Instagram has become one of the most important social platforms for businesses looking to engage with current and potential customers. With over 1 billion monthly active users, it‘s a massive opportunity to build brand awareness and drive growth.
But to maximize your Instagram presence, you need more than just creating great visual content and hoping it resonates. This is where Instagram analytics come in.
Instagram analytics provide the data and insights you need to benchmark performance, identify opportunities, and continually refine your Instagram strategy. Without accurate analytics, you‘re essentially flying blind.
In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll cover the following:
- What key metrics and insights can native Instagram analytics provide?
- An overview of 10 top third-party Instagram analytics platforms
- Key features, ideal use cases, pros and cons of each platform
- Factors to evaluate when selecting an Instagram analytics provider
Let‘s get started!
What Can Native Instagram Analytics Tell You?
All Instagram business and creator accounts have access to native Insights within the app. Here are some of the key metrics and reports you can access:
Reach: Total number of unique accounts that saw your posts
Impressions: Total number of times your posts were seen
Engagement Rate: Percentage of people who engaged with your content out of everyone who saw it
Follower Growth: New followers gained or lost over time
Demographics: Follower breakdown by age, gender and location
Website Traffic: Number of clicks to your link in bio or stickers
Native analytics provide a snapshot of how your recent posts have performed and who‘s following you. But there are some major limitations:
No Historical Data: You can only view metrics from the last 14 days
Limited Reporting: No ability to export or share data
No Competitor or Industry Benchmarking: Can‘t compare performance to competitors or industry averages
No Post-Level Analytics: Metrics provided at the account level rather than individual posts
For more sophisticated insights, you‘ll need a third-party analytics platform. Let‘s explore the top options on the market right now.
1. Iconosquare
Iconosquare is one of the most established Instagram analytics platforms, used by over 1 million businesses worldwide.
Some standout features include:
Post Insights: Detailed metrics on every individual post like reach, engagement rate, comments, saves and more
Competitor Benchmarking: Directly compare your performance to competitors
Audience Analysis: Breakdown of followers by location, gender, age and language
Engagement Maps: See where your audience is located
Post Planning: Plan and schedule Instagram posts right within the platform
Performance Tracking: Monitor changes and trends in followers, engagement and reach over time
Iconosquare has offerings for personal accounts up to large enterprise teams. Pricing starts at $59/month for the Pro plan. Some downsides are no analytics for other social platforms, limited post templates and no Instagram reels metrics yet.
But for robust Instagram and audience analytics, Iconosquare is incredibly powerful.
2. Sprout Social
Sprout Social is an integrated social media management platform for publishing, engaging, listening and reporting across all major networks.
For Instagram specifically, Sprout Social provides:
Post Performance Tracking: Monitor reach, impressions, engagement per post
Audience Analysis: Follower demographics and interests
Hashtag Performance: See top and underperforming hashtags
Competitor Benchmarking: Compare follower growth and engagement
Post Comment Tracking: Manage and reply to post comments
Sprout also provides data for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and more, making it great for unified reporting. Plans start at $99/month for standard features.
Downsides are the interface can be overwhelming for solely Instagram analytics and core features spread across multiple price tiers. But Sprout is a strong contender for Instagram and broader social media analytics.
3. Keyhole
Keyhole bills itself as the most powerful real-time social media analytics platform.
It captures data from Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and Facebook to reveal:
Post Performance: Impressions, reach and engagement metrics
Audience Insights: Follower locations, languages and interests
Influencer Analysis: Track influencer posts and engagement
Competitor Benchmarking: Compare performance across select pages
Campaign Tracking: Monitor branded hashtag and user handle performance
Pricing starts at $99/month for SMBs.
The main downside is the steeper learning curve to extract insights compared to other tools. But the breadth and depth of data is incredibly robust.
4. Pallyy
Pallyy is a social media management platform focused on scheduling, workflow automation and analytics.
For Instagram, Pallyy provides:
Content Planning Calendar: Plan and schedule Instagram content
Post Performance Tracking: Monitor reach, impressions and engagement
Audience Analysis: Analyze followers by location, age and gender
Top Posts: See highest performing posts
Post Comment Tracking: Manage, reply and report comments
Plans begin at $15/month with a free version for one Instagram account. It lacks some sophistication of other enterprise tools but provides tremendous value.
5. SocialPilot
SocialPilot is an intuitive social media management platform integrating publishing, monitoring and reporting.
Their Instagram analytics include:
Post Performance Tracking: Measure reach, impressions, clicks for each post
Audience Analysis: Follower details including gender, top locations and languages
Top Post Reporting: Automatically track your best performing content
Account Benchmarking: Compare changes in followers and engagement over time or across accounts
Pricing starts at $30/month for up to 5 social accounts. The tool is straightforward to use with strong essential analytics. However, competitor benchmarking and some sophistication isn‘t on par with enterprise analytics leaders.
6. Buffer
Buffer pioneered social media scheduling and has evolved into an impressive all-in-one publishing and analytics solution.
For Instagram, Buffer provides:
Post Performance: Impressions and engagement metrics
Ideal Post Times: See when your audience is most active
Audience Analysis: Follower details like gender, top locations and languages
Account Benchmarking: Track follower growth and engagement metrics over time
Buffer starts at just $5/month for individuals including access to their powerful Instagram planning and scheduling tools. It‘s an unbeatable value with strong core analytics. However, it doesn‘t offer the reporting depth of other enterprise analytics tools.
7. Sendible
Sendible is a leading social media management platform purpose-built for agencies to manage multiple brand accounts.
Their Instagram analytics include:
Post Performance Tracking: Impressions, reach and engagement metrics for every post
Audience Analysis: Follower gender, age, location and language breakdowns
Ideal Post Times: Identify when your audience is most responsive
Account Benchmarking: Configure custom reports to showcase client account growth
Sendible analytics covers Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and more. Plans start at $29/month for individuals to over $1000/month for large agencies. It‘s a bit more costly but a worthy investment for the depth, customization and white labeling available for agencies.
8. Hootsuite
As one of the most widely adopted social media management tools, Hootsuite needs little introduction. Their Instagram analytics include:
Post Performance Tracking: Monitor reach, impressions and engagement for each post
Audience Analysis: Follower details like location, language and demographic data
Top Posts: Identify your best performing content
Account Benchmarking: Customizable reports to showcase account growth over time
Prices range from free to $599/month for extensive multi-user, multi-account management and monitoring. Hootsuite offers strong essential analytics but trails industry leaders in depth and sophistication.
9. Later
Later focuses specifically on social media scheduling, visual planning and analytics.
Their Instagram toolset provides:
Post Performance Tracking: Impressions and engagement data
Ideal Post Times: Identify when your audience is most active
Account Benchmarking: Customize growth reports to showcase progress
Instagram Planner: Visually plan your Instagram grid
Later starts at just $14/month including access to their intuitive publishing tools. The analytics and reporting lack depth compared to some alternatives. But if you want to elevate visual planning and track core metrics, Later strikes an impressive balance of value and functionality.
10. Analisa.io
Analisa.io is a unique social media analytics tool focused entirely around audience intelligence.
It reveals insights like:
Audience Analysis: Follower gender, age group, location and language breakdowns
Audience Interests: Discover follower hobbies, purchase behavior and more
Influencer Analysis: Identify power followers and influencers among your audience
Post Savings: See which posts followers have saved for later
Follower Loyalty: Assess how long followers have been following your account
Prices range from free to $239/month for more accounts and features. If deep audience and influencer analysis is crucial, Analisa.io provides unparalleled insights compared to any solution reviewed. Just know the publishing and broader analytics features have room for improvement.
Key Factors to Consider When Selecting an Analytics Provider
With so many options on the market, selecting the right Instagram analytics platform can feel overwhelming. Here are some key factors to consider:
Depth of Instagram Data: Some provide follower demographics while others offer detailed metrics on every single post
Competitor or Industry Benchmarking: This allows deeper context when assessing performance
Ideal User and Use Case: Is the tool ideal for solopreneurs, small businesses or only enterprise teams? Does it suit your specific needs?
Additional Social Networks Supported: If you’re managing multiple platforms, tools with unified reporting are convenient
Budget: Pricing can range from free to over $1000/month for enterprise tools
Ease of Use: Will their interface and reporting capabilities align with your skill level?
Ideally, the tool you select addresses your highest priority needs while fitting comfortably into your budget. Getting clear on your specific analytics goals will help narrow down the best solution.
Final Thoughts
Relying on native Instagram analytics alone provides an incomplete picture. To maximize your Instagram success, invest in a dedicated analytics platform for more comprehensive data and benchmarking.
This guide provided an extensive look at the top Instagram analytics tools available covering ideal use cases, standout features, limitations and pricing factors.
With the foundational knowledge this piece provides, you can determine which solution best aligns to your budget, resources and analytics needs. Most offer free trials to experience firsthand before committing.
Now equipped with a leading analytics tool, you have the insights needed to track performance, demonstrate social media ROI and continually refine your Instagram approach.
What resonated from this piece? Any additional tools you‘d add to the analysis? Whatever next steps you take, I wish you tremendous Instagram growth and engagement powered by analytics!
