Alibaba Scraper

Alibaba Scraper creates a structured dataset of supplier product records collected from Alibaba.com. Each dataset item represents one product listing and can include the title, product ID, price, MOQ, sold count, supplier name, country, review score, and — when enabled — nested product specifications and buyer reviews. Query the source using search keywords or direct product URLs, choose between the main products catalog and worldwide supplier results, control the result limit with maxItems, and retrieve records through the Apify Dataset API or export them as JSON, CSV, or Excel.

Dataset at a glance

Property	Value
Source	alibaba.com
Record unit	One product listing
Input methods	Search keywords, direct product URLs
Main identifiers	productId, url
Delivery	Apify Dataset and API
Export formats	JSON, CSV, Excel
Update model	Fresh records per Actor run
Pricing	Pay per event, from $1.50 per 1,000 products

Coverage and available records

The Actor collects products from two source types:

• Search results — products returned for searchQueries, in either the main products catalog or worldwide supplier results (searchScope).
• Product pages — a single product given a productUrls entry.

Supported behavior:

• Optional product details (includeProductDetails) adds a nested details object with specifications, price tiers, images, category, and supplier profile.
• Optional product reviews (includeProductReviews) adds a nested reviews array, billed once per review.
• maxItems caps the number of products; maxReviews caps the total reviews across the run.

Fields such as details, reviews, soldOrder, and supplierYears are conditional on the source page or the corresponding enrichment option.

Data dictionary

Field	Type	Nullable	Description	Example
recordType	string	No	Record type (product)	product
sourceQuery	string	Yes	Search term or URL that produced the record	spider hoodie
title	string	No	Product title	Custom logo spider hoodie
url	string	No	Product page URL	https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/...
productId	string	No	Alibaba product identifier	1601234567890
price	string	Yes	Price or price range	$5.00 - $8.00
moq	string	Yes	Minimum order quantity	10 pieces
soldOrder	string	Yes	Sold count text	500+ sold
companyName	string	Yes	Supplier company name	Example Apparel Co., Ltd.
countryCode	string	Yes	Supplier country code	CN
supplierYears	string	Yes	Years on Alibaba	5 yrs
reviewScore	string	Yes	Supplier review score	4.8
reviewCount	string	Yes	Review count text	120 Reviews
imageUrl	string	Yes	Primary product image	https://s.alicdn.com/...
searchQuery	string	Yes	Original query	spider hoodie
page	number	Yes	Result page number	1
details	object	Yes	Nested product details (details enabled)	{...}
reviews	array	Yes	Nested review list (reviews enabled)	[{...}]

Use productId (fallback url) as the stable field for deduplication.

Example dataset record

{
  "recordType": "product",
  "sourceQuery": "spider hoodie",
  "title": "Custom logo spider hoodie men oversized streetwear",
  "url": "https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/1601234567890.html",
  "productId": "1601234567890",
  "price": "$5.00 - $8.00",
  "moq": "10 pieces",
  "soldOrder": "500+ sold",
  "companyName": "Example Apparel Co., Ltd.",
  "countryCode": "CN",
  "supplierYears": "5 yrs",
  "reviewScore": "4.8",
  "reviewCount": "120 Reviews",
  "imageUrl": "https://s.alicdn.com/example.jpg"
}

This record was produced by a spider hoodie search with searchScope set to products and enrichment disabled.

Query and input reference

Input	Type	Required	Default	Accepted values	Description
searchQueries	array	No¹	["spider hoodie"]	Any strings	Product keywords to search.
productUrls	array	No¹	[]	Alibaba product URLs	Direct product pages.
searchScope	string	No	products	products, worldwide	Main catalog or worldwide supplier results.
includeProductDetails	boolean	No	false	true / false	Add specifications and price tiers (billed as product-details).
includeProductReviews	boolean	No	false	true / false	Collect reviews (billed as product-review).
maxItems	integer	No	0	0 = unlimited	Maximum products to extract.
maxReviews	integer	No	0	0 = all	Total reviews across the run when enabled.
proxyConfiguration	object	No	Apify residential	Proxy editor	Proxy settings.

¹ At least one of searchQueries or productUrls must contain a value.

Minimal request:

{ "searchQueries": ["spider hoodie"], "maxItems": 20 }

Advanced request (details and reviews enabled):

{
  "searchQueries": ["spider hoodie"],
  "searchScope": "products",
  "includeProductDetails": true,
  "includeProductReviews": true,
  "maxItems": 20,
  "maxReviews": 50,
  "proxyConfiguration": { "useApifyProxy": true, "apifyProxyGroups": ["RESIDENTIAL"] }
}

Retrieve the data through the API

1. Start the Actor with a JSON input.
2. Wait for the run to finish, or use the synchronous endpoint for small jobs.
3. Retrieve items from the run's default dataset.
4. Paginate or export the dataset.

Python example:

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_API_TOKEN")
run = client.actor("datascrapers/alibaba-scraper").call(
    run_input={"searchQueries": ["spider hoodie"], "maxItems": 50}
)
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(item["title"], item.get("price"))

For other languages, use the generated API tab on the Actor page.

Data quality and record handling

• Completeness — listing fields (title, price, moq, companyName) are returned when Alibaba exposes them; details and reviews are conditional on the corresponding option.
• Source changes — Alibaba page structure changes can cause individual fields to come back empty; rows are still written with the fields that were found.
• Deduplication — the Actor writes one row per product per run and does not persist dedup state across runs. Deduplicate on productId (fallback url) when merging runs.
• Retry/error behavior — enrichment fails soft so a failed detail or review fetch does not discard the listing row.
• Normalization — price and moq are kept as Alibaba's display strings because ranges and units vary; reviewScore and reviewCount are display text.

Export and pipeline examples

Destination	Recommended method	Typical use
PostgreSQL/Supabase	Dataset API or webhook consumer	Supplier and product research tables
Google Sheets	Apify integration	Sourcing shortlists
S3/cloud storage	Scheduled export or integration	Archive category snapshots

Pricing and cost examples

Billing is pay per event. You are not charged Apify platform usage on top of these events.

Event	When charged	Price
product	Each product row written	$1.50 per 1,000
product-details	Each product with details fetched (when enabled)	$1.50 per 1,000
product-review	Each review collected (when enabled)	$1.50 per 1,000

Records	Estimated base cost
1,000 products	$1.50
10,000 products	$15.00

Estimates assume listings only. Details and reviews add events at the same rate, and Apify plan discounts may reduce the per-event price.

Limitations and responsible data use

• The Actor reads publicly accessible Alibaba.com listing data.
• Availability and source changes can produce empty or partial fields.
• No guarantee of historical snapshots unless you store results yourself.
• You are responsible for compliance with applicable terms, privacy, and legal requirements when using the data.

Dataset questions

What does one dataset item represent?

One Alibaba product listing. Product details and reviews are nested on the same row rather than written as separate items.

Which field should I use as a unique identifier?

productId is the most stable Alibaba identifier; use url as a fallback.

Are fields nullable or conditional?

Many listing fields (soldOrder, supplierYears, reviewScore) are absent when Alibaba does not show them. details and reviews are present only when the matching option is enabled.

Can I retrieve the records as CSV or JSON?

Yes. Export from the Output tab as JSON, CSV, or Excel, or read the dataset through the Apify API.

How do I paginate large datasets?

Use maxItems to cap the number of products and maxReviews to cap total reviews. For API retrieval, paginate the default dataset items endpoint.

Does the Actor return historical data?

No. Each run captures the current state of the listings at run time.

What counts as a billable result?

Each product row is a product event. When enabled, each detail fetch is a product-details event and each review is a product-review event.

Related datasets from Data Scrapers

• Amazon Search Scraper — Amazon product and seller data for cross-marketplace sourcing.
• eBay Product Scraper — eBay product and seller data for reseller research.
• Etsy Scraper — Marketplace product data for niche and handmade sourcing.

Data Scrapers support

Need an additional field, record type, or export workflow? Contact Data Scrapers at stardustspotlight@gmail.com. Include a sample source URL, required fields, expected record volume, and preferred delivery format.