# Reddit Thread & Comment Scraper (`arlusm/reddit-scraper`) Actor

Also creates screenshots of the posts - useful for reddit to youtube automated video pipeline.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/arlusm/reddit-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Aluslabs](https://apify.com/arlusm) (community)
- **Categories:** Automation, Social media
- **Stats:** 41 total users, 0 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: 1.00 out of 5 stars

## 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/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-usage

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
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.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## 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.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## Reddit Thread Scraper

This scraper extracts the original post and top-level comments from a Reddit thread on **reddit.com**, including text and screenshots.

### Input

Check the JSON example in the input tab.

### Output

The output is an array of objects containing the extracted post and comments. Each object includes:

- **title**: The title of the Reddit post.
- **text**: The main content of the post.
- **screenshot**: Filename of the post’s screenshot.
- **comments**: An array of extracted top-level comments, each with:
  - **text**: The comment content.
  - **commentId**: The unique Reddit comment ID.
  - **screenshot**: Filename of the comment’s screenshot.

#### **Example Output**

```json
{
  "title": "Girlfriend angry for?",
  "text": "Currently on holiday for our 2 year anniv...?",
  "screenshot": "reddit_original_post.png",
  "comments": [
    {
      "text": "It's the sea...",
      "commentId": "t1_lrjzs68",
      "screenshot": "reddit_comment_1.png"
    },
    {
      "text": "comment 2",
      "commentId": "t1_lrk07hc",
      "screenshot": "reddit_comment_2.png"
    }
  ]
}
```

### Usage

The scraper can be configured via Apify’s interface. Simply provide a **Reddit thread URL**, set the **number of comments to extract**, and optionally **skip the first comment**. The extracted data, along with screenshots, will be returned.

# Actor input Schema

## `threadUrl` (type: `string`):

The URL of the Reddit thread to scrape.

## `numComments` (type: `integer`):

The number of top-level comments to extract.

## `skipFirstComment` (type: `boolean`):

Enable this to skip the first top-level comment.

## `addScreenshots` (type: `boolean`):

Enable to capture screenshots of posts and comments.

## `proxyCountryCode` (type: `string`):

Specify the two-letter country code for remote proxies, or 'LOCAL' for a local proxy.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "threadUrl": "https://old.reddit.com/r/AskUK/comments/1igsl8h/neigbour_posted_a_note_about_christmas_lights/",
  "numComments": 5,
  "skipFirstComment": false,
  "addScreenshots": true,
  "proxyCountryCode": "US"
}
```

# 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 '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("arlusm/reddit-scraper").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 '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("arlusm/reddit-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{}' |
apify call arlusm/reddit-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,arlusm/reddit-scraper"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/B2p4eMCesacZkanqg/builds/JfoUAEUtwle21mEZD/openapi.json