# Archive.org Scraper (`lulzasaur/archive-org-scraper`) Actor Scrape the Internet Archive (archive.org). Search 50M+ texts, 13M+ audio, 16M+ movies, and 1.3M+ software items. Get metadata, download counts, file lists, and more via public APIs. - **URL**: https://apify.com/lulzasaur/archive-org-scraper.md - **Developed by:** [lulz bot](https://apify.com/lulzasaur) (community) - **Categories:** E-commerce - **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, NaN bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing from $5.00 / 1,000 results 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/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event ## What's an Apify Actor? Actors are a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases. 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. Actors are written with capital "A". ## 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. The best way to integrate Actors is as follows. In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.md): ```bash pip install apify-client ``` In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): ````bash # MacOS / Linux curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash # Windows irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex ```bash In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp.md). If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md). For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below. For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt). # README ## Archive.org Scraper Scrape the [Internet Archive](https://archive.org) (archive.org) to search and extract metadata from one of the world's largest digital libraries. Access 50M+ texts, 13M+ audio recordings, 16M+ movies, 1.3M+ software titles, and millions of images -- all via Archive.org's public APIs. ### What does Archive.org Scraper do? This actor searches Archive.org's massive collection and extracts structured metadata for each item. It uses the official public Advanced Search API and Metadata API -- no authentication needed. **Key capabilities:** - Search across all media types or filter by texts, audio, movies, software, or images - Sort by downloads, date, or title - Extract up to 10,000 items per run - Optionally fetch full item details including file lists, formats, ratings, and reviews - Respectful rate limiting (500ms between requests) ### Input | Field | Type | Description | Default | |-------|------|-------------|---------| | `searchQuery` | string | Search query (supports field queries like `creator:NASA`) | *required* | | `mediaType` | string | Filter: all, texts, audio, movies, software, image | all | | `sortBy` | string | Sort order: downloads, newest, oldest, or title | downloads desc | | `maxResults` | integer | Max items to return (1-10,000) | 200 | | `fetchDetails` | boolean | Fetch full metadata per item (slower, adds files/formats) | false | | `proxyConfiguration` | object | Optional proxy configuration | none | #### Example input ```json { "searchQuery": "public domain classical music", "mediaType": "audio", "sortBy": "downloads desc", "maxResults": 100, "fetchDetails": false } ```` #### Advanced query examples - `creator:"Grateful Dead"` -- items by a specific creator - `subject:jazz AND date:[1950-01-01 TO 1960-01-01]` -- jazz items from the 1950s - `collection:prelinger` -- items from the Prelinger Archives - `title:"machine learning" AND mediatype:texts` -- texts about machine learning - `licenseurl:creativecommons.org` -- Creative Commons licensed items ### Output Each item in the dataset contains: | Field | Type | Description | |-------|------|-------------| | `identifier` | string | Unique Archive.org identifier | | `title` | string | Item title | | `creator` | string | Creator/author | | `date` | string | Publication or creation date | | `description` | string | Item description | | `mediatype` | string | Media type (texts, audio, movies, etc.) | | `collection` | string | Collection(s) the item belongs to | | `downloads` | number | Total download count | | `subject` | string | Subject tags | | `language` | string | Language | | `source` | string | Original source | | `archiveUrl` | string | Direct link to the item on archive.org | | `scrapedAt` | string | ISO timestamp of when the data was collected | #### Additional fields when `fetchDetails` is enabled: | Field | Type | Description | |-------|------|-------------| | `files` | array | List of files with name, format, and size | | `format` | string | Available formats (e.g., "PDF; EPUB; Text") | | `licenseurl` | string | License URL | | `runtime` | string | Runtime/duration for audio/video | | `addeddate` | string | Date item was added to Archive.org | | `publicdate` | string | Date item was made public | | `uploader` | string | Uploader username | | `num_reviews` | number | Number of reviews | | `avg_rating` | number | Average rating | #### Example output ```json { "identifier": "greatgatsby_1201", "title": "The Great Gatsby", "creator": "F. Scott Fitzgerald", "date": "1925", "description": "The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald...", "mediatype": "texts", "collection": "opensource; americana", "downloads": 1523847, "subject": "fiction; american literature; jazz age", "language": "English", "source": null, "archiveUrl": "https://archive.org/details/greatgatsby_1201", "scrapedAt": "2026-04-25T12:00:00.000Z" } ``` ### Use cases - **Research**: Search and catalog public domain texts, audio, and video - **Digital preservation**: Track download counts and availability of archived content - **Content discovery**: Find Creative Commons media for projects - **Data analysis**: Analyze trends across Archive.org's collections - **Library science**: Build catalogs of specific collections or media types - **Machine learning**: Discover training datasets from public domain sources ### Performance and costs - **Without details**: ~200 items/minute (paginated search, 500ms delay) - **With details**: ~2 items/second (individual metadata API calls) - The Archive.org API returns up to 100 items per page - Proxy is optional but recommended for large scrapes (10,000+ items) ### Limitations - The Advanced Search API caps at ~10,000 results per query. Use more specific queries for larger datasets. - Some items may have incomplete metadata (missing creator, date, etc.) - File lists are only available when `fetchDetails` is enabled - Rate limited to 500ms between requests to be respectful to Archive.org servers # Actor input Schema ## `searchQuery` (type: `string`): Search query for Archive.org. Supports full-text and field queries (e.g. 'guitar lessons', 'creator:NASA', 'subject:jazz'). ## `mediaType` (type: `string`): Filter by media type. 'all' searches everything. ## `sortBy` (type: `string`): How to sort search results. ## `maxResults` (type: `integer`): Maximum number of items to return (1-10000). Archive.org API pages at 100 rows. ## `fetchDetails` (type: `boolean`): If true, fetches the full metadata API for each item (slower but includes file lists, formats, and extended info). Adds ~500ms per item. ## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`): Optional proxy to use for requests. ## Actor input object example ```json { "searchQuery": "public domain books", "mediaType": "all", "sortBy": "downloads desc", "maxResults": 200, "fetchDetails": false } ``` # 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 '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = { "searchQuery": "public domain books" }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("lulzasaur/archive-org-scraper").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 '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = { "searchQuery": "public domain books" } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("lulzasaur/archive-org-scraper").call(run_input=run_input) # Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any) print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"]) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item) # 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start ``` ## CLI example ```bash echo '{ "searchQuery": "public domain books" }' | apify call lulzasaur/archive-org-scraper --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=lulzasaur/archive-org-scraper", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "Archive.org Scraper", "description": "Scrape the Internet Archive (archive.org). Search 50M+ texts, 13M+ audio, 16M+ movies, and 1.3M+ software items. Get metadata, download counts, file lists, and more via public APIs.", "version": "1.0", "x-build-id": "aEbLpR8WRVjEHEg5t" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/lulzasaur~archive-org-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-lulzasaur-archive-org-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/lulzasaur~archive-org-scraper/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-lulzasaur-archive-org-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK", "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/lulzasaur~archive-org-scraper/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-lulzasaur-archive-org-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } } }, "components": { "schemas": { "inputSchema": { "type": "object", "required": [ "searchQuery" ], "properties": { "searchQuery": { "title": "Search Query", "type": "string", "description": "Search query for Archive.org. Supports full-text and field queries (e.g. 'guitar lessons', 'creator:NASA', 'subject:jazz')." }, "mediaType": { "title": "Media Type", "enum": [ "all", "texts", "audio", "movies", "software", "image" ], "type": "string", "description": "Filter by media type. 'all' searches everything.", "default": "all" }, "sortBy": { "title": "Sort By", "enum": [ "downloads desc", "date desc", "date asc", "titleSorter asc" ], "type": "string", "description": "How to sort search results.", "default": "downloads desc" }, "maxResults": { "title": "Max Results", "minimum": 1, "maximum": 10000, "type": "integer", "description": "Maximum number of items to return (1-10000). Archive.org API pages at 100 rows.", "default": 200 }, "fetchDetails": { "title": "Fetch Full Details", "type": "boolean", "description": "If true, fetches the full metadata API for each item (slower but includes file lists, formats, and extended info). Adds ~500ms per item.", "default": false }, "proxyConfiguration": { "title": "Proxy configuration", "type": "object", "description": "Optional proxy to use for requests." } } }, "runsResponseSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "data": { "type": "object", "properties": { "id": { "type": "string" }, "actId": { "type": "string" }, "userId": { "type": "string" }, "startedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "finishedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "status": { "type": "string", "example": "READY" }, "meta": { "type": "object", "properties": { "origin": { "type": "string", "example": "API" }, "userAgent": { "type": "string" } } }, "stats": { "type": "object", "properties": { "inputBodyLen": { "type": "integer", "example": 2000 }, "rebootCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "restartCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "resurrectCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "computeUnits": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "options": { "type": "object", "properties": { "build": { "type": "string", "example": "latest" }, "timeoutSecs": { "type": "integer", "example": 300 }, "memoryMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 1024 }, "diskMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 2048 } } }, "buildId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultKeyValueStoreId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultDatasetId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultRequestQueueId": { "type": "string" }, "buildNumber": { "type": "string", "example": "1.0.0" }, "containerUrl": { "type": "string" }, "usage": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 1 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "usageTotalUsd": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "usageUsd": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } } } } } } } } } ```