Automating Instagram DMs with Playwright (My First Browser Automation Project)

⚡ Recently, I started exploring browser automation as part of my learning journey. I was curious: "Can I automate something like Instagram DMs just for testing?"

So I gave it a try with Playwright + Express.js, and in this blog I’ll share how I built it, the problems I faced, and what I learned. (And yes — this is strictly for educational/testing purposes, not spam 🚫)

---

Info

Before we dive in: - ❌ Don’t use this for bulk DM or spamming. - ✅ Safe for testing, demos, and learning automation. - 🚫 Misuse may get your account flagged.

---

📦 Setting up the Project

First I created a fresh Node.js project and added the dependencies:

{
  "name": "browser-automation",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "main": "index.js",
  "license": "ISC",
  "dependencies": {
    "express": "^5.1.0",
    "playwright": "^1.54.2"
  }
}

Then ran:

pnpm install
npx playwright install   # takes 5–8 min initially

---

🧩 Writing the Instagram DM Automation

Here’s the heart of my experiment — a simple Express server with a Playwright script.

When I send a request with a username + message, it automatically opens Instagram and sends the DM.

import express from "express";
import { chromium } from "playwright";

const app = express();
app.use(express.json());

const userDataDir = "./instagram_session"; // keeps session

// Function to send Instagram DM
async function sendInstagramMessage(page, username, message) {
  try {
    console.log(`[INFO] Sending message to @${username}...`);
    await page.goto(`https://www.instagram.com/${username}/`);

    await page.waitForSelector("text=Message", { timeout: 10000 });
    await page.click("text=Message");

    const box = page.locator(
      'div[aria-label="Message"][contenteditable="true"]',
    );
    await box.click();

    for (const char of message) {
      await page.keyboard.type(char, { delay: 80 + Math.random() * 120 });
    }

    await page.keyboard.press("Enter");
    console.log(`[SUCCESS] Message sent to @${username}`);
    return { success: true };
  } catch (err) {
    console.error(`[ERROR]`, err.message);
    return { success: false, error: err.message };
  }
}

---

🔗 Testing the API

I exposed the function through an Express route, so I could test it like this:

curl -X POST http://localhost:3001/instagram \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"username": "target_username", "message": "Hello from Playwright 🚀"}'

And boom 🎉 it worked! Seeing the DM get typed in real-time was very satisfying.

---

⚙️ Sessions & Templates

One thing I learned early: persistent sessions are super useful. By saving the login in ./instagram_session, I didn’t need to log in every time.

I also added support for message templates to avoid hardcoding the text.

---

🔌 Bonus: n8n Workflow

Since I also explore automation with n8n, I made a workflow that connects to this server. 👉 Check the n8n Template JSON

Now I can trigger Instagram messages via n8n nodes — kind of like connecting Lego blocks.

---

✅ Key Takeaways

• Built my first Playwright + Express automation for Instagram DMs.
• Learned about persistent sessions and API-driven automation.
• Integrated it with n8n for more flexibility.
• And most importantly: this project is a reminder that automation is powerful — but needs to be used responsibly.

---

🔥 This was my first browser automation project with Playwright — and honestly, it made me more confident about exploring automation further.