# Stack Exchange Questions API (`automly/stack-exchange-questions-api`) Actor Search and export Stack Overflow and Stack Exchange question data for developer research, content intelligence, and trend monitoring. - **URL**: https://apify.com/automly/stack-exchange-questions-api.md - **Developed by:** [Automly](https://apify.com/automly) (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 ## Stack Exchange Questions API **Stack Exchange Questions API** searches Stack Exchange sites and returns clean, structured question records from the public Stack Exchange API. Use it to track technical discussions, monitor community trends, and power research or support intelligence workflows. ### Why use this Stack Exchange questions API? Stack Exchange questions can surface emerging bugs, product feedback, integration issues, and recurring support themes. This actor gives you a simple way to query multiple sites and normalize the results into a dataset-friendly format. ### Features - Search one or more Stack Exchange sites in a single run - Filter by query, tags, date range, sort mode, and order - Return one clean record per question - Capture score, answer count, owner details, and timestamps - Pay-per-event pricing tied to each returned question record ### Input #### Example: search Stack Overflow for API questions ```json { "sites": "stackoverflow", "query": "apify api", "tags": "python,api", "sort": "relevance", "order": "desc", "pageSize": 50, "maxResults": 100 } ``` #### Example: monitor multiple sites for support trends ```json { "sites": "stackoverflow,superuser,serverfault", "query": "docker timeout", "sort": "activity", "order": "desc", "pageSize": 25, "maxResults": 75 } ``` #### Input fields | Field | Type | Description | |---|---|---| | `sites` | string | Comma-separated Stack Exchange site names to search, such as `stackoverflow,serverfault,superuser`. | | `query` | string | Optional free-text query to search for questions. | | `tags` | string | Optional comma-separated tags to filter by, such as `python,api,apify`. | | `sort` | string | Sort mode. Allowed values: `activity`, `votes`, `creation`, `relevance`, `hot`, `week`, `month`. | | `order` | string | Result order. Allowed values: `desc` or `asc`. | | `fromDate` | string | Optional ISO date or datetime. Only questions created on or after this time are returned. | | `toDate` | string | Optional ISO date or datetime. Only questions created on or before this time are returned. | | `pageSize` | integer | Number of questions fetched per API request. Values above 100 are clamped. | | `maxResults` | integer | Maximum number of question records to return. Values above 1000 are clamped. | ### Output #### Example record ```json { "site": "stackoverflow", "questionId": 12345678, "title": "How do I retry HTTP requests in Python?", "tags": [ "python", "requests", "retry" ], "link": "https://stackoverflow.com/questions/12345678", "score": 42, "answerCount": 3, "isAnswered": true, "viewCount": 12034, "creationDate": "2026-05-24T12:00:00Z", "lastActivityDate": "2026-05-25T08:45:00Z", "lastEditDate": "2026-05-25T08:00:00Z", "closedDate": null, "ownerDisplayName": "Jane Doe", "ownerReputation": 5123, "query": "retry HTTP requests in Python", "sort": "relevance", "order": "desc", "recordType": "question" } ``` ### Limits and caveats - Search quality depends on the chosen site, query, and tags. - Some questions may not have owner reputation or edit timestamps. - The actor respects API throttling and backoff hints, so very large searches may take longer. - The actor is optimized for search and monitoring, not full historic mirroring of a site. ### Pricing This actor uses **Pay-Per-Event** pricing. | Event | Price | Charged when | |---|---:|---| | `question-record-produced` | $1.00 / 1k | A question record is successfully produced | ### FAQ **Do I need a Stack Exchange API key?** No. The actor works with the public Stack Exchange API. **Can I monitor more than one site at a time?** Yes. Provide multiple site names separated by commas. **What happens if there are no matching questions?** The actor simply returns no records for that site/query combination. **Is this useful for AI or support workflows?** Yes. It works well for trend monitoring, support intelligence, and research pipelines. # Actor input Schema ## `sites` (type: `string`): Comma-separated Stack Exchange site names to search, such as `stackoverflow,serverfault,superuser`. ## `query` (type: `string`): Optional free-text query to search for questions. ## `tags` (type: `string`): Optional comma-separated tags to filter by, such as `python,api,apify`. ## `sort` (type: `string`): Sort mode for search results. Allowed values: `activity`, `votes`, `creation`, `relevance`, `hot`, `week`, `month`. ## `order` (type: `string`): Result order. Allowed values: `desc` or `asc`. ## `fromDate` (type: `string`): Optional ISO date or datetime. Only questions created on or after this time are returned. ## `toDate` (type: `string`): Optional ISO date or datetime. Only questions created on or before this time are returned. ## `pageSize` (type: `integer`): Number of questions fetched per API request. Values above 100 are clamped. ## `maxResults` (type: `integer`): Maximum number of question records to return. Values above 1000 are clamped. ## Actor input object example ```json { "sort": "relevance", "order": "desc", "pageSize": 100, "maxResults": 200 } ```` # Actor output Schema ## `records` (type: `string`): All records produced by this run. ## `overview` (type: `string`): Dataset presented using the dataset schema overview view. # 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 = {}; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("automly/stack-exchange-questions-api").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 = {} # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("automly/stack-exchange-questions-api").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 '{}' | apify call automly/stack-exchange-questions-api --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=automly/stack-exchange-questions-api", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "Stack Exchange Questions API", "description": "Search and export Stack Overflow and Stack Exchange question data for developer research, content intelligence, and trend monitoring.", "version": "1.0", "x-build-id": "QtoPUdHSIJPgSfgag" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/automly~stack-exchange-questions-api/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-automly-stack-exchange-questions-api", "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": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/automly~stack-exchange-questions-api/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-automly-stack-exchange-questions-api", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$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": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/automly~stack-exchange-questions-api/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-automly-stack-exchange-questions-api", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$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": [ "sites" ], "properties": { "sites": { "title": "Sites", "type": "string", "description": "Comma-separated Stack Exchange site names to search, such as `stackoverflow,serverfault,superuser`." }, "query": { "title": "Query", "type": "string", "description": "Optional free-text query to search for questions." }, "tags": { "title": "Tags", "type": "string", "description": "Optional comma-separated tags to filter by, such as `python,api,apify`." }, "sort": { "title": "Sort", "type": "string", "description": "Sort mode for search results. Allowed values: `activity`, `votes`, `creation`, `relevance`, `hot`, `week`, `month`.", "default": "relevance" }, "order": { "title": "Order", "type": "string", "description": "Result order. Allowed values: `desc` or `asc`.", "default": "desc" }, "fromDate": { "title": "From date", "type": "string", "description": "Optional ISO date or datetime. Only questions created on or after this time are returned." }, "toDate": { "title": "To date", "type": "string", "description": "Optional ISO date or datetime. Only questions created on or before this time are returned." }, "pageSize": { "title": "Page size", "type": "integer", "description": "Number of questions fetched per API request. Values above 100 are clamped.", "default": 100 }, "maxResults": { "title": "Max results", "type": "integer", "description": "Maximum number of question records to return. Values above 1000 are clamped.", "default": 200 } } }, "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 } } } } } } } } } } ```