To show an Instagram feed with the Social Feed widget you need an Instagram access token, and Instagram issues those through Facebook’s developer site.
There are two routes, and they are genuinely different: one for a personal account, one for a business account linked to a Facebook page.
Requirement – This widget is a part of The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro, make sure it’s installed & activated to enjoy all its powers.
Before You Start
- Edition: Pro — Social Feed ships only in The Plus Addons for Elementor Pro. With Pro deactivated the widget does not render at all, and there is no free version of it.
- Prerequisite: Elementor (free) installed and active.
- Widget to enable: go to The Plus Addons > Widgets, search for Social Feed and turn its toggle on.
- Prerequisite: a Facebook account, and a Facebook developer account (you can create one during the steps below).
- Prerequisite for a business token: an Instagram business account linked to a Facebook page you administer.
- Where the token ends up: in the Social Feed widget, open the item under Social Feeds, set Source to Instagram, set Select Option to match the kind of token you generated, and paste it into Access Token.
These steps happen on Facebook’s own developer site, not in WordPress. Those screens are redesigned often, so read the sequence below as the shape of the job — see Not verified at the bottom of this page.
Generate Access Token for Personal Account
- Log in to your Facebook account and go to Facebook for Developers.
- If you do not have a developer account, click the Get Started button at the top. Skip to step 4 if you already have one.
- Register for a developer account and follow the steps to create it.
- Once done, you will get to the Apps page. Click Create App.
- Add your app name and email id, then click Next.
- Select Other and click Next.
- Select your app type — Business — and click Next.
- Click Create App. Facebook will ask for your password to authenticate.
- Go to App Settings > Basic.
- Scroll to the bottom and click +Add platform.
- In the popup, select Website and click Next.
- Add your website URL in the Site URL field and click Save Changes.
- From the left panel, click Add Product.
- Scroll down to Instagram and click Set up.
- Click Add account under Generate access tokens.
- In the popup, click Continue.
- Log in to your Instagram account and grant the permissions it asks for.
- Click the Generate token link and allow the required permissions.
- In the Token generated popup, tick I understand to reveal the token, then click Copy.
Generate Access Token for Business Account
To generate an access token for a business account, follow the process:
- Log in to your Facebook account and go to Facebook for Developers.
- If you do not have a developer account, click the Get Started button at the top. Skip to step 4 if you already have one.
- Register for a developer account and follow the steps to create it.
- Once done, you will get to the Apps page. Click Create App.
- Select the business profile you want to link with the app and click Next.
- Select Other and click Next.
- Select your app type — Business — and click Next.
- Add an app name and email id, optionally connect your business account, and click Create App. Facebook will ask for your password.
- From the top menu, go to Tools > Graph API Explorer.
- Select your app from the Meta App dropdown.
- From the User or Page dropdown, select Get Page Access Token. Continue with your Facebook account, select your Facebook page and finish the popup. Two permissions appear in the Permissions tab.
- Add pages_manage_metadata in the Add a Permission field.
- Add these in the same way:
- ads_management
- business_management
- instagram_basic
- instagram_manage_comments
- instagram_manage_insights
- instagram_content_publish
You should now have nine permissions in the Permissions tab. The ones in green are not granted yet.
- To include them, click Generate Access Token, continue with your Facebook account, then select your business profile, Facebook page and Instagram profile and finish the popup. All permissions turn black.
- From the User or Page dropdown, select your Facebook page and click Submit. Your page name and id appear.
- Copy and save the page id — it goes in the widget’s Page ID field.
This token is temporary too, about 2 hours. To extend it, follow steps 17 to 20 in How to Get a Facebook Access Token for WordPress? (Easy Method).
Which token for which setting
- Personal token → Select Option = Personal. Business token → Select Option = Business. They are not interchangeable.
- Hashtag and Mentions feeds need the business route. The widget’s Feed Type control only exists when Select Option is Business.
- Page ID belongs to the linked Facebook page, not to the Instagram profile.
Limitations
- Tokens expire. Both routes give you a short-lived token; extend it, and expect to come back when it lapses. The widget shows an error card rather than a stale feed.
- Instagram gates the interesting feeds behind a business account. A personal token only reaches your own posts.
- Facebook changes these screens. The app-creation wizard in particular moves around between visits.
Not verified
So you know exactly what has and has not been checked:
- The developer-console steps themselves. Facebook and Instagram’s developer screens change often and were not walked through for this revision; the sequence and the screenshots below are the ones this page already carried.
- A feed of real posts from a connected Instagram account. This page was checked without ever entering a real access token, API key or password, so what the finished Instagram feed looks like once connected was not observed for this revision.
- Whether the permission list is still exactly these nine. Meta adds and retires Instagram permissions; the list here is the one this page has carried.
Troubleshooting
The feed shows "Somthing Wrong" and 400
Instagram refused the request — that spelling is the plugin’s, not a typo here. Check the token has not expired, and that Select Option matches the route you used to generate it.
The Instagram product is not in the Add Product list
The app type is wrong. Instagram is offered for a Business app; recreate the app with that type.
Some permissions stay green
They are requested but not granted. Click Generate Access Token again and complete the popup.
The token is accepted but the feed is empty
For a business feed, check Page ID is the linked Facebook page’s numeric id, and that the Instagram profile really is connected to that page.
