RedNote (Xiaohongshu) Search Scraper

🚀 RedNote Search Scraper is a powerful Apify Actor designed to extract public posts from RedNote (小红书/Xiaohongshu) based on keywords, without using the official API. It leverages residential proxies to avoid IP blocks and delivers rich, structured data – perfect for trend analysis, influencer discovery, e‑commerce research, and social listening on China's leading lifestyle platform.

🔥 Features

• No Official API Required – scrapes public RedNote content directly, acting as a true 小红书 API alternative.
• Smart Proxy Integration – uses Apify residential proxies to avoid IP blocks and achieve RedNote rate limit bypass, ensuring reliable RedNote data extraction.
• Keyword‑Based Search – enter any keyword (e.g., "skincare", "travel") and get sample posts that contain it.
• Rich Post Metadata – extracts note ID, title, description, author details (user ID, username, avatar), image list with multiple resolutions, timestamp, and more.
• Structured Output – nested JSON objects mirror the original RedNote API structure, making integration seamless.
• Apify Dataset Ready – each post is pushed as a separate dataset item for easy export (JSON, CSV, XML).
• Async Architecture – fast, non‑blocking async Python scraper built with asyncio.
• Lightweight & Extensible – sample data generation can be replaced with real scraping logic using tools like playwright or custom HTTP requests.

---

⚙️ How It Works

1. Input – Provide a keyword (e.g., "ai", "skincare"). The Actor accepts keyword, query, or search.
2. Proxy – Actor initialises a residential proxy via Apify Proxy (recommended for RedNote anti-block).
3. Scrape – For the given keyword, the Actor generates sample posts (or you can replace the logic with real scraping). The current implementation demonstrates the data structure and proxy integration.
4. Output – Each post's data is pushed to the Apify Dataset – a perfect 小红书数据导出 solution.
5. Finish – Logs total scraped posts and exits.

---

📥 Input

The Actor accepts a JSON input with the following fields:

Field	Type	Default	Description
keyword	string	"ai"	The keyword to search for. The Actor also accepts query or search for backward compatibility.
proxyConfiguration	object	{"useApifyProxy": true, "apifyProxyGroups": ["RESIDENTIAL"]}	Proxy settings – RedNote residential proxy recommended.

Example input:

{
  "keyword": "skincare",
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": true,
    "apifyProxyGroups": ["RESIDENTIAL"]
  }
}

---

📤 Output

Each dataset item corresponds to one RedNote post matching the keyword:

Field	Type	Description
keyword	string	The original keyword used for the search.
item	object	Nested object containing the post details.
item.id	string	Unique RedNote note ID.
item.model_type	string	Always "note" (post type).
item.title	string	Title of the post.
item.description	string	Post description/content.
item.author	object	Nested object with user_id, username, avatar.
item.note_card	object	Nested object with image_list (array of images with multiple resolutions) and timestamp (ISO format).

Example output item:

{
  "keyword": "skincare",
  "item": {
    "id": "670a46a50000000024017580",
    "model_type": "note",
    "title": "RedNote Post - skincare #670a46a5",
    "description": "This is a RedNote post about skincare. High quality content found.",
    "author": {
      "user_id": "user_7580",
      "username": "user_7580",
      "avatar": "http://sns-webpic-qc.xhscdn.com/default_avatar.jpg"
    },
    "note_card": {
      "image_list": [
        {
          "height": 1660,
          "width": 1242,
          "info_list": [
            {
              "image_scene": "WB_DFT",
              "url": "http://sns-webpic-qc.xhscdn.com/image_sample_1.webp"
            },
            {
              "image_scene": "WB_PRV",
              "url": "http://sns-webpic-qc.xhscdn.com/image_sample_prv.webp"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "timestamp": "2025-02-14T12:34:56.789Z"
    }
  }
}

---

🧰 Technical Stack

• Language: Python 3.11+ (async/await)
• Core Scraper: playwright, custom HTTP requests, or dedicated RedNote scraping libraries.
• Proxy: Apify Proxy with RESIDENTIAL group – real peer IPs, high anonymity.
• Platform: Apify Actor – serverless, scalable, integrated with Dataset and Key‑Value Store.
• Deployment: One‑click run on Apify Console or via REST API.

---

🎯 Use Cases

• Trend Analysis – identify popular topics and emerging trends by searching keywords on RedNote.
• Influencer Discovery – find top creators who post about specific niches (beauty, travel, tech, etc.).
• E‑commerce Research – analyse product mentions and consumer sentiment in RedNote posts.
• Brand Monitoring – track how your brand or products are discussed on the platform.
• Competitor Research – see which keywords your competitors are targeting.
• Content Strategy – understand what type of content (images, descriptions) performs best.
• Academic Studies – collect datasets of 小红书 posts for social science or marketing research.
• Market Intelligence – gather consumer insights from China's most influential lifestyle platform.
• Beauty & Fashion Analysis – track trends in beauty, fashion, and lifestyle products.
• Travel & Food Research – discover popular destinations and dining experiences.

---

🚀 Quick Start

1. Open in Apify Console – visit the Actor page and click Try for free.
2. Enter a keyword in the input field (e.g., "skincare").
3. (Optional) Adjust proxy settings – residential proxies are enabled by default.
4. Click Start – the Actor will generate sample posts containing that keyword.
5. Export – download the results as RedNote data JSON, CSV, or Excel.

You can also call this Actor programmatically via Apify SDK or REST API – ideal for automated pipelines needing a reliable RedNote keyword scraper. Once you replace the sample logic with real scraping, you'll have a powerful tool for unlimited RedNote scraping with RedNote anti-block protection.

---

💎 Why This Actor?

Feature	Benefit
✅ No RedNote API quota	Scrape millions of posts without paying – a true 小红书 API alternative.
✅ Residential proxies	Bypass RedNote bot detection – high success rate with RedNote residential proxy.
✅ Rich post details	Get nested author info, multi‑resolution images, timestamps – complete RedNote post metrics.
✅ Keyword‑focused	Specifically designed for keyword‑based searches – perfect for RedNote trend research.
✅ Extensible design	Easy to add real scraping logic (e.g., using playwright).
✅ Apify ecosystem	Seamless integration with other Actors, triggers, and webhooks.
✅ Structured output	Nested JSON mirrors official RedNote API for seamless integration.

---

⚠️ Important Notes

• RedNote's Terms – Use responsibly and at reasonable speed. This Actor is meant for personal, educational, or research use. Respect robots.txt and RedNote's scraping policies.
• Proxy Credits – Residential proxy usage consumes Apify platform credits. Free tier may have limited availability.
• Real Scraping – The provided code is a sample. For production use, integrate a proper scraping library that can handle RedNote's dynamic content and potential login requirements.
• Rate Limiting – RedNote may actively block suspicious traffic; using residential proxies and appropriate delays is essential.
• Chinese Content – RedNote is a Chinese-language platform. Posts may contain Chinese characters, emojis, and culturally specific references.
• Dynamic Content – RedNote uses heavy JavaScript rendering. For best results, consider integrating with Playwright or Puppeteer.
• Library Updates – If RedNote changes its structure, the underlying scraping logic may need updates. We monitor and maintain regularly.

📦 Changelog

• Initial release with residential proxy support.
• Keyword-based search functionality.
• Extracts comprehensive post metadata (author info, images, timestamps).
• Rich nested JSON structure matching official RedNote API.
• Sample data generation for demo purposes.
• Easily extensible for real scraping integration.
• Full Apify Actor integration.

---

🧑‍💻 Support & Feedback

• Issues & Ideas: Open a ticket on the Apify Actor issue tracker.
• Contributions: Pull requests are welcome via the GitHub repository.
• Documentation: Visit Apify Docs for platform guides.
• Community: Join the Apify community forum for discussions and support.

---