Reddit Subreddit Scraper for Posts, Community Metadata, and Comment Previews

Extract public Reddit posts from selected subreddits, enrich the dataset with subreddit metadata, and optionally include compact top-comment previews. Each row represents either a post or a subreddit and can include text, author, score, comment count, flair, media, community details, source route, and collection time for social listening, trend research, content analysis, and AI-agent workflows.

Best fit for this Actor

Choose this Actor when the workflow begins with known subreddit names or public subreddit URLs. For keyword discovery across Reddit, start with the Reddit Search Scraper, then pass selected subreddit values into this Actor for a focused community feed and metadata dataset.

A practical community-research scenario

A product researcher starts with communities related to a market and selects the new or top sort. The Actor collects post titles, bodies, authors, scores, comment counts, flairs, media, and subreddit context; the researcher then asks an AI agent to group themes, retain source permalinks, and identify discussions for qualitative review.

Quick start input

{
  "subreddits": ["r/MachineLearning", "https://www.reddit.com/r/programming"],
  "sort": "top",
  "timeRange": "week",
  "maxPosts": 50,
  "includeSubredditInfo": true,
  "includeTopComments": true,
  "maxTopCommentsPerPost": 3
}

Add query to search within each selected subreddit. The Actor can use Reddit OAuth credentials supplied through the supported configuration and managed ScrapeCreators or SociaVault provider routes.

What data you receive

Field	Meaning
recordType	post or subreddit dataset entity
postId, permalink, externalUrl	Post identity and public source links
subreddit, subredditName, subredditUrl	Community identity
title, body, author, flair	Public discussion content and context
score, upvoteRatio, numComments, awardsCount	Public engagement signals at collection time
postType, mediaUrls, thumbnailUrl	Post format and public media
subscribers, activeUsers, publicDescription	Community metadata on subreddit records
topComments	Optional compact public comment previews
source, sourceInput, createdAt, scrapedAt	Provider and time provenance

{
  "recordType": "post",
  "postId": "example123",
  "subreddit": "r/MachineLearning",
  "subredditName": "MachineLearning",
  "title": "Example public discussion",
  "body": "Public post text",
  "author": "example_author",
  "score": 250,
  "numComments": 42,
  "permalink": "https://www.reddit.com/r/MachineLearning/comments/example123/",
  "postType": "text",
  "topComments": [],
  "source": "reddit-oauth",
  "createdAt": "<ISO-8601 Reddit creation time>",
  "scrapedAt": "<ISO-8601 collection time>"
}

Run through the Apify API

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/khadinakbar~reddit-subreddit-scraper/runs" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"subreddits":["r/MachineLearning"],"sort":"new","maxPosts":50,"includeSubredditInfo":true}'

Read the default dataset for post and subreddit rows, and use recordType to separate the two entities.

Use with AI agents through Apify MCP

Example prompt:

Collect public posts and community metadata from these subreddits. Return titles, post text, authors, scores, comment counts, flairs, media, source permalinks, source route, and collection time. Read the dataset, group rows by recordType, and summarize themes with source provenance.

Give the agent subreddit targets, sort, time range, comment-preview choice, and a focused maxPosts scope. Ask it to retain permalinks and the source field, read the dataset after completion, and report the outcome and Apify cost.

Pricing

This Actor uses Pay per event plus Apify platform usage. Post records and optional subreddit metadata use the events configured for the Actor. Open the live Pricing tab for current billing details and use maxPosts or Apify run cost controls to manage scope.

Best results

Provide canonical subreddit names or URLs, choose the sort and time range that match the research question, and enable top-comment previews when a compact view of discussion context supports the analysis. Keep recordType, source, permalinks, and collection times in downstream datasets.

Builder's note

I designed the dataset to keep post and subreddit records together with an explicit recordType because community context is often useful beside the posts being analyzed. That discriminator lets agents separate entities reliably while preserving a compact, source-linked research bundle.

Responsible use

Collect public Reddit data you are authorized to access and follow applicable laws, Reddit terms, and your organization's privacy and research policies.