Node.js Social Media Downloader API

In Node.js 18 or newer you need no SDK and no npm package: fetch the public link to POST https://developers.getinsaver.com/v1/resolve, read the items array, and stream each file to disk. The same request works for Instagram, TikTok, X, Pinterest and Telegram; only the service ID changes.

Steps

1. Create a free account and verify your email. You get 20 free credits, no card needed.
2. Create an API key in Dashboard → API keys and store it as the environment variable GIS_KEY on your server.
3. Save the script below as resolve.mjs and run GIS_KEY=gis_live_... node resolve.mjs.

Complete Node.js example

Copy// Node.js 18+ (built-in fetch, no packages). Run: GIS_KEY=gis_live_... node resolve.mjs
import { createWriteStream } from "node:fs";
import { mkdir } from "node:fs/promises";
import { Readable } from "node:stream";
import { pipeline } from "node:stream/promises";

const API_URL = "https://developers.getinsaver.com/v1/resolve";
const EXT = { "video/mp4": ".mp4", "image/jpeg": ".jpg", "image/png": ".png", "image/webp": ".webp", "audio/mpeg": ".mp3" };
const sleep = (ms) => new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, ms));

async function resolveLink(service, url, maxResults = 10, retries = 3) {
  for (let attempt = 0; ; attempt++) {
    const response = await fetch(API_URL, {
      method: "POST",
      headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.GIS_KEY}`, "Content-Type": "application/json" },
      body: JSON.stringify({ service, url, max_results: maxResults }),
      signal: AbortSignal.timeout(130_000)
    });
    const data = await response.json();
    if (response.ok) return data;
    // 429 = rate or concurrency limit, 502/504 = platform hiccup; none of them is charged
    if ([429, 502, 504].includes(response.status) && attempt < retries) {
      await sleep(Number(response.headers.get("retry-after") || 5) * 1000);
      continue;
    }
    throw new Error(`${data.code}: ${data.message}`);
  }
}

// Media URLs expire within minutes to hours, so save the file right away.
async function download(item, name, folder = "downloads") {
  const media = await fetch(item.url, { signal: AbortSignal.timeout(120_000) });
  if (!media.ok) throw new Error(`download failed: HTTP ${media.status}`);
  await mkdir(folder, { recursive: true });
  const type = (media.headers.get("content-type") || "").split(";")[0];
  const path = `${folder}/${name}${EXT[type] || ".bin"}`;
  await pipeline(Readable.fromWeb(media.body), createWriteStream(path));
  return path;
}

const result = await resolveLink("instagram", "https://www.instagram.com/reel/SHORTCODE/");
console.log(`${result.item_count} items, ${result.credits_used} credits`);
for (const [i, item] of result.items.entries()) {
  console.log(item.type, await download(item, `${result.request_id}-${i}`));
}

Call the API from your server, a worker or a serverless function. Never from browser JavaScript: the key would be visible to every visitor. To put a download box on a website, see the downloader website guide, which includes a small backend.

What the API returns

{
  "ok": true,
  "service": "instagram",
  "source_url": "https://www.instagram.com/reel/SHORTCODE/",
  "item_count": 1,
  "items": [
    {
      "type": "video",
      "url": "https://cdn.example/media.mp4"
    }
  ],
  "metadata": {
    "title": null,
    "author": "creator",
    "caption": null
  },
  "request_id": "39a3bff5-0000-4000-8000-000000000000",
  "credits_used": 1
}

Service IDs

Errors to handle

Every error body is JSON with a stable code and a readable message. The full list is in the API reference.

FAQ

Related guides

• Python Instagram and TikTok Downloader API
• Video Downloader API for Your Own Website
• n8n Instagram Downloader API

Updated 2026-10-30. The code on this page is executed by our test suite against the API server before every release.