RSS Feed Reader (with MCP)

Read public RSS, Atom and RDF feeds and export their entries as a structured dataset. RSS Feed Reader keeps titles, links, dates and available content together for news research, spreadsheet exports and AI ingestion. It reads the feed itself, not the full articles linked from it.

Quick start

1. Add a publisher's public feed URL, not an article or home page.
2. Set a small per-feed limit and start the Actor.
3. Open the dataset to review and export the entries.

{
  "feedUrls": ["https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/rss.xml"],
  "maxItemsPerFeed": 5,
  "includeContent": true,
  "includeFeedMetadata": true,
  "dedupeBy": "guid",
  "emitErrorItems": true
}

The limit applies to each feed before duplicate entries are removed. Publishers may supply fewer entries or omit optional fields.

Prefer a video guide? This short Apify walkthrough shows you how to set up and run an Actor. It uses a different Actor, but the setup steps are the same.

Ready-to-run examples

Choose an example to start with a small, preconfigured input.

• Read multiple RSS feeds — Combine BBC and NASA entries in one dataset.
• Read an Atom feed with content — Collect Python blog entries with available content and feed metadata.
• Deduplicate entries by link — Collect headline-oriented entries from The Verge using links as comparison keys.

What you get

• Structured entries: Titles, links, identifiers, dates and available author names.
• Feed-supplied content: Summaries, optional content, categories and media references.
• Source context: Optional feed title, language, description and update date on each entry.
• Combined collection: Read multiple feeds and remove duplicate entries within the run.

Who is it for?

• Researchers and news teams: Gather publisher headlines for review.
• Automation builders: Bring feed entries into spreadsheets and downstream workflows.
• AI users: Collect available feed text for an assistant to summarize or compare.

Input settings

Setting	How to use it
Feed URLs (feedUrls)	One or more public RSS, Atom or RDF feed URLs.
Max items per feed (maxItemsPerFeed)	Set an explicit cap from 1 to 1,000 for each feed. The form starts at 20.
Include content (includeContent)	Include content supplied by the feed. Enabled by default.
Include feed metadata (includeFeedMetadata)	Add source-feed metadata to entries. Enabled by default.
Deduplicate by (dedupeBy)	Use guid, link or titleAndDate. Default: guid.
Emit error items (emitErrorItems)	Save an error row for an individual failed feed. Enabled by default.
Request timeout (requestTimeoutSecs)	Per-feed request timeout from 5 to 120 seconds. Default: 20.
Max MCP records (maxMcpRecords)	Sample cap for separately configured legacy connector delivery, from 1 to 100. Default: 20. This is not a dataset limit.

Set maxItemsPerFeed explicitly for predictable API requests. Duplicates are removed only within the current run. Choosing link uses the entry link when available. Missing identifiers fall back to another available comparison key.

Output data

Each normal row represents a feed entry. Optional values can be null or absent, depending on the publisher and your input.

Fields	What they contain
title, link, guid	Entry title, destination and publisher identifier.
description, content	Summary and optional feed-supplied content.
pubDate, isoDate, author	Original date, normalized date when valid and available attribution.
feedUrl, feedType, feedTitle	Source URL and optional feed type and title.
feedDescription, feedLink, feedLanguage, feedLastBuildDate	Optional feed-level context.
categories, imageUrl, mediaUrls	Available topics and media references.
dedupeKey, fetchedAt	Comparison key and collection time.
error	Failure message on an optional feed-error row.

Synthetic shape-only example, not a collected publisher record:

{
  "feedUrl": "https://example.com/feed.xml",
  "title": "Example feed entry",
  "link": "https://example.com/article",
  "guid": "example-entry",
  "content": null,
  "isoDate": null,
  "author": null,
  "categories": [],
  "mediaUrls": [],
  "dedupeKey": "guid:example-entry"
}

Download your results

Open your run's dataset, choose Export and select JSON, CSV or Excel. JSON keeps nested fields together. CSV and Excel are useful when you want to review the records in a spreadsheet.

See Apify's download and export guide for the available formats and field options.

Pricing

The start event is charged once when the Actor starts.

The item event applies to each saved feed entry or feed-error row. Turning off emitErrorItems prevents optional error rows from being saved. An input cap is a limit, not a promise that a feed contains that many entries.

See the live Pricing tab for current rates and discounts.

Tips for best results

• Start with a few entries. Check the publisher's fields before collecting a larger batch.
• Use the actual feed URL. A home page or article usually is not an RSS or Atom document.
• Set an explicit per-feed cap. The cap is applied separately to every feed you supply.
• Compare saved exports. Use dedupeKey in your workflow to identify entries you have already collected.

Limits and caveats

Only public feed documents are supported. The Actor does not sign in to private feeds, download linked full articles or bypass a publisher's access restrictions.

Content and metadata depend on what the feed publishes. Feed order is retained rather than sorted by a requested date. A publisher's current feed may contain only a short recent history.

With emitErrorItems enabled, inspect rows containing error. Successful feeds can still produce entries when another feed fails. A completed run does not guarantee that every source succeeded.

Cross-run history, change detection and alerts belong in your own workflow. Requests use direct access, with no user-selectable proxy connection mode.

Automation and integrations

Save your settings for next time

Once you have an input that works for you, save it as an Apify task. This keeps your settings together so you can use them again without filling in the form from scratch.

Run on a schedule

Need fresh results regularly? You can schedule the Actor or a saved task to run at a time that suits you.

Each scheduled run collects the data again. If you want to compare results or highlight changes, add that step in your own workflow.

Send results to your other tools

Use n8n, Make or Zapier to connect this scraper to the rest of your workflow. For example, you could pass its results to an AI assistant or add records to a spreadsheet. Follow the Apify integration guides for your chosen tool.

For a custom connection, an Apify webhook can notify your app when a run finishes or fails. Your app can then fetch the results or handle the failure.

API usage

Want to collect this data from your own app or automation? The examples below send input to the scraper and show how to collect its results.

The Node.js and Python examples wait for the run to finish before reading its results. The cURL example starts the run and returns its details. Wait for that run to finish, then use its defaultDatasetId to fetch the results.

For setup instructions, see Apify's JavaScript client guide, Python client guide and Actor runs API reference.

cURL

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/fetch_cat~rss-feed-reader/runs" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"feedUrls":["https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/rss.xml"],"maxItemsPerFeed":5}'

Poll the returned run ID using the run details API. After completion, read its dataset using the dataset items API.

Node.js

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: process.env.APIFY_TOKEN });
const run = await client.actor('fetch_cat/rss-feed-reader').call({
  feedUrls: ['https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/rss.xml'],
  maxItemsPerFeed: 5,
});
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items);

Python

import os
from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient(os.environ["APIFY_TOKEN"])
run = client.actor("fetch_cat/rss-feed-reader").call(run_input={
    "feedUrls": ["https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/rss.xml"],
    "maxItemsPerFeed": 5,
})
items = client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).list_items().items
print(items)

MCP and AI agents

You can ask your AI assistant to collect data with RSS Feed Reader and help you work with the results. The scraper returns the data, and your assistant can then summarize it, compare records or prepare notes.

Connect your assistant through the Apify MCP server. MCP gives your assistant a way to find this scraper, run it and read the results. Follow the official setup and sign-in guide for your app.

Easier setup with an Apify plugin

If you use a supported coding assistant, the official Apify plugin can set up the connection for you. It connects your assistant to Apify and includes instructions for common tasks. Follow the guide for your particular app.

Use Apify AI in Console

Prefer to keep everything in Apify? Open Apify AI in Console and ask it to find Fetch Cat's RSS Feed Reader. You can describe the data you want and ask questions about the results.

Apify AI is currently in beta. It asks for confirmation before starting an Actor, and normal run charges apply.

Choose your assistant

• Claude and Claude Code (Anthropic): Apify setup guide.
• ChatGPT and Codex (OpenAI): Apify setup guides.
• Grok Bot (xAI): Apify plugin guide.
• Gemini CLI (Google): MCP server setup guide. Use the server URL below with the HTTP configuration supported by Gemini CLI.

Connect just this scraper

To keep your setup focused on this scraper, add this server configuration to a compatible MCP client:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "apify": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=fetch_cat/rss-feed-reader"
    }
  }
}

Sign in to Apify when your client asks. If your client uses a Bearer token instead, follow its setup guide and keep the token in its secure configuration. Configuration formats vary by app, so use the linked guide if your client needs a different format.

Use Apify's general server

Already connected to the general Apify MCP server at https://mcp.apify.com? You can use it to find this scraper without adding another server. Ask your assistant to use RSS Feed Reader by Fetch Cat, or give it the identifier fetch_cat/rss-feed-reader.

Your assistant can check the available settings and retrieve the results from the returned run. If the run is still working, it should follow that run rather than start it again. Both connection options use Apify's hosted service.

Example requests

• “Read five entries from the BBC News feed and put their titles and links in a table.”
• “Get the latest fifteen entries from the Python blog's Atom feed, including any available content, then summarize the topics.”
• “Collect twenty entries each from the BBC and NASA news feeds, then group the returned headlines by source.”

Normal Apify charges apply. Check the live Pricing tab before asking your assistant to run a larger batch.

Pay with x402

If your AI agent has a funded wallet, it can pay for Apify usage through x402. This experimental option lets an agent use Apify without a conventional account.

Apify AGI provides a prepaid API token with a spending cap after payment. Your agent can use that token to run this scraper through the Apify API or an authenticated MCP connection.

Some MCP setups also support paying for each request directly. That is a different payment option, so check the official guide for its availability.

Follow the official guide for wallet setup, supported payment options and current terms. Apify handles the payments. Keep wallet keys and payment tokens in your agent's secure configuration.

Other ways for agents to pay

Apify also supports MPP for prepaid access through AGI and Skyfire for eligible Actors. If your agent already uses one of these, see the agentic payment guide to choose the right setup.

FAQ

Why is content missing?

Some feeds publish only summaries. Enable includeContent to include available feed content, but it cannot create content that the publisher omitted or download the full article.

Can I export RSS feeds to CSV or JSON?

Yes. Open the run's dataset and export it, or retrieve its records through the API. Nested arrays are easiest to retain in JSON.

Is this a personal RSS reader app?

No. It collects feed entries into datasets for research and automation. It does not provide a reading inbox, subscriptions or read/unread tracking.

Can I schedule news monitoring?

Apify supports schedules. Keep earlier exports and compare dedupeKey in your application to find new entries or send alerts. The Actor does not maintain a cross-run archive itself.

Do I need login credentials?

No credentials are needed for public feeds. Private or login-protected feeds are outside the documented product.

What happens when a feed is empty or unavailable?

A valid feed with no entries adds no entry rows. An individual feed failure can create an error row when enabled. Review those rows alongside successful entries rather than assuming all sources returned data.

Related Actors

• Google News Scraper — Search news when you do not have a feed URL.
• Google Trending Searches Scraper — Explore trending search topics.
• Web Page to Markdown Extractor — Extract linked page content for downstream use.
• Website Contact Finder — Find public contact information on websites.
• Hacker News Search Scraper — Research developer stories and discussions.

Support and feedback

For custom additions or integrations, email hello@fetchcat.dev.

Found an error or have a feature request? Open an issue with the run URL, a non-sensitive input example and what you expected.

Need help sharing it? See Apify’s guide to sharing a run when reporting an issue. Sharing a run can give the developer access to its input, logs and results, so use a run that contains no sensitive data. Please leave out API tokens, passwords, cookies, private documents and personal data. Use a public sample URL or a redacted example instead.

Tried this scraper? We'd love to hear how it worked for you. Leave a review to help others choose the right tool and help us improve it. Your feedback means a lot to us.

Made with care for curious people, AI agents and the possibilities in data. ♥