Differences in Instagram metrics due to content shared on Facebook

If the data of a post doesn’t match between Instagram and Metricool, it can be due to different reasons. One of them is that the content is also being automatically published on Facebook.

Before you continue

This article only explains the case where Instagram content is also automatically published on Facebook.

To check if this is your case:

• Review the content on Instagram

• If a notice appears indicating there are interactions from Facebook, it’s shared content
  If you don’t see this notice, the difference may be due to other reasons.

What happens

When Instagram content is also published on Facebook:

• Instagram may show a total number of interactions in its interface that includes data from both platforms

• Metricool shows metrics separately for each platform

How data is displayed in Metricool

In Metricool:

• Instagram → shows only Instagram metrics

• Facebook → shows only Facebook metrics
  There is no combined metric between both platforms.

Why there are differences

Metricool retrieves data through Meta’s API.
This API:

• Returns metrics individually per platform

• Does not provide a combined value of Instagram + Facebook

For this reason, even if Instagram shows a unified total in its interface, Metricool displays the data separately.

How to check the data

To validate the difference:

1. Open the content on Instagram

2. Check if a notice appears indicating interactions from Facebook

3. Review the same content on Facebook

4. Check in Metricool:
   → Instagram metrics
   → Facebook metrics

5. Add the results from both platforms if you want to compare them with the total shown on Instagram

How to interpret these cases in Metricool

When content is shared between Instagram and Facebook:

• The reference in Metricool is always each platform separately

• The total shown on Instagram does not exist as a metric in the tool

• To analyze performance, you should use the individual data from each platform

Consideration for data analysis

If you need to analyze performance without this difference in visualization:

• You can review each platform independently in Metricool

• You can also avoid automatic publishing between Instagram and Facebook so each post has separate metrics from the start

To manage this setting, you can check Meta’s official documentation on how to enable or disable shared content between Instagram and Facebook:
👉 Turn off sharing posts from Instagram to Facebook

Important

• This behavior occurs on Instagram

• On Facebook, metrics are displayed individually

• Metricool will always show data separately based on what Meta’s API returns

❓FAQs

Does Metricool show incorrect data?
No. Metricool shows the data exactly as returned by Meta’s API.

Can combined metrics be viewed in Metricool?
No, this is currently not possible.

Why does Instagram show more interactions?
Because it may visually combine data from Facebook and Instagram in its interface.