifying it all by actually fetching post data.

If you get stuck along the way, check “Common errors and how to fix them” and go back to the relevant step to review your settings. Once you have both your access token and Instagram Business Account ID, you’re ready to build features like displaying your feed or pulling insights through the Instagram API.