Instruct-ERIC is a pan-European distributed research infrastructure making high-end technologies and methods in integrated structural biology available to user with the aim to promote innovation in biomedical science. Instruct has three main technologies (X-ray crystallography, electron microscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy) for high resolution studies of biomolecules, required to assess their properties and function or develop new drugs and therapies. Over the last decades, structural biology has studied the atomic structure of all constituent molecules of life, in isolation and in their cellular environment, with unprecedented impact for our understanding of health- and disease-states of life. Instruct provides access to the wide range of molecular and cellular systems to a continuously growing range of scientific communities. To deepen our understanding, integrated approaches and multiple techniques at the cutting edge of science are required and Instruct is in a unique position to support European research in this endeavour, not only by determining the structures of the molecules of life, but also by supporting scientists in sample preparation and characterisation, as well as training and technique development. Instruct’s aim is to democratise access based on scientific excellence (assessed by peer review). This is why Instruct funds user access to make it free at the point of use for its Members. The access services provided and associated training and communications activities are mainly focused on Instruct’s main user community, structural biologists from academia and industry. However, due to the broad applications of structural biology methods, the user base is growing with researchers from other speciality fields such as molecular biology, cancer, infectious disease, food and environmental research. These new non-expert users are provided with the additional support and expert guidance that they require to obtain results. Instruct-ERIC’s Members (members states and an international organisation) host national Centres that provide access to cutting-edge services, their auxiliary technologies as well as training and networking opportunities. Most Centres are themselves further distributed, linking more than 20 individual facilities. The broad coverage of facilities across Europe facilitates extensive collaboration with users visiting other countries or remotely accessing services dispersing knowledge and expertise. Additionally, it allows for increased capacity and flexibility of services in high demand, as well as space for unique, specialised services.