Instagram vs TwitterAPIs
A side-by-side look at the Instagram and TwitterAPIs MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
InstagramSocial Media · Remote HTTP/SSEInstagram for AI agents: publish, read comments and DMs, insights, and engage from your account.57GoodAuth: not declaredVerdict: choose Instagram for social media work over a hosted endpoint; choose TwitterAPIs for social media as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Instagram when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Social Media domain.
- You prefer a remote HTTP/SSE transport.
- You want tools like
instagram_actions_list_accounts, instagram_actions_like, instagram_actions_list_comments.
Choose TwitterAPIs when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Social Media domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: API key required.
- You have the keys it needs:
TWITTERAPIS_KEY, TWITTERAPIS_BASE_URL, TWITTERAPIS_TIMEOUT_MS. - You want tools like
twitter_advanced_search, twitter_user_search, twitter_user_info.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | Instagram | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Social Media | Social Media |
| Quality signal | 57/100 · Good | 64/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Remote HTTP/SSE | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | API key required |
| Pricing | Not declared | Not declared |
| Required env vars | None listed | TWITTERAPIS_KEYTWITTERAPIS_BASE_URLTWITTERAPIS_TIMEOUT_MS |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 5 | 0 |
| Directory activity | 0 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 4 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 33 | 113 |
| Full listing | View Instagram | View TwitterAPIs |
Tools & capabilities
Instagram tools 33
instagram_actions_list_accountsList the Instagram accounts connected to this install — id, username, label.instagram_actions_likeLike one or more Instagram posts, addressed by post URL or shortcode (NOT the numeric media id the official API returns). Returns a job_id; poll instagram_actions_get_job_status.instagram_actions_list_commentsList the comments on a post, addressed by URL or shortcode. Returns each comment_id in the form that instagram_actions_like_comment accepts. The official API returns a DIFFERENT id that is not accepted there. Returns a job_id; poll instagram_actions_get_job_status.instagram_actions_like_commentLike one or more comments. Each comment_id MUST come from instagram_actions_list_comments. The id returned by the official instagram_get_ig_media_comments belongs to a different namespace and is rejected. Returns a job_id; poll instagram_actions_get_job_status.instagram_actions_followFollow one or more Instagram users by @username. Returns a job_id.instagram_actions_unfollowUnfollow one or more Instagram users by @username. Returns a job_id.instagram_actions_list_storiesList a specific user's currently available stories (read-only, does not mark as seen). Returns a job_id (or the result inline when wait=true).instagram_actions_view_storyWatch (mark as seen) the stories of one or more profiles. Omit `targets` to watch the home tray. Returns a job_id.instagram_actions_send_messageSend the FIRST direct message to someone who has never messaged this account (the official API cannot do this). One recipient per call, low daily cap. Returns a job_id.instagram_actions_get_job_statusGet the status/progress/result of a previously started action by its job_id. Bulk support: accepts job_ids for batched execution.instagram_actions_list_jobsList recent action jobs for the connected account, optionally filtered by status.instagram_get_user_infoGet Instagram Business Account info including profile details and statistics. Use "me" to query your own authenticated account, or provide the numeric Business Account ID of an account you manage. NOTE: followers_count and follows_count are returned for your own profile (ig_user_id="me"). For other accounts, follower/… Bulk support: accepts ig_user_ids for batched execution.- +21 more on the listing page
TwitterAPIs tools 113
twitter_advanced_searchSearches recent tweets with X's advanced-search operators: from:, to:, since:YYYY-MM-DD, until:YYYY-MM-DD, min_faves:N, min_retweets:N, filter:links, -filter:replies, lang:en, and free text. Returns tweet text, author info, engagement metrics and a pagination cursor. product='Latest' gives chronological results; 'Top' (the default) is engagement-ranked. Example queries: 'AI agents min_faves:100', 'from:openai filter:links since:2024-01-01', '#buildinpublic -filter:replies lang:en'. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/search/tweet-advanced-searchtwitter_user_searchSearches Twitter/X user accounts by display name or handle (X's People search). Bio text is not searched, so a word that appears only in a bio returns no match. Returns matching profiles (username, display name, bio, follower count, verification status) with a pagination cursor. Covers brand handles, partial handles, and people known only by name. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/search/user-searchtwitter_user_infoReturns a user's complete public profile by @handle: display name, bio, follower count, following count, verification status, location, website, account creation date, pinned tweet, and the numeric user_id. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-infotwitter_user_info_by_idReturns a user's complete public profile by numeric user id: display name, bio, follower and following counts, verification status, location, website, account creation date and pinned tweet. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-info-by-idtwitter_user_statusReports whether a Twitter/X account is alive, suspended, or deleted. Returns a status field that is one of 'alive', 'suspended', 'not_found' or 'unavailable', plus the numeric id when the account is alive and X's own reason when it gives one. It distinguishes a suspended or deleted account from a handle that does not exist, which a profile read answers the same way. Every outcome is a successful response: the answer is in the status field, and a suspension is not an error. A protected (private) account counts as alive, since protection is a visibility setting and not an account state. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-statustwitter_user_aboutReturns a user's full 'About' object: the structured profile facts X surfaces beyond the bio, including account category and professional/business labels, verification and identity-verification flags, joined date, location and linked website, follower/following counts, and X's 'About this account' transparency panel (the account's country, how the account was created, and its username-change history). Takes a username or a user_id. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-user-abouttwitter_user_about_batchReturns the 'About' object (account country, how the account was created, username-change history, verification and the other About fields) for up to 100 accounts in one call. Takes usernames or user_ids as a comma-separated list, not both. Results come back in request order, each with an about object or an error code (not_found is billed; forbidden is free, X refuses that account to everyone; rate_limited and unavailable are free and retryable). Billed per account X answered for. One batch per API key runs at a time: a concurrent call gets 429 batch_in_progress (not billed). fields/compact apply inside each item's about object (fields=account_based_in); a results.* path returns about: {}. Cost: $0.0008 per billed item. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-user-about-batchtwitter_user_affiliatesLists the affiliated accounts of an organization profile (the smaller accounts X displays under a company's 'Affiliated' badge, e.g. employees or sub-brands). Takes a username or user_id. Returns profile data per affiliate plus a pagination cursor, and an empty list for accounts with no affiliations. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-affiliatestwitter_check_follow_relationshipReturns the follow relationship between two accounts: whether the source follows the target, whether the target follows the source, and blocking/muting flags where available. Each side is a numeric user id or a username (an unknown username or id returns a not-found error, not billed). Covers checking a follow before or after a follow action, and detecting mutuals. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-check-follow-relationshiptwitter_check_follow_relationship_batchChecks one account against up to 100 others in one call. Either one source (source_user_id or source_username) with up to 100 targets (target_usernames or target_user_ids), or one target with up to 100 sources (source_usernames or source_user_ids): a list on one side only. Each result carries the relationship from the SOURCE's side (following = source follows target, followed_by = target follows source), in request order. Example: which accounts on a shortlist already follow a brand, with the brand as target_username and the shortlist as source_usernames. Billed per pair answered with a relationship; not_found, forbidden, rate_limited and unavailable pairs are free. One batch per API key runs at a time (a concurrent call gets 429 batch_in_progress, not billed). fields/compact apply inside each item's relationship object. Cost: $0.0008 per billed item. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-check-follow-relationship-batchtwitter_audience_summarySummarises an audience in one call: samples up to 100 followers of an account (username or user_id) or retweeters of a tweet (tweet_id), reads each sampled account's About country, and returns a country histogram (shares over accounts with a known country) plus a likely-bot share from documented profile signals (default avatar, no bio, under 5 followers, extreme follow ratio, no posts, created in the last 30 days, digit-suffix handle; 3 or more signals = likely automated, a heuristic, not a verdict). Billed per item: each sample page that added accounts plus each sampled account X answered About for, so sample=100 costs at most $0.08 plus up to 3 pages. Shares the one-batch-per-key slot with the batch endpoints. Cost: $0.0008 per billed item. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-audience-summarytwitter_user_tweetsReturns a user's recent posting timeline, cursor-paginated further back. The endpoint does not filter server-side, so the response routinely includes retweets and replies alongside original posts. Every item carries is_retweet, is_reply and is_quote booleans, and author.username names who wrote it (a retweet's retweeted_tweet holds the original author). Returns tweet text, id, timestamp and engagement metrics. Cost: $0.0008 per call. Docs: https://docs.twitterapis.com/docs/reference/user-reads/user-tweets- +101 more on the listing page
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
{
"mcpServers": {
"instagram-2": {
"url": "https://api.mcp.ai/p_instagram"
}
}
}
TwitterAPIs
{
"mcpServers": {
"twitterapis": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@twitterapis/mcp@latest"
],
"env": {
"TWITTERAPIS_KEY": "YOUR_TWITTERAPIS_KEY_HERE",
"TWITTERAPIS_BASE_URL": "YOUR_TWITTERAPIS_BASE_URL_HERE",
"TWITTERAPIS_TIMEOUT_MS": "YOUR_TWITTERAPIS_TIMEOUT_MS_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Instagram is categorized under Social Media and uses a remote HTTP/SSE transport. TwitterAPIs belongs to Social Media and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Instagram for social media work and TwitterAPIs for social media.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Instagram has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. TwitterAPIs has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Auth: api key required. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add instagram-2 and twitterapis as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Instagram has a quality signal of 57/100 (Good) with 0 views, 0 installs and 5 GitHub stars. TwitterAPIs has 64/100 (Good) with 4 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars.