Limitations - Instagram

Instagram limitations

Account requirements

• Business or Creator accounts only - Personal Instagram accounts cannot use the API
• No Facebook account required - You connect by logging in directly with Instagram

Content restrictions

• No direct message posting - The API does not support sending DMs
• No Story scheduling - Stories can be posted but not scheduled in advance via the API
• No editing after posting - Once published, posts cannot be edited through the API
• No post deletion - Posts cannot be deleted through the API (must be done in Instagram)
• Carousel limit - Maximum 10 images per carousel

Rate limits

• Content publishing - Instagram enforces a rolling 24-hour publishing limit. Meta typically caps this at roughly 25 to 50 API-published posts per account, and Reels and Stories count toward the same limit
• API calls - API usage follows Meta's platform rate limits, which scale with app activity (there is no fixed per-hour call count) and are checked via usage headers
• ScoutSocial automatically manages these rate limits to keep your posting reliable

Media requirements

• ScoutSocial automatically prepares media for upload to Instagram's servers
• Video processing may take additional time on Instagram's servers
• Very large videos may fail to upload; keep videos under 1GB and within the 90-second Reel length limit

Analytics limitations

• Insights are only available for Business and Creator accounts
• Historical data is limited to the last 2 years
• Story insights are only available for 24 hours (while the story is live)