How to Monitor an Instagram Account on Windows 11 Using Instagram Monitor
Want to monitor an Instagram account automatically from your Windows 11 PC? You can do this using Instagram Monitor, an open-source monitoring tool that provides a Web Dashboard and supports different Instagram access methods.
In this guide, we will install Instagram Monitor on Windows 11 using Python, configure an Instagram username, select the Web Dashboard, run the built-in Doctor diagnostic, and start monitoring.
For this practical setup, the target account is amleshmr. We use No-login mode, the default 5400-second (1 hour 30 minute) polling interval, and the Web Dashboard.
- What Is Instagram Monitor?
- Requirements
- Step 1 — Check Python
- Step 2 — Install Python
- Step 3 — Verify Python and pip
- Step 4 — Install Instagram Monitor
- Step 5 — Fix the Command Not Found Problem
- Step 6 — Start the Setup Wizard
- Step 7 — Add the Instagram Username
- Step 8 — Set the Polling Interval
- Step 9 — Choose Instagram Access
- Step 10 — Choose the Web Dashboard
- Step 11 — Disable Email and Webhook Alerts
- Step 12 — Save the Configuration
- Step 13 — Run the Doctor Check
- Step 14 — Start Monitoring
- Step 15 — Open the Web Dashboard
- Troubleshooting
- Instagram Login Methods
- Security Considerations
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Conclusion
What Is Instagram Monitor?
Instagram Monitor is an open-source project designed to track Instagram users' activities, profile changes and supported account information.
It provides a Web Dashboard, terminal dashboard and plain-text logging options. It also supports different ways of accessing Instagram and notification methods such as email and webhooks.
The official installation documentation is:
https://misiektoja.github.io/instagram_monitor/installation/
Requirements
For this installation, we are using the Python installation method on Windows.
| Requirement | Used in this guide |
|---|---|
| Operating System | Windows 11 |
| Python | Python 3.13.15 |
| Instagram Monitor | Version 3.9.1 |
| Installation method | pip / PyPI |
| Internet | Required |
| Browser | Required for the Web Dashboard |
Step 1 — Check Python
1 Open PowerShell
Open Windows PowerShell and check whether Python is available:
python --version
If Python is not installed or Windows is using the Microsoft Store execution alias, you may see:
Python was not found; run without arguments to install from the Microsoft Store, or disable this shortcut from Settings > Apps > Advanced app settings > App execution aliases.
Check whether the Python executable being found is only the Windows Store alias:
where.exe python
Then check the Python Launcher:
py --version
In our installation, this returned:
Python 3.13.15
You can also check the commands Windows knows about:
Get-Command python -All
Step 2 — Install Python
2 Download Python for Windows
If Python is not installed, download it from the official Python website:
https://www.python.org/downloads/windows/
During installation, enable:
✓ Add python.exe to PATH
✓ Install Python
After installation, close PowerShell and open a new PowerShell window.
Step 3 — Verify Python and pip
Check Python:
python --version
If the python command still points to the Microsoft Store alias but py works, use:
py --version
Then check pip:
py -m pip --version
If pip is unavailable, run:
py -m ensurepip --upgrade
Then check again:
py -m pip --version
Step 4 — Install Instagram Monitor
4 Install the package
Install Instagram Monitor with pip:
py -m pip install --upgrade instagram_monitor
Verify the installed package:
py -m pip show instagram_monitor
You can also check the installed package list:
py -m pip list | Select-String instagram
In our successful installation, the package was:
instagram_monitor 3.9.1
Step 5 — Fix the "instagram_monitor Is Not Recognized" Error
After installation, running:
instagram_monitor --version
may result in:
instagram_monitor : The term 'instagram_monitor' is not recognized as the name of a cmdlet, function, script file, or operable program.
This does not necessarily mean that Instagram Monitor failed to install. The package may be installed correctly while its Scripts directory is not included in the current PATH.
Check the Scripts directory:
Get-ChildItem "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\Python\Python313\Scripts" | Where-Object {$_.Name -like "*instagram*"}
If you see instagram_monitor.exe, run it directly:
& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\Python\Python313\Scripts\instagram_monitor.exe" --version
The successful installation returned:
3.9.1
Step 6 — Start the Setup Wizard
Start the configuration wizard using:
& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\Python\Python313\Scripts\instagram_monitor.exe" --setup
The wizard displays:
Setup Wizard
It also shows the configuration and dotenv locations. In our setup these were:
Configuration: C:\Windows\System32\instagram_monitor.conf
Dotenv: C:\Windows\System32\.env
y/n, the wizard will treat that command as an answer and report an error.
Step 7 — Add the Instagram Username
The wizard asks:
Which Instagram account(s) or target(s) do you want to monitor? (leave empty to add them in the Web Dashboard):
Enter:
amleshmr
Then:
Save the target(s) in the config file too? [Y/n]:
Enter:
y
Step 8 — Set the Polling Interval
The wizard then asks:
Instagram polling interval (seconds or use s/m/h/d) [5400s - 1h 30m]:
For this setup, simply press Enter to accept the displayed default.
5400 seconds = 1 hour 30 minutes
The monitor will use this interval for its polling configuration.
Step 9 — Choose How to Access Instagram
The wizard provides four choices:
| Option | Method |
|---|---|
| 1 | No login |
| 2 | Import from Firefox |
| 3 | Existing Instaloader session |
| 4 | Username and password |
For this guide, select:
1
This configures:
The setup wizard describes No-login mode as providing access to new posts, bio and follower counts. It also states that Stories, reels and follower churn require Logged-in mode.
The project also provides a session-login guide:
Step 10 — Choose the Web Dashboard
The next question is:
How do you want to view activity?
The choices are:
| Option | Interface |
|---|---|
| 1 | Web dashboard |
| 2 | Terminal dashboard |
| 3 | Plain text logs |
Choose:
1
This enables the Web Dashboard.
Step 11 — Disable Email and Webhook Alerts
The wizard asks:
Set up email (SMTP) alerts now? [y/N]:
For this basic setup, enter:
n
Next:
Set up webhook alerts (Discord, ntfy etc.)? [y/N]:
Enter:
n
This leaves both notification systems disabled.
Step 12 — Save the Configuration
The setup wizard displays a summary similar to:
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Targets | amleshmr |
| Persist targets | yes |
| Polling interval | 5400s - 1h 30m |
| Login | no-login |
| Session username | none |
| Interface | web dashboard |
| disabled | |
| Webhook | disabled |
| Config destination | C:\Windows\System32\instagram_monitor.conf |
| Dotenv destination | C:\Windows\System32\.env |
| Install method | pip |
The wizard then asks:
What would you like to do?
1. Save settings (default)
2. Review or change settings
3. Discard answers and exit
Choose:
1
Step 13 — Run the Doctor Check
After saving the configuration, the wizard asks:
Run doctor now? It writes no files and offers real delivery tests only with separate approval. [Y/n]:
Enter:
y
The Doctor performs preflight checks before monitoring begins.
Environment Checks
✓ Python 3.13.15 is supported
✓ Instaloader is installed
✓ Requests is installed
✓ Python-dateutil is installed
✓ Pytz is installed
✓ Tqdm is installed
✓ curl_cffi is installed
✓ Rich is installed
✓ Flask is installed
✓ python-dotenv is installed
Configuration Checks
✓ Configuration file loaded
✓ Dotenv file loaded
✓ No secrets loaded
✓ Log destination for amleshmr appears writable
Session and Connectivity
✓ No-login mode
✓ Instagram reachable
✓ Target amleshmr found
The Doctor specifically reported:
[PASS] Instagram reachable
Fetched public account 'instagram'
[PASS] Target 'amleshmr' found
Optional Dependency Warning
The Doctor reported one warning:
[WARN] Optional dependency pycookiecheat is not installed
The Doctor explains that this dependency is required only for importing sessions from Chromium-based browsers. Firefox session import is unaffected.
If Chromium-based browser session importing is required, the Doctor displayed:
pip install pycookiecheat
For the No-login configuration used in this guide, this warning does not prevent the basic setup from passing its critical checks.
All critical checks passed with 1 warning.
Step 14 — Start Monitoring
After the Doctor finishes, the wizard asks:
Start monitoring now? Monitoring will continue until Ctrl+C. [Y/n]:
Enter:
y
Instagram Monitor will then start monitoring using the saved configuration.
Ctrl+C or close the terminal.
Step 15 — Open the Web Dashboard
Once monitoring has started, open your browser and visit:
http://127.0.0.1:8000/
The Doctor's displayed next step was:
Then open http://127.0.0.1:8000/ in your browser.
The dashboard provides the browser-based interface for viewing and managing the monitor.
Troubleshooting
Python command does not work
If:
python --version
shows the Microsoft Store message, try:
py --version
If py returns a Python version, use:
py -m pip --version
pip command does not work
Instead of:
pip --version
use:
py -m pip --version
instagram_monitor command is not recognized
Check:
Get-ChildItem "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\Python\Python313\Scripts" | Where-Object {$_.Name -like "*instagram*"}
Then run the executable directly:
& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\Python\Python313\Scripts\instagram_monitor.exe" --version
Setup wizard becomes confused
If you accidentally type a command when the wizard is asking for a number or y/n, the wizard will treat the command as the answer.
For example, if the wizard displays:
Choose [1-3]:
enter only:
1
When it displays:
[y/N]:
enter only:
y
If the wizard gets out of sync, press:
Ctrl+C
Wait until the normal PowerShell prompt returns, then restart:
& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\Python\Python313\Scripts\instagram_monitor.exe" --setup
Instagram Login Methods
Instagram Monitor provides several access methods.
| Method | Description |
|---|---|
| No login | Basic access to supported public-account information |
| Firefox import | Reuses a signed-in Firefox session |
| Instaloader session | Uses an existing Instaloader session |
| Username and password | Uses Instagram credentials |
The setup wizard describes Firefox session import as the recommended option for full monitoring.
Read the official session-login documentation before using an authenticated setup:
Session Login Using Browser Cookies
Security Considerations
✓ Do not share your Instagram password
✓ Do not publish session cookies
✓ Do not share the .env file
✓ Start with conservative polling settings
✓ Use authenticated monitoring only when necessary
✓ Review the official project documentation before changing login methods
The setup used in this guide does not load Instagram credentials because it uses No-login mode.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Instagram Monitor work on Windows 11?
Yes. The installation method used in this guide successfully ran on Windows 11, with Python 3.13.15 and Instagram Monitor 3.9.1.
Do I need to install WSL?
No. This guide uses the native Python/PyPI installation method on Windows and does not require WSL.
Do I need Docker?
No. Docker is not required for the Python installation method used here.
Can I monitor an Instagram account without logging in?
The setup wizard provides a No-login mode for supported public-account information. In this guide, the Doctor successfully confirmed No-login mode and found the target amleshmr.
What polling interval was used?
The displayed default of 5400 seconds, equivalent to 1 hour 30 minutes, was accepted.
What is the Web Dashboard address?
After starting the monitor, open:
http://127.0.0.1:8000/
Do I need pycookiecheat?
Not for the No-login setup used in this guide. The Doctor reported it as an optional dependency for Chromium-based browser session importing.
Can I enable Discord or email notifications?
Yes. The setup wizard provides both email SMTP alerts and webhook alerts such as Discord and ntfy. They were disabled in this initial setup.
Conclusion
Installing Instagram Monitor on Windows 11 can be done directly through Python without requiring WSL or Docker.
In this practical installation, we installed Instagram Monitor 3.9.1, configured the target amleshmr, accepted the 5400-second polling interval, selected No-login mode, enabled the Web Dashboard, disabled email and webhook notifications, and successfully passed all critical Doctor checks.
Final monitoring command:
& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\Python\Python313\Scripts\instagram_monitor.exe" --config-file C:\Windows\System32\instagram_monitor.conf --env-file C:\Windows\System32\.env
Then open:
http://127.0.0.1:8000/
Official resources:
Instagram Monitor Installation Guide
Instagram Monitor Session Login Guide
Instagram Monitor Doctor / Troubleshooting Guide
Instagram Monitor GitHub Repository
Python for Windows
Note: Software versions, dependencies, Instagram behavior and project commands can change over time. Check the official project documentation before following the guide after a major software update.