# RSS Feed Reader: RSS, Atom & JSON Feeds (`datalantern/rss-feed-reader`) Actor

Read many RSS, Atom and JSON feeds or just website links and get every post in one table: title, link, date, summary, categories, image and podcast audio links, with keyword and date filters.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/datalantern/rss-feed-reader.md
- **Developed by:** [Data Lantern](https://apify.com/datalantern) (community)
- **Categories:** News, Automation, Developer tools
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

Pay per event

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

## RSS Feed Reader: RSS, Atom & JSON Feeds

**RSS Feed Reader** turns any number of RSS, Atom, RSS 1.0 and JSON feeds into one clean table: title, link, publication date, summary, categories, image and attached files such as podcast audio. Paste feed links, or just website links: the tool finds the feed the site advertises. Filter by keyword and date, and download the items as CSV, Excel or JSON for news monitoring, content curation, newsletters, competitor tracking or podcast research.

### What can this tool do?

- Read many feeds in one run and get a single, consistent table, whatever the feed format (RSS 2.0, Atom, RSS 1.0/RDF, JSON Feed).
- Find the feed for a website automatically: it follows the feed link the page advertises, or tries common paths such as `/feed` and `/rss.xml`.
- Keep only the items you care about with keyword and "published within N days" filters.
- Return podcast episodes with the audio file link, file type, size and duration.
- Optionally include the full article text when the feed carries it, as plain text.
- Handle very large feeds (podcast feeds of 20 MB) by reading only the newest items you ask for.

### What data does it return?

One row per feed item. Example values from a real run:

| Field | Example |
|---|---|
| `feedUrl` | https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/technology/rss.xml |
| `feedTitle` | BBC News |
| `feedFormat` | rss (or atom, rdf, jsonfeed) |
| `itemId` | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvzez7k0pn40o#0 |
| `title` | Regulating AI 'not the right place to start' says Bailey |
| `link` | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvzez7k0pn40o?at_medium=RSS\&at_campaign=rss |
| `publishedAt` | 2026-09-30T14:00:33.000Z |
| `updatedAt` | null (Atom and JSON feeds usually have it) |
| `summary` | AI needs "rigorous" testing and safeguards to contain risk, Andrew Bailey says. |
| `content` | null (filled when "Include full content" is on and the feed has it) |
| `categories` | \[] |
| `imageUrl` | https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/240/cpsprodpb/… |
| `enclosureUrl`, `enclosureType`, `enclosureBytes` | audio link, audio/mpeg, 22997533 (podcasts) |
| `durationSeconds` | 1893 (podcasts) |

- Missing values are `null`, so every row has the same fields. Dates are converted to UTC ISO format.
- Author and creator fields are not returned, and personal email addresses inside summaries and content are replaced with "\[email removed]".
- The summary is the feed's description as plain text (up to 1,000 characters). Feeds differ: some carry only a teaser, some the whole article.

### How to use it

1. Paste feed links or website links, one per line.
2. Optionally set the maximum items per feed, keywords, and how recent items must be.
3. Click **Start**, then download the items as CSV, Excel or JSON, or read them through the API. Schedule the run to check feeds every hour or day.

### Pricing

Pay per item: **$1.00 per 1,000 items**, plus $0.005 per run. You only pay for items you receive. Set a maximum cost per run in the run options.

### Use it through the API, AI agents, and integrations

Schedule it, call it from your code with the Apify API, or connect it to Make, Zapier, n8n, Slack, Google Sheets or an AI agent through Apify's MCP server.

### Is it legal?

This tool reads feeds that websites publish for exactly this purpose. It does not log in or bypass access controls. Feed items are the publisher's content: use headlines, summaries and links according to the publisher's terms and copyright. Names of authors are not collected. You are responsible for how you use the data.

### FAQ

**Why was a website skipped?** It may not offer a feed, or block automated requests (some large news sites answer HTTP 403). Paste the direct feed link if you know it.

**How many items are in a feed?** Whatever the publisher lists, usually the latest 10 to 100. Feeds do not offer history: schedule the tool to build your own archive.

**Does it remove duplicates?** The same feed listed twice is read once. Items keep their `itemId` so you can de-duplicate across runs.

### Feedback

Found a bug or need a field added? Open an issue on the **Issues** tab. We usually respond within 24 hours.

# Actor input Schema

## `urls` (type: `array`):

One per line: a feed link (RSS, Atom or JSON Feed) or just a website link. For a website the tool finds the feed the page advertises, or tries common paths like /feed and /rss.xml.

## `maxItemsPerFeed` (type: `integer`):

Newest items first, as the feed lists them. 0 means every item in the feed.

## `keywords` (type: `array`):

Optional. Keep items where any keyword appears in the title, summary or categories.

## `publishedWithinDays` (type: `integer`):

Only items published in the last N days. 0 means any age. Items without a date are dropped when this is set.

## `includeContent` (type: `boolean`):

Adds the full article text when the feed carries it (as plain text, up to 20,000 characters). Summaries are always included.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "urls": [
    "https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/technology/rss.xml",
    "https://hnrss.org/frontpage",
    "https://daringfireball.net"
  ],
  "maxItemsPerFeed": 20,
  "publishedWithinDays": 0,
  "includeContent": 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 = {
    "urls": [
        "https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/technology/rss.xml",
        "https://hnrss.org/frontpage",
        "https://daringfireball.net"
    ],
    "maxItemsPerFeed": 20
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("datalantern/rss-feed-reader").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 = {
    "urls": [
        "https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/technology/rss.xml",
        "https://hnrss.org/frontpage",
        "https://daringfireball.net",
    ],
    "maxItemsPerFeed": 20,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("datalantern/rss-feed-reader").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 '{
  "urls": [
    "https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/technology/rss.xml",
    "https://hnrss.org/frontpage",
    "https://daringfireball.net"
  ],
  "maxItemsPerFeed": 20
}' |
apify call datalantern/rss-feed-reader --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,datalantern/rss-feed-reader"
        }
    }
}
```

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/hW8htt5C60RPdMbR3/builds/1m4p46NNHYGDgJ1TB/openapi.json