# Website Change Monitor — Content Diff & Alerts (`accurate_pouch/website-change-monitor`) Actor Monitor websites for content changes. Text diff, hash comparison, CSS selector targeting. Webhook alerts when content changes. Use with Apify scheduling for daily monitoring. 5 URLs free. - **URL**: https://apify.com/accurate\_pouch/website-change-monitor.md - **Developed by:** [Manchitt Sanan](https://apify.com/accurate_pouch) (community) - **Categories:** Developer tools - **Stats:** 1 total users, 0 monthly users, 0.0% runs succeeded, NaN bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing Pay per usage This Actor is paid per platform usage. The Actor is free to use, and you only pay for the Apify platform usage, which gets cheaper the higher subscription plan you have. Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-usage ## What's an Apify Actor? Actors are a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases. In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours, and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store. In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server. Actors are written with capital "A". ## How to integrate an Actor? If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects. You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready. The best way to integrate Actors is as follows. In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.md): ```bash pip install apify-client ``` In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): ````bash # MacOS / Linux curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash # Windows irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex ```bash In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp.md). If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md). For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below. For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt). # README ## Website Change Monitor — Content Diff & Alerts Monitor any website for content changes. Compare text content, HTML hashes, or specific CSS selectors between runs. Webhook alerts when changes are detected. Use with Apify scheduling for automated daily/weekly monitoring. 5 URLs. --- ### How it works 1. **First run:** Fetches each URL, extracts text content, computes a hash. Saves snapshot. 2. **Subsequent runs:** Provide `previousDatasetId` from the last run. The actor compares hashes and reports which pages changed. 3. **Webhook:** If any page changed, POSTs the diff to your webhook URL. Use with **Apify Scheduling** (cron) to run daily/weekly and get notified when competitor pages, pricing, or content changes. --- ### Quick start ```json { "urls": ["https://example.com", "https://github.com"], "mode": "text" } ```` Second run (with comparison): ```json { "urls": ["https://example.com", "https://github.com"], "mode": "text", "previousDatasetId": "DATASET_ID_FROM_FIRST_RUN" } ``` *** ### Comparison modes | Mode | What it compares | Best for | |------|-----------------|----------| | `text` | Extracted visible text (no HTML/scripts/styles) | Content changes, blog posts, pricing | | `hash` | Full HTML including markup | Any structural change | | `selector` | Content inside a specific CSS element | Targeting specific sections (#price, .product-info) | *** ### Input | Field | Type | Default | Description | |-------|------|---------|-------------| | `urls` | array | *(required)* | URLs to monitor | | `mode` | enum | `text` | Comparison mode: text, hash, or selector | | `selector` | string | *(optional)* | CSS selector for selector mode (#id, .class, tag) | | `previousDatasetId` | string | *(optional)* | Dataset ID from previous run for change detection | | `timeout` | integer | `15000` | Request timeout per page | | `webhookUrl` | string | *(optional)* | POST alert when content changes | | `dryRun` | boolean | `false` | Monitor without charges | *** ### Output ```json { "url": "https://example.com", "contentHash": "a1b2c3d4e5f6g7h8", "textContent": "Example Domain This domain is for use in illustrative examples...", "contentLength": 1256, "statusCode": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-04-14T10:00:00Z", "changed": true, "previousHash": "x9y8z7w6v5u4t3s2", "diff": "Added: New pricing section with updated rates", "status": "success" } ``` *** ### Pricing **$0.003 per URL checked** (pay-per-event pricing). - Errors and dry runs are never charged. - 100 URLs daily = $0.285/day = ~$8.55/month *** ### Related Tools by manchittlab - **[SSL Monitor](https://apify.com/accurate_pouch/ssl-monitor)** — Bulk SSL certificate expiry monitoring. - **[Security Headers](https://apify.com/accurate_pouch/security-headers)** — OWASP security header audit with A-F grading. - **[Broken Link Checker](https://apify.com/accurate_pouch/broken-link-checker)** — Find every broken link on your website. - **[Lighthouse Auditor](https://apify.com/accurate_pouch/lighthouse-auditor)** — Batch performance, SEO, and Core Web Vitals audits. - **[Domain Age Checker](https://apify.com/accurate_pouch/domain-age-checker)** — Bulk RDAP domain age lookup. - **[Google Sheets Reader & Writer](https://apify.com/accurate_pouch/google-sheets-rw)** — Read/write Google Sheets via Service Account. *** ### Run on Apify [![Run on Apify](https://apify.com/static/run-on-apify.svg)](https://apify.com/accurate_pouch/website-change-monitor) No setup needed. Click above to run in the cloud. $0.003 per operation. # Actor input Schema ## `urls` (type: `array`): List of URLs to check for content changes. ## `mode` (type: `string`): text: compare extracted text content. hash: compare full HTML hash. selector: compare content matching a CSS selector. ## `selector` (type: `string`): Target a specific element. Supports #id, .class, or tag name. Example: #price, .product-title, main ## `previousDatasetId` (type: `string`): Dataset ID from a previous run. Used to detect changes by comparing content hashes. ## `timeout` (type: `integer`): Timeout per page fetch. ## `webhookUrl` (type: `string`): POST alert to this URL when any page content changes between runs. ## `dryRun` (type: `boolean`): Monitor pages but don't charge. ## Actor input object example ```json { "urls": [ "https://example.com" ], "mode": "text", "timeout": 15000, "dryRun": false } ``` # API You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup. ## JavaScript example ```javascript import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client'; // Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token // Replace the '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = { "urls": [ "https://example.com" ] }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("accurate_pouch/website-change-monitor").call(input); // Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any) console.log('Results from dataset'); console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`); const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems(); items.forEach((item) => { console.dir(item); }); // 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs ``` ## Python example ```python from apify_client import ApifyClient # Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token # Replace '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = { "urls": ["https://example.com"] } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("accurate_pouch/website-change-monitor").call(run_input=run_input) # Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any) print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"]) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item) # 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start ``` ## CLI example ```bash echo '{ "urls": [ "https://example.com" ] }' | apify call accurate_pouch/website-change-monitor --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=accurate_pouch/website-change-monitor", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "Website Change Monitor — Content Diff & Alerts", "description": "Monitor websites for content changes. Text diff, hash comparison, CSS selector targeting. Webhook alerts when content changes. Use with Apify scheduling for daily monitoring. 5 URLs free.", "version": "0.1", "x-build-id": "3F94WOG0awcneZuKF" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/accurate_pouch~website-change-monitor/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-accurate_pouch-website-change-monitor", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/accurate_pouch~website-change-monitor/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-accurate_pouch-website-change-monitor", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK", "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/accurate_pouch~website-change-monitor/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-accurate_pouch-website-change-monitor", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } } }, "components": { "schemas": { "inputSchema": { "type": "object", "required": [ "urls" ], "properties": { "urls": { "title": "URLs to Monitor", "type": "array", "description": "List of URLs to check for content changes.", "items": { "type": "string" } }, "mode": { "title": "Comparison Mode", "enum": [ "text", "hash", "selector" ], "type": "string", "description": "text: compare extracted text content. hash: compare full HTML hash. selector: compare content matching a CSS selector.", "default": "text" }, "selector": { "title": "CSS Selector (for selector mode)", "type": "string", "description": "Target a specific element. Supports #id, .class, or tag name. Example: #price, .product-title, main" }, "previousDatasetId": { "title": "Previous Run Dataset ID", "type": "string", "description": "Dataset ID from a previous run. Used to detect changes by comparing content hashes." }, "timeout": { "title": "Request Timeout (ms)", "minimum": 5000, "maximum": 60000, "type": "integer", "description": "Timeout per page fetch.", "default": 15000 }, "webhookUrl": { "title": "Webhook URL (change alerts)", "type": "string", "description": "POST alert to this URL when any page content changes between runs." }, "dryRun": { "title": "Dry Run", "type": "boolean", "description": "Monitor pages but don't charge.", "default": false } } }, "runsResponseSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "data": { "type": "object", "properties": { "id": { "type": "string" }, "actId": { "type": "string" }, "userId": { "type": "string" }, "startedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "finishedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "status": { "type": "string", "example": "READY" }, "meta": { "type": "object", "properties": { "origin": { "type": "string", "example": "API" }, "userAgent": { "type": "string" } } }, "stats": { "type": "object", "properties": { "inputBodyLen": { "type": "integer", "example": 2000 }, "rebootCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "restartCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "resurrectCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "computeUnits": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "options": { "type": "object", "properties": { "build": { "type": "string", "example": "latest" }, "timeoutSecs": { "type": "integer", "example": 300 }, "memoryMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 1024 }, "diskMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 2048 } } }, "buildId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultKeyValueStoreId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultDatasetId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultRequestQueueId": { "type": "string" }, "buildNumber": { "type": "string", "example": "1.0.0" }, "containerUrl": { "type": "string" }, "usage": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 1 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "usageTotalUsd": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "usageUsd": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } } } } } } } } } ```