# Telegram Username Checker — Available or Taken (`clovys/telegram-username-checker`) Actor

Bulk-check if Telegram @usernames are available or taken (users, channels, bots share one namespace). Default entityType: user. Lightweight HTTP.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/clovys/telegram-username-checker.md
- **Developed by:** [Clovys](https://apify.com/clovys) (community)
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $4.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## 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

### What does Telegram Username Checker do?

**Telegram Username Checker** tells you whether a Telegram `@username` is **available** or **already taken**. Users, channels, and bots share one public namespace. Paste a list of usernames (or `t.me` URLs), run the Actor, and download clean JSON / CSV / Excel from the dataset.

Built for **bulk brand / handle research** (up to **100,000** usernames per run). Large lists are **auto-split** into ~3,000-item child runs on Apify, with **auto-heal** under rate limits. Lightweight HTTP against public `t.me` pages - **256 MB**, no browser.

This Actor is **not affiliated with Telegram**. Availability is inferred from public preview pages and can change if Telegram alters their HTML.

### Key features

- **Bulk checks** - up to 100,000 usernames per run (invalid / duplicate inputs filtered before work starts)
- **Shared namespace** - users / channels / bots - one `entityType: user` mode
- **Auto-sharding** - runs above ~3,000 split into child runs; one parent dataset
- **Auto-heal** - on blocks / timeouts: backoff and lower concurrency
- **URL-aware input** - `@user`, `user`, or `https://t.me/user`
- **No browser** - fast HTTP (low compute)
- **Success-only billing** - only conclusive checks charge PPE `result`
- **Export anywhere** - JSON, CSV, Excel, HTML from the Apify dataset

### Why Clovys

Clovys is a nonprofit organization driven by a single mission: to make the internet safer, faster, more reliable, and universally accessible.

We believe that data should not be locked behind exorbitant paywalls or complex technical barriers. By building lightweight, highly optimized Apify Actors, we help developers, researchers, and organizations access the information they need to innovate without friction.

As a nonprofit initiative, **we do not optimize for margins**. Our pricing is kept as low as possible and is strictly calculated to cover the raw infrastructure costs of data extraction - such as Apify compute units and proxy bandwidth.

For Telegram specifically, Clovys uses **public `t.me` previews** so bulk handle checks stay cheap and parallelizable.

### Use cases

- **Brand protection** - see if your brand `@` is free on Telegram
- **Channel / bot naming** - screen shortlists before launch
- **Agency workflows** - bulk-check client name ideas
- **Multi-platform suites** - pair with other Clovys username checkers

### How to use

1. Open **Telegram Username Checker** in Apify Console
2. Paste usernames in **Usernames**
3. Keep defaults (**256 MB**, concurrency **3**)
4. Click **Start**
5. Download results from the **Dataset** tab

### Input

| Field | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| `usernames` | `string[]` | - | Usernames or `t.me` URLs (required, up to 100,000) |
| `entityType` | `string` | `user` | Always `user` (shared Telegram namespace) |
| `maxConcurrency` | `integer` | `3` | Parallel checks (1-10) |
| `maxRetries` | `integer` | `2` | Retries on network / ambiguous responses |
| `requestDelayMs` | `integer` | `200` | Pause after each check (`0` = off) |

### Output example

You can download the dataset in JSON, HTML, CSV, or Excel.

```json
{
 "platform": "telegram",
 "entityType": "user",
 "username": "telegram",
 "available": false,
 "displayName": "Telegram News",
 "profileUrl": "https://t.me/telegram",
 "method": "tme_public_page",
 "checkedAt": "2026-09-26T01:00:00.000Z",
 "error": null
}
```

Taken **and** available rows are successful results. Ambiguous / failed rows keep `available: null` and `error` set - **they are not billed**.

### Data fields

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| `platform` | Always `telegram` |
| `entityType` | Always `user` |
| `username` | Normalized handle |
| `available` | `true` = free, `false` = taken, `null` = inconclusive |
| `displayName` | Public title when taken |
| `profileUrl` | `https://t.me/{username}` |
| `method` | Always `tme_public_page` |
| `checkedAt` | ISO timestamp |
| `error` | Error message if the check failed |

### Pricing

Pay-per-event pricing (platform usage is billed separately by Apify):

| Event | When charged | Price |
|---|---|---|
| **result** | Each conclusive check (`available` true **or** false) | **$0.004** (**$4 / 1,000**) |
| **Actor Start** | Once when the run starts (scaled by memory GB) | **$0.001** |

Example: **1,000 conclusive checks** ~ **$4.00** in PPE `result` (+ Actor Start + Apify platform usage).

Only conclusive results are charged as `result`. Failed / ambiguous rows are free on the PPE event.

### Recommended settings

| Goal | Settings |
|---|---|
| Production / Store | **256 MB**, concurrency **3**, delay **200 ms** |
| High volume | concurrency **5-8**, delay **50-100 ms** |
| Huge lists | up to **100,000** usernames - auto-shard handles the rest |

### FAQ

**How many usernames per run?** Up to **100,000**. Lists above ~3,000 are auto-split into child runs; invalid / duplicate inputs are dropped **before** sharding.

**Is "taken" billed?** Yes. Both `available: false` (taken) and `available: true` (free) are conclusive `result` events. Only `error` / inconclusive rows are free.

**Are users, channels, and bots different namespaces?** No. Telegram shares one public `@username` space - a taken channel blocks the same handle for a user.

**Do I need expensive proxies?** Usually **no**. If you hit rate limits at very high volume, lower concurrency or add Apify proxy.

**What if a check fails?** It is stored with `error` and `available: null`. Other usernames continue. Failed items are **not** billed as `result`.

**Is this official Telegram data?** No. This Actor is independent and unaffiliated.

### Support

Questions, bugs, or feature requests: use the Actor **Issues** tab on Apify, or contact Clovys through the Store profile.

# Actor input Schema

## `usernames` (type: `array`):

Telegram usernames (with or without @ / t.me URL). Up to 100 000 per run (auto-split into ~3k chunks on Apify).

## `entityType` (type: `string`):

Always user (shared Telegram namespace). Kept for API consistency; default user.

## `maxConcurrency` (type: `integer`):

Parallel checks.

## `maxRetries` (type: `integer`):

Retries on network / ambiguous responses.

## `requestDelayMs` (type: `integer`):

Pause after each check (ms). 0 = off.

## `_shard` (type: `boolean`):

Internal self-shard marker. Do not set manually.

## `_parentDatasetId` (type: `string`):

Internal parent dataset id for self-shard children. Do not set manually.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "usernames": [
    "telegram"
  ],
  "entityType": "user",
  "maxConcurrency": 3,
  "maxRetries": 2,
  "requestDelayMs": 200,
  "_shard": false
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# 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 = {
    "usernames": [
        "telegram"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("clovys/telegram-username-checker").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 = { "usernames": ["telegram"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("clovys/telegram-username-checker").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 '{
  "usernames": [
    "telegram"
  ]
}' |
apify call clovys/telegram-username-checker --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,clovys/telegram-username-checker"
        }
    }
}
```

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/W31HotX7D3ZgXgIGx/builds/pBG4ZAbGno6wDtK3M/openapi.json