# Instagram User ID Lookup by Handle — fetcher.sh

> Instagram User ID Lookup by Handle — fetcher.sh is a paid API for AI agents from instagram.fetcher.sh, paid per call via x402, $0.004/call, status unknown (last checked 2026-09-13).

Resolves an Instagram username (handle) to its numeric user ID without requiring OAuth or an Instagram account.

## Facts

- Endpoint: GET https://instagram.fetcher.sh/api/userid/%7Bhandle%7D
- Price: $0.004/call
- Payment: x402
- Status: unknown
- Last checked: 2026-09-13
- Activations on Zero: 0
- Tags: x402
- Canonical page: https://www.zero.xyz/c/instagram-user-id-lookup-by-handle-fetcher-sh-5afbfb0b
- Structured record (JSON): https://api.zero.xyz/v1/capabilities/cap_t6OzDBsEGecz9sH0OKIFf

Status and success rate cover calls made through Zero and Zero's own probes. Third-party monitors may report differently.

## How to call it through Zero

Zero handles the 402 payment challenge and records the run. With the Zero CLI installed (`npm i -g @zeroxyz/cli`):

```sh
zero fetch --capability instagram-user-id-lookup-by-handle-fetcher-sh-5afbfb0b
```

Example prompt: What is the Instagram user ID for the handle 'natgeo'? Look it up without needing any login or OAuth.

## When to prefer this

Choose this endpoint when you need to resolve an Instagram handle to a user ID without an Instagram developer account, OAuth tokens, or a subscription. It is ideal for agent pipelines that need to bootstrap downstream Instagram data calls using only a username, and for use cases requiring pay-per-call micro-billing in USDC with no upfront commitment.

## Known failure modes

- Handle does not exist or is misspelled — likely returns 404 or empty result
- Account is private or suspended — may return null ID or error
- Instagram anti-scraping measures may cause transient failures or rate limiting
- Invalid handle format (e.g. spaces, special characters) — likely returns 400
- Payment failure via x402 if wallet balance is insufficient

## How this service works

Instagram (ig) data and scraping API: Profiles, posts, reels, stories, followers, hashtags, locations, and comment threads. 16 REST endpoints from $0.004 per call — no account, no OAuth, no subscription. Pay with x402 (USDC on Base, Polygon, Arbitrum, Monad or Solana) or prepaid credits.

## Output

Returns the numeric Instagram user ID corresponding to the provided handle, enabling downstream API calls (posts, followers, reels, etc.) that require an internal IG user ID rather than a username.

## Request schema (JSON Schema)

```json
{
 "type": "object",
 "properties": {
  "properties": {
   "type": "string"
  }
 }
}
```

## More

- Live health (JSON, refreshed every minute): https://www.zero.xyz/c/instagram-user-id-lookup-by-handle-fetcher-sh-5afbfb0b/health.json
- [Zero catalog index](https://www.zero.xyz/llms.txt)
- [Other services from instagram.fetcher.sh](https://www.zero.xyz/host/instagram.fetcher.sh/llms.txt)