No more time wasting: How to find influencers on Instagram?

The 7 best influencer search tools

Next are seven methods for influencer discovery. Each one has positives and negatives, which we've highlighted clearly.

1. Explore page and Reels - Free

Based on your activity, Instagram shows content and creators you’re likely to engage with on the Explore page. Think of it as a personalised mood board.

The Instagram algorithm uses the following metrics to decide which content should be displayed on your Explore page:

• your likes and saves
• your comments
• your views
• your plays

As a result, the best way to get relevant recommendations is to use your business account only to browse industry-related content. Over time, the algorithm will only recommend influencers in your niche.

Scrolling through Reels is similar to the Explore page. Instagram suggests videos based on your previous activity and trending content rather than only showing content from accounts you follow. This allows you to discover new content and influencers.

There's a lot to love about this method. Primarily, it's free, easy, and shows you influencers in your niche. The downside is that you won't gain in-depth information about influencers without an additional tool.

The Kolsquare Chrome Extension is a free tool that provides key information about influencers when you're on Instagram and TikTok. All you have to do is download the extension, open Chrome, and then view the influencer's social media profile. A bar appears on the screen, showing the creator's Audience Quality Score, engagement rate, and audience demographics.

Click here to download the free Kolsquare Chrome Extension!

2. Hashtag or keyword search - Free

Influencers often use niche and trending hashtags to help algorithms understand their content.

For example, if you're a brand in the beauty niche, #cleanbeauty and #makeuplover are common hashtags. On the other hand, fitness influencers may use #gymlife or #fitnessjourney.

You can find the most popular hashtags in your industry with a paid tool or by looking at content in your niche and noting the hashtags.

Pro tip: You can use TikTok for Business to search for trending hashtags. While this doesn't work 100% of the time, many influencers post on both TikTok and Instagram using similar hashtags.

Once you know the hashtags, use them to search for creators in your niche on Instagram. This provides many creators in your niche. However, it can be time-consuming to search through accounts, and you will need additional data to make the best decisions.

3. Influencer marketing platforms, databases, and apps - Fast and easy

If you want precision and speed, influencer marketing platforms are your best bet. These tools offer powerful filters, semantic search, and access to real-time performance data so you can shortlist influencers in minutes.

These platforms provide deep data. You’re not just scrolling Instagram profiles, relying on guesswork to understand their audience. Instead, you’re making informed decisions based on verified metrics.

Here are the key metrics supplied by influencer marketing platforms:

• Audience demographics: This includes key data such as age, gender, location, and language to ensure alignment with your ICP.
• Engagement rates: Learn how active influencers' followers really are across Reels, Stories, and posts.
• Audience quality: Spot fake followers or disengaged audiences fast with credibility scores.
• Compliance and brand safety: Many tools check for controversial content and compliance with regulations.
• Past collaborations: Quickly discover whether influencers have worked with your competitors and how the content performed.
• Earned Media Value (EMV): This metric estimates how much the reach and engagement gained from an influencer's post would have cost through traditional marketing methods.

Unlike manual discovery methods, influencer marketing platforms do the heavy lifting. They give you the data and control to protect your brand, reduce risks, and ensure you invest in high-quality influencers.

Plus, beyond influencer discovery, most platforms offer end-to-end campaign tools that simplify a range of tasks, including:

• Monitor influencer performance in real time
• Benchmark against competitors and industry averages with social listening
• Analyse ROI in real time with easy-to-read reports
• Manage influencer relationships on one platform, including payments and messaging

A platform like Kolsquare will help you find the right creators and organise your campaign. In short, they help you develop a better influencer marketing strategy.

Try a Kolsquare demo today.

4. Similar or recommended influencers - Free

If you've worked with past influencers and want to engage someone similar, you can view recommended accounts.

Here is the three-step process for finding suggested accounts:

1. Click on the influencer's Instagram profile
2. Tap the icon with a person and a "+" near the “Follow” button
3. Scroll through the suggestions — some will be similar creators

However, this technique won't give you additional data, and there's a risk of audience overlap.

5. Tagged posts and comments - Free

Some of your happiest customers might be effective influencers. Check which Instagram influencers are tagging your brand or commenting on posts.

You can do this by looking at your brand's "tagged" section on your profile or searching your own brand hashtags.

Pro tip: Don't just look for big names. Micro- and even nano-influencers can drive excellent engagement.

Smaller creators who tag your brand often have beneficial qualities:

• They are genuine fans who will post authentic, unpaid content
• Smaller creators often have high engagement from a small but loyal audience
• They may be open to affiliate marketing or user-generated content (UGC) campaigns

This can create a highly authentic influencer marketing strategy. However, you still need to go deeper to understand creators' audiences.

6. Affiliate or brand ambassador influencer campaigns - Low-cost and scaleable

Launching your own affiliate or brand ambassador program flips the model: instead of searching for influencers, they find you.

These affiliate programs allow creators to promote your products in exchange for a commission on sales. While some affiliate marketers follow a part-payment, part-commission framework, it is possible to only pay by performance.

Affiliate programs offer a number of benefits, including:

• scale quickly and easily
• low upfront costs, making profits more likely
• affiliates are more likely to be genuine fans of your brand
• low risk

Many brands offer influencers incentives such as free gifts, access to events, and early product launches.

You can set up a referral program using platforms like Amazon or Shopify Collabs. Then, invite creators to apply or let them apply to you.

However, while affiliate programs attract influencers, they don’t manage themselves. To ensure quality and protect your brand be sure to:

• Review applications carefully: Not all applicants will be a good fit. Look for brand alignment, content quality, and audience engagement.
• Create clear contracts: Define usage rights, content guidelines, and payment terms. Many platforms offer templates to help.
• Vet content: Set expectations on how and when content should be shared.
• Support your ambassadors: You're more likely to encourage influencers to join if you provide marketing assets, brand updates, and feedback.

In short, there are lower upfront costs, but you still need to put significant time into this approach to get it right.

7. Collaboration via an Instagram influencer agency - Fast and easy

If you’re ready to scale, launch a high-stakes campaign, or simply don’t have the bandwidth to manage influencer marketing in-house, agencies offer a fully outsourced solution.

These agencies can handle any part of your campaign, including:

• influencer marketing strategy
• influencer discovery and outreach
• contract negotiation
• content design and approvals
• campaign reporting

Some agencies have vetted pools of influencers, while others will search for influencers who match your campaign.

This means you can run effective campaigns without expertise on your team. Often, agencies have the creative power to launch powerful campaigns.  

The catch? The benefits come at a price. Most agencies charge large amounts. It can cost over £25,000 to run a full campaign.

Pro Tip: If you’ve never worked with an influencer marketing agency before, start with a short-term or pilot campaign. It’s a great way to test the waters before committing to long-term retainers. Plus, look for those in your niche

How to find influencers near me on Instagram?

Looking for local creators to target a specific region or city? Whether you're promoting an in-store event, entering a new market, or building a local brand, influencer marketing is a great tool.

Pro Tip: There are many local hashtags, such as #manchesterfoodie or #ldnstyle, which can connect you with influencers in a specific location.

However, these hashtags are no guarantee that the influencer lives in that area or, more importantly, has many followers there. And Instagram doesn’t make it easy to filter by location natively.

That’s where influencer marketing tools come in. A platform like Kolsquare allows you to search and filter based on audience data, including location.

You can filter for specific locations when searching for influencers, such as:

• Minimum percentage of followers in a specific city, such as 30% in Manchester
• Multiple keyword or hashtag matches (for example, #bristol AND #grwm)
• Influencer’s location, language, or content category

This level of precision is a game changer when you're trying to find local talent capable of running impactful campaigns.

Start your Instagram influencer program today

If you're new to influencer marketing and have spare time, start with the free methods, such as using Instagram's Explore page and hashtag searches. Support your search with a free tool, such as the Kolsquare Chrome extension, to get deeper insights.

These free tools can help you dip your toes in and understand what works for your brand.

However, if you’re looking to scale faster and find the most effective influencers, investing in an influencer marketing platform may be the next step. It’ll save you hours, keep you organised, and give you the data to make high-impact decisions.