Your Instagram captions can hold the small details that make a photo worth keeping: where you were, who was there, and what happened that day. Letters Home can turn selected photo posts into letters in a collection you already use.

Start with an Instagram export in JSON format. Download and unzip it on your computer, then choose the folder on your collection's Add → Import Instagram page. Review the posts and import only the ones you want. Each imported post becomes one letter with its caption, original date and photos. Its subject starts as Untitled Instagram post; you can rename it afterward. The caption stays in the letter body.

You do not need a Creator or Business account for this export flow. It does not connect an Instagram account for ongoing sync.

Before you begin

Use a desktop browser and an existing collection you own. Instagram posts can be added to an email collection, a saved-email collection, a blog-import collection or a journal-scan collection. Importing does not change that collection's type.

Check the collection's sharing settings before importing. Imported letters follow those settings; a collection configured to publish letters automatically may make the imported posts visible to its readers.

Photo posts and carousels containing only photos are supported. Messages, Stories, Reels, video posts, mixed photo/video carousels and saved posts are excluded. Use only text and images you have the right to preserve and print.

Request your Instagram export

  1. In Instagram settings, open Accounts Center and look for Your information and permissions.
  2. Choose the option to export or download your information. Select the intended Instagram account and a download to your device.
  3. Customize the information to export. Select posts if that option exists. Some accounts offer only Media; this can include more than photo posts. First use Deselect all or Unselect all if available; otherwise clear each selected group. If you choose Media, leave every other category unchecked, including messages, personal information, contacts and ads. Letters Home reads only supported photo-post records from the resulting export.
  4. Set the date range you want.
  5. Choose JSON format and Higher quality media, then request the export.
  6. Complete any security check in Meta’s page, then wait for Instagram to make the download available. If a matching request is already processing, resume that request rather than starting another one.

Instagram controls sign-in, security checks and export processing. Labels can vary by account and device. If your screens differ, consult Instagram's export help. Never give your Instagram password or download links to the plugin or paste them into chat.

Meta places Instagram information downloads in Accounts Center. See Meta's explanation of its information controls.

Download and choose the folder

Download your export and unzip it locally. Keep its folder structure and originals intact. If Instagram supplies several archive parts, preserve all the parts and avoid overwriting files with the same names while extracting them.

In Letters Home, choose Add → Import Instagram on the collection, and select Choose unzipped Instagram folder. Choose the main export folder containing both post metadata and media. Selecting only a media folder leaves the importer without the post dates and captions it needs.

The browser reads recognized post manifests. Dates and photo paths are sent to Letters Home to check for previously imported posts. Captions and photo files upload only when you import selected posts. Do not attach an entire account export to an AI chat.

Review and import

  1. Open each post's caption and photo preview.
  2. Select the posts you want. Already imported posts are blocked, and posts with missing or oversized photos cannot be selected.
  3. Confirm that these are your posts and that you have permission to use their text and photos.
  4. Select Import selected posts and keep the page open until the result appears.
  5. Review the saved letters, dates and photo order before making a book. Keep the original export until that review is complete.

A carousel becomes one letter with its photos, rather than a separate letter for every photo.

If the import stops

Saved posts remain in your collection. Retry the posts still selected. Stop after current post allows the current post to finish and stops the remaining work.

After a page reload, choose the export folder again. Duplicate checks identify posts already imported into this collection. These checks do not detect every visually identical photo imported through another source.

If no posts JSON is found, check that the export is JSON rather than HTML, includes posts, and that you chose the main folder. If the folder is too large, request a shorter date range. The importer supports at most 2,000 records and 50,000 files; photos can be up to 10 MB each and 50 MB per post, with up to 25 photos per post. Follow the specific validation message if an image cannot be decoded.

Optional plugin assistance

Install the standalone Letters Home Instagram Import plugin from the Letters Home plugin marketplace. The marketplace has separate Codex and Claude Code installation steps. Install only the Instagram plugin, restart your host, and start a new chat. It guides the same export and review process. With browser and file controls supplied by your AI host, it can help operate the pages; otherwise it gives manual steps. It does not provide Instagram API access or replace Instagram sign-in and download processing.

Browser assistance can expose visible content to your AI host. You can choose manual review and file selection instead. The plugin does not need the email import plugin or a Node.js server.

Ask: “Help me export Instagram photo posts and import selected posts into my Letters Home collection.” Name the collection and any date range you want to use.

Open your collections to choose where to import. If you need help with an export or an import error, contact Letters Home.