Automate Instagram AI Comment Replies with n8n

Opening Problem Statement

Meet Lucas, a passionate content creator managing an Instagram profile dedicated to Artificial Intelligence and automation education. Every day, Lucas receives dozens, sometimes hundreds, of comments on his posts. Manually reading, filtering, and replying to each comment takes up hours—time better spent creating new content. Moreover, some comments require thoughtful, context-aware answers while others are irrelevant or spam, leading to frustration and occasional missed engagement opportunities.

Without automation, Lucas risks slow responses, missing critical community questions, and inconsistent engagement quality which in turn impacts his audience growth and credibility. Automating intelligent replies to Instagram comments would save Lucas countless hours, improve reply quality, and boost audience interaction.

What This Automation Does

This n8n workflow automates responsive comment management on Instagram posts with a focus on AI and automation topics. When a new comment arrives, the workflow:

• Verifies the Instagram webhook to secure comment updates subscription.
• Extracts detailed user and comment data from the Instagram webhook payload.
• Filters out comments coming from the page owner to avoid replying to your own comments.
• Fetches context data about the post related to the comment using Instagram’s Graph API.
• Uses an AI agent (powered by OpenRouter’s Gemini 2.0 model) to analyze and generate personalized, context-aware reply in Brazilian Portuguese, tailored to the comment’s intent—whether a question, compliment, criticism, or simple engagement.
• Posts the AI-generated reply back directly as a comment reply via the Instagram API.

By automating these steps, Lucas saves hours of manual moderation, maintains timely, professional responses, and increases meaningful engagement with his audience.

Prerequisites ⚙️

• n8n account with access to workflow creation and credentials setup (self-hosting options available).
• Instagram Graph API access with required permissions for webhook subscriptions and posting comments.
• Valid webhook URL publicly accessible to receive Instagram comment events.
• OpenRouter API account with credentials to use Gemini 2.0 language model for AI responses.
• Generic HTTP Header Authentication credentials configured for Instagram API calls.

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Set up the Instagram Webhook Node

Navigate to Webhook node in n8n. Configure the path parameter with a unique endpoint string. This node listens for Instagram comment events POSTed to this URL. The webhook ID ensures uniqueness. Confirm the response mode is set to responseNode.

This node acts as the Instagram API callback handler. It’s the gateway for real-time comment updates.

Common mistake: Forgetting to ensure the webhook URL is publicly accessible and reachable by Instagram’s servers results in no incoming events.

Step 2: Handle Webhook Verification

Using the Respond to Webhook node connected to the Webhook, reply to GET requests from Instagram during webhook subscription verification. Configure it to respond with the hub.challenge query parameter as plain text to confirm the webhook.

This handshake confirms to Instagram that you own the webhook endpoint.

Common mistake: Incorrect or missing verification token in Instagram App settings can block webhook setup.

Step 3: Receive and Parse Incoming Comment Data

The second webhook node (get_new_comments) is triggered for actual comment POSTs. Connect it to a Set node named data which extracts and maps data from the complex JSON payload. Assign meaningful variable names like conta.id (account ID), usuario.id (commenter ID), usuario.name (username), usuario.message.id (comment ID), usuario.message.text (comment text), and usuario.media.id (post ID commented on).

Common mistake: Incorrect field path mapping can result in missing or malformed data downstream.

Step 4: Filter Out Owner Comments

Add a Filter node named its me? to compare the Instagram account ID and the commenter’s user ID. Only comments from other users proceed. This prevents replying to your own comments.

Step 5: Fetch Post Context Data

Use an HTTP Request node named Get post data to query Instagram’s Graph API for the post’s content data based on the post ID. This context helps the AI generate relevant replies related to the specific post.

Request details: GET method, URL constructed dynamically like https://graph.instagram.com/v22.0/{{post_id}}?fields=id,caption with header authentication.

Step 6: Generate AI Response

Pass the filtered comment and post context to the AI Agent node powered by Langchain’s agent configured with OpenRouter’s Gemini 2.0 language model. The AI prompt is carefully crafted to analyze comment intent and generate personalized replies in Brazilian Portuguese, matching the profile’s tone.

The AI evaluates if the comment is a question, praise, criticism, or unrelated spam and replies accordingly or ignores.

Common mistake: Misconfiguration of AI credentials or prompt can cause irrelevant or missing replies.

Step 7: Post the AI Reply Back to Instagram

Connect the AI Agent node to an HTTP Request node named Post comment. This node sends a POST request to Instagram’s Graph API endpoint to reply to the original comment ID with the AI-generated message.

Request details:

• Method: POST
• URL: https://graph.instagram.com/v22.0/{{comment_id}}/replies
• Body: JSON containing message field with AI text
• Authentication: HTTP Header Auth

Outcome: The comment receives a contextual, AI-generated reply automatically.

Customizations ✏️

• Change AI Response Language: Modify the prompt in AI Agent node from Brazilian Portuguese to another language by editing the prompt text content to fit your audience.
• Adjust Comment Filters: In its me? Filter node, add more conditions to ignore comments containing certain keywords or filter out spam by adding string match conditions.
• Add Emoji Reactions: Extend the workflow by adding an Instagram API call to react to comments with emojis based on sentiment analysis before replying.
• Expand AI Capabilities: Integrate OpenRouter Chat Model node with other AI models or add a logging system to track AI responses and improve over time.
• Multi-Account Support: Duplicate and adjust the workflow to handle multiple Instagram accounts by parameterizing account IDs and dynamic credentials.

Troubleshooting 🔧

Problem: “No webhook events received after setup”
Cause: Webhook URL is inaccessible or webhook verification token mismatch.
Solution: Ensure your webhook URL is public and reachable by Instagram. Confirm the verify_token matches exactly in Instagram Developer setup and respond correctly in Respond to Webhook node.

Problem: “AI response not generated or irrelevant replies”
Cause: Incorrect AI prompt or invalid OpenRouter API credentials.
Solution: Verify your OpenRouter API key. Refine the prompt inside the AI Agent node with precise instructions and check JSON data input mapping.

Problem: “Replies failing to post”
Cause: Bad HTTP request formatting or expired access token.
Solution: Check the Post comment HTTP node URL and body. Renew access token if expired, and validate HTTP header authentication settings.

Pre-Production Checklist ✅

• Confirm Instagram Developer App is set up with correct webhook subscription and permissions.
• Test webhook by triggering a subscription request and verify success response.
• Verify data extraction mappings in the data Set node by inspecting incoming webhook payloads.
• Test comment filtering with different user IDs to ensure owner comments are excluded.
• Validate AI Agent node by manual test runs using sample comments and verifying relevant replies.
• Test the Post comment HTTP request with dummy data to confirm successful API reply posting.
• Backup all credentials and document token expiry dates.

Deployment Guide

Activate this workflow by toggling it to active in n8n. Monitor the workflow executions through n8n’s execution logs for any errors or slow steps.

Ensure your webhook endpoint remains publicly accessible for Instagram callbacks. Refresh API tokens before expiry to avoid interruptions.

You can optionally self-host n8n for more control and reliability. Refer to buldrr.com/hostinger for hosting options.

FAQs

Can I use other AI models besides OpenRouter Gemini?
Yes, you can switch the AI node to other supported models like OpenAI GPT or local LangChain models, adjusting prompts accordingly.

Does this workflow consume API credits?
Yes, calling OpenRouter or Instagram APIs uses their respective quotas. Monitor your usage to avoid unexpected costs.

Is user data safe?
Data flows through secure authenticated API calls within your n8n instance. Keep your credentials confidential and n8n updated.

Can this handle high comment volumes?
It can handle moderate volumes comfortably. For large accounts, consider scaling n8n and rate limiting strategies.

Conclusion

By following this guide, you have automated a sophisticated Instagram comment reply system using n8n and AI. Lucas can now focus on creating amazing AI and automation content without spending hours on manual comment moderation.

This workflow saves significant time, ensures professional, personalized responses, and fosters community engagement. Next, you might explore automating Instagram story replies or integrating sentiment analysis for better audience insights.

Take pride in empowering your Instagram presence with cutting-edge automation and AI assistance—your followers will thank you!