How to Find Similar Instagram Accounts

Finding accounts like yours on Instagram is more than just spying on competitors - it's a powerful strategy for understanding your niche, discovering collaborators, and endlessly refreshing your content inspiration. This guide gives you a complete playbook for uncovering similar profiles, whether you're hunting for new partners, tracking emerging trends, or just want a better feel for your own corner of Instagram.

Why Finding Similar Accounts is a Superpower

Dedicating time to this research isn't just busywork, it unlocks real advantages for your brand. When you know who else is talking to your target audience, you're better equipped to stand out and connect.

• Niche Definition & Research: What content formats are working right now in your space? Which aesthetics resonate? What kind of language do the top accounts use? Identifying similar profiles helps you answer these questions by showing you what your target audience is already responding to.
• Collaboration & Networking: The right partnerships can accelerate your growth exponentially. Finding similar accounts - especially those with a comparable audience size and engagement rate - gives you a ready-made list of potential collaborators for shoutouts, giveaways, Instagram Lives, or joint content series.
• Genuine Content Inspiration: This isn't about copying what others are doing. It's about understanding the themes, questions, and pain points that are popular in your community. A competitor might make a Reel about a common problem in your industry, sparking an idea for you to create a carousel post that offers a unique solution.
• Audience Discovery: Analyzing the followers of a similar account gives you a direct look into who you should be targeting. You can see who is most active in their comments, what other interests they have, and where your ideal audience hangs out online.

Method 1: Smart Scoping with Instagram's Built-in Tools

Your first and best tools are baked right into the Instagram app. These features are designed to help users discover new content, and you can leverage them for your own strategic research.

The "Suggestions for You" Dropdown Arrow

This is the fastest and most direct way to generate a list of similar accounts. The algorithm is surprisingly good at identifying a profile's core niche and suggesting relevant alternatives.

How to do it:

1. Go to the profile of an account you already know is similar to yours (a direct competitor or a brand you admire).
2. Next to their "Follow" and "Message" buttons, you'll see a small profile icon with a plus sign, or sometimes just a down arrow. Tap it.
3. A "Suggestions for You" list will pop up, showing you dozens of profiles Instagram deems closely related.

Actionable Tip: Don't just do this once. Build a "seed list" of 5 to 10 key accounts in your space. Systematically go through each one and open up their "Suggestions" list. You'll be amazed at how quickly you can build a master list of 50+ relevant accounts from this simple technique alone.

Train and Analyze Your "Explore" Page

Your Explore page is a personalized feed of content Instagram thinks you'll love, based on your own activity. With a little intentional effort, you can train it to become a nearly perfect discovery engine for your niche.

How to do it:

1. For a couple of days, actively engage only with content from your niche. Go to the accounts of your competitors or industry leaders.
2. Like their posts, watch their Reels all the way through, save interesting carousels, and leave a few thoughtful comments.
3. This signals to the algorithm what you care about. Over the next few days, your Explore page will start serving you more content from a wider range of creators in that same niche. Refresh it often and see which new accounts pop up.

Dig into the Hashtag Rabbit Hole

Every niche has its own ecosystem of hashtags. Finding which ones the key players are using is like getting a map to their community.

How to do it:

1. Start by identifying a core hashtag for your industry (e.g., #smallbusinessmarketing, #handmadeceramics, #veganrecipes).
2. Search for that hashtag on Instagram and look at the "Top" posts. The accounts that consistently rank here are ones that Instagram sees as authoritative on that topic.
3. Pay attention to the related hashtags Instagram suggests at the top of the search results page. Tapping on one of these can lead you down a trail to sub-niches and smaller, highly engaged communities you might have otherwise missed. For instance, following #smallbusinessmarketing might lead you to #socialmediamarketingtips and then to #contentcreationstrategy.

Method 2: Going Deeper with Audience and Engagement Analysis

Surface-level features will only get you so far. The real insights come when you start observing how people interact with one another. This is where you find the most authentic and engaged communities.

Check Who Your Ideal Followers Are Following

Who better to tell you what your audience likes than your audience itself? Your best, most engaged followers are a goldmine of information about the creator landscape in your niche.

How to do it:

1. Identify 3-5 of your most active followers - the ones who always reply to your Story stickers, leave thoughtful comments, or share your posts.
2. Visit each of their profiles and look at who they're following.
3. Scan their "Following" list for other creators, brands, and influencers in your niche. If your ideal customer is following them, they're probably worth checking out.

Analyzing the followers of a similar account gives you a direct look into who you should be targeting. This simple trick gives you an immediate, audience-approved list of relevant accounts.

Mine the "Tagged In" Photos of Key Players

An account’s main grid shows what they want you to see. Their "Tagged In" tab shows who is actually talking about them.

How to do it:

1. Go to the profile of a well-known competitor or brand in your industry.
2. Tap the tab with the person icon to see all the photos and videos they've been tagged in.

Here you'll find a different kind of intel: an unfiltered look at their partnerships, user-generated content, creator shoutouts, and collaborations. This can help you identify other creators or brands who are active about networking within your space.

Explore a Post's Comments Section

The comment section of a popular post is more than just a place for engagement - it's a social hub. Other creators and industry peers often show their support and participate in conversations, making it a great place for discovery.

How to do it:

1. Find a really popular Reel or carousel post from a leading account in your niche.
2. Scroll through the comments. Look past the simple "great post!" comments and find people who are adding value, asking smart questions, or clearly have expertise in the topic.
3. Tap on their profiles. Often, you'll find that these engaged commenters are peers - fellow creators, consultants, or founders in the same industry. They represent the active, mid-tier community members who are perfect for networking.

Method 3: Step Up Your Game with an Organized System

Research without organization is just browsing. To turn this work into something you can act on, you need a simple system to track what you find. A messy notes app won't cut it.

Create Your Master Discovery Spreadsheet

A simple Google Sheet or Notion database is all you need. Creating a structured log turns a random list of account names into a powerful strategic tool. Your future self will thank you for this.

Set up columns for:

• Account Handle: A link to their profile.
• Follower Count: To track their current size.
• Bio/Niche: A short description of what they do.
• Avg. Engagement (Estimate): Is it high, medium, or low? You don't need a tool, just spot-check a few recent posts and make a general note.
• Notes: This is the most valuable column. What stood out? E.g., "amazing Reel ideas," "potential collab partner," "audience seems very engaged," or "competitor for my new service."
• Category: Assign a label like "Direct Competitor," "Aspirational Brand," "Potential Collaborator," or "Content Inspiration."

Develop a Routine for Discovery

Finding new accounts shouldn't be something you just do when you're bored. Integrate it into your regular workflow.

• Weekly Quick-Check (15 minutes): Spend 15 minutes a week actively using one of the in-app methods. Check your "Explore" page, go through the "Suggestions" for a new account you found, or check the comments on a viral post in your industry. Add any interesting finds to your spreadsheet.
• Monthly Deep Dive (1 hour): Once a month, sit down and work through your process more methodically. Go through your entire "seed list," dedicate time to follower analysis, and clean up your spreadsheet. This helps you notice bigger trends and keeps your inspiration pipeline full.

Final Thoughts

Finding similar Instagram accounts is not a one-time task but an ongoing process of listening, observing, and learning. By blending Instagram's features with deeper engagement analysis, you can build a rich, organized R&D file that helps fuel your growth with fresh ideas, partnership opportunities, and a better understanding of your whole community.

Of course, once you've identified these inspirational accounts and your creative ideas are flowing, the real work of scheduling and publishing consistent content begins. We built Postbase to make this next step feel effortless. With our clean, visual calendar, you can plan out everything, see your strategy at a glance, and then schedule your content - including modern formats like Reels and Shorts - across all platforms with rock-solid reliability. It helps turn your research into an amazing social presence without the usual complexity.