Instagram is finally giving users the ability to download some of their data. After teasing the tool a few weeks ago, the Facebook-owned service released a data export feature today, and it does more than just let you retrieve a copy of your filtered photos.
All users can now access the data export tool from the web, with iOS and Android support rolling out within an unspecified timeframe, TechCrunch reports. During the export process, Instagram tells you what you’re getting, though the description is a little vague:
We’ll email you a link to a file with your photos, comments, profile information and more. We can only work on one request from your account at a time, and it may take up to 48 hours to collect this data and send it to you.
Screenshot: Patrick Austin (Gizmodo)
While Instagram warns “it may take up to 48 hours” to get a link to your data, your link may arrive much sooner. In our experience, the export also included recent posts to our stories feed and .Json files documenting past likes, followers, and direct messages. Instagram says you can only request a link to your data every four days, so keep that in mind.
As for where you should plop your exported photos, there aren’t a ton of popular, social alternatives to turn to. Regardless, if you’re already using a service like Google Photos for every other candid shot you take, you may want to just dump ’em there.
How to export from the web:
- Log in to Instagram.com and visit the Privacy and Security page.
- Hit “Request Download” under the Data Download section.
- Enter your email and Instagram password.