Instagram export file format reference

A field guide to the follower and following files inside an Instagram export ZIP: paths, JSON wrappers, HTML variants, parser rules, and sanitized examples.

Fast answer

Instagram lets people choose HTML or JSON when exporting information from Accounts Center. In follower exports observed by Unfollio, the useful files normally live under connections/followers_and_following/. Followers are commonly an array in followers_1.json; following is commonly wrapped by relationships_following in following.json.

Official workflow source: Meta Help Center — Review and export a copy of your Instagram information. Specific filenames and shapes below are documented from sanitized export fixtures and the current Unfollio parser; Meta does not publish a stable schema contract for these relationship files.

Known paths

A root folder such as an export name may appear before these paths.

Relative path	Meaning	Unfollio behavior
connections/followers_and_following/followers_1.json	Follower list, JSON	Supported; numbered parts such as followers_2.json are merged
connections/followers_and_following/following.json	Following list, JSON	Supported; expects relationships_following
connections/followers_and_following/followers_1.html	Follower list, HTML	Supported; numbered HTML parts are merged
connections/followers_and_following/following.html	Following list, HTML	Supported
connections/followers_and_following/pending_follow_requests.json	Requests you sent	Optional
connections/followers_and_following/blocked_profiles.json	Blocked profiles	Optional
connections/followers_and_following/recently_unfollowed_accounts.json	Recently unfollowed accounts	Optional; profiles variant also supported

followers_1.json

Top-level array

Download sample

[
  {
    "title": "",
    "string_list_data": [
      {
        "href": "https://www.instagram.com/_u/sample_follower",
        "value": "sample_follower",
        "timestamp": 1767225600
      }
    ]
  }
]

following.json

Wrapped array

Download sample

{
  "relationships_following": [
    {
      "title": "sample_following",
      "string_list_data": [
        {
          "value": "sample_following",
          "timestamp": 1767225600
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Field precedence used by Unfollio

Export shapes vary. For a relationship entry, the parser resolves a username in this order:

1. value
The first string_list_data value.
2. title
Used when the nested value is empty.
3. href
Username extracted from /_u/username or /username.
4. label_values
Newer labeled Username or URL pairs are also recognized.

HTML exports

HTML files are parsed from Instagram profile links. Both /username and /_u/username link styles are recognized. JSON is still preferable for debugging because its structure is explicit.

Multiple follower files

Large exports may be split into followers_1.json, followers_2.json, and later numbered files. A correct parser should sort and merge all matching parts before comparing lists.

Parser checklist

- Validate that the followers_and_following directory exists.
- Prefer JSON when JSON and HTML both exist.
- Merge every numbered follower file.
- Read nested values instead of diffing raw lines.
- Normalize usernames before set comparison.
- Treat optional relationship files as non-fatal.
- Reject malformed core files with a clear error.
- Never assume Meta will keep the format stable.

Limitations and corrections

This is an observed-format reference, not an official Meta schema. Export paths, wrapper keys, fields, and UI labels can change. The examples contain synthetic usernames and timestamps; they are not customer data. To report a newly observed shape, email support@unfollio.com with a sanitized fragment.

Maintained by the Unfollio team. Last verified against parser tests and sanitized fixtures on July 20, 2026.