Substack Notes Scraper

📝 Track public Substack Notes

Researchers, marketers, and newsletter teams can collect public Substack Notes without copying them by hand. This Actor returns one structured row per saved Note with text, stable identity, a public URL, source details, times, author and publication context, visible engagement, media, and links.

Use it to:

• Compare Note and post formats with Substack Notes Vs Posts when planning a Substack research workflow.
• Check Substack Notes Character Limit examples when Note length matters.
• Explore public Note ranking questions with Substack Notes Algorithm.
• Learn How To Use Substack Notes by collecting public Notes for a topic.
• Review How To Post A Note On Substack ideas before a publishing session.
• Compare public social conversations with Substack Notes Vs Twitter when researching a topic.
• Build a repeatable public Note workflow with Substack Notes Strategy.

📦 Structured Note data

Each saved row describes one public Substack Note. It includes the visible Note text, stable Note ID, canonical URL, source type, publication and collection times, author and publication context, visible engagement, media, outbound links, and thread fields. If the same Note appears again through another phrase or submitted URL, the first eligible match is saved and later matches are ignored. discoveredFrom shows only the phrase or URL that first produced the row. Missing public values stay null when the source does not show them, and arrays can be empty.

▶️ Run a public Notes collection

Choose a target

Select Topic search for phrases, or Public source URLs for public profile, feed, or Note pages.

Set a limit

maxItems is an optional positive limit for unique Notes. Leave it empty to return all available results until the source is exhausted.

Filter dates

dateField checks publication time or change time. startDate and endDate are inclusive UTC dates.

Skip known Notes

Add stable Note IDs in excludeNoteIds when you already have them.

Public search ranking, availability, rate limits, and source changes can affect what is returned. This Actor does not collect newsletter posts, full article bodies, or private or subscriber-only content.

⚙️ Input

Input fields

Field	Type	What it does
target	string	Required. Choose topicSearch for topic phrases or sourceUrls for public source URLs.
topicPhrases	array of strings	Adds one or more phrases for Topic search. This field is ignored when target is sourceUrls.
searchOrder	string	Chooses relevance or recent order for Topic search. It is ignored when target is sourceUrls.
sourceUrls	array of objects	Adds public Substack profile, feed, or Note URLs. This field is ignored when target is topicSearch.
sourceUrls[].url	string	A public Substack profile, feed, or Note URL to read.
dateField	string	Chooses whether dates check published time or changed time.
startDate	string	Optional inclusive UTC start date in YYYY-MM-DD format.
endDate	string	Optional inclusive UTC end date in YYYY-MM-DD format.
excludeNoteIds	array of strings	Skips the listed stable Note IDs.
maxItems	integer	Optional positive limit for unique Notes. Leave it empty to return all available results until the source is exhausted.

Example input

This is the public input from a successful current-beta default-input run:

{
  "target": "topicSearch",
  "topicPhrases": [
    "technology"
  ],
  "searchOrder": "relevance",
  "dateField": "published",
  "maxItems": 100
}

🧾 Output

Every saved row uses the same shape for topic, profile, feed, and Note sources. Values can be null when a public source does not show them. Arrays can be empty.

Output fields

Field	Type	What it does
noteId	string	Stable public ID for the Note.
text	string	Visible text of the public Note.
noteUrl	string	Canonical public URL for the Note.
sourceType	string	Says how the Note was found: topicSearch, profile, feed, or note.
discoveredFrom	object	Groups the first topic phrase or public source URL that produced the Note.
discoveredFrom.type	string	Says whether the first discovery value was a topicPhrase or sourceUrl.
discoveredFrom.value	string	The first topic phrase or public source URL that produced the Note.
publishedAt	string	UTC time when the Note was published.
editedAt	string or null	UTC time when the Note was last edited, when public edit time is available.
collectedAt	string	UTC time when the Actor collected the Note.
author	object	Groups public author identity and profile details.
author.id	string or null	Public author ID, when available.
author.name	string or null	Visible author name, when available.
author.handle	string or null	Visible author handle, when available.
author.profileUrl	string or null	Public author profile URL, when available.
author.photoUrl	string or null	Public author photo URL, when available.
author.bio	string or null	Visible author bio, when available.
publication	object or null	Groups the public publication linked to the Note, when available.
publication.id	string or null	Public publication ID, when available.
publication.name	string or null	Visible publication name, when available.
publication.url	string or null	Public publication URL, when available.
engagement	object	Groups visible counts and reaction details.
engagement.likes	number or null	Visible like or reaction count, when available.
engagement.restacks	number or null	Visible restack count, when available.
engagement.replies	number or null	Visible reply count, when available.
engagement.total	number or null	Total visible engagement count, when available.
engagement.reactions	array of objects or null	Lists visible reactions and their counts, when available.
engagement.reactions[].emoji	string	The visible reaction or emoji label.
engagement.reactions[].count	number	Visible count for that reaction.
media	array of objects	Lists media attached to the Note. It can be empty.
media[].url	string	Public URL for attached media.
media[].type	string or null	Media type, when exposed.
media[].width	number or null	Media width in pixels, when available.
media[].height	number or null	Media height in pixels, when available.
outboundLinks	array of strings	Public URLs found in the Note text. It can be empty.
thread	object	Groups reply status and public parent or root Note relationships.
thread.isReply	boolean or null	Says whether the Note is a reply, when available.
thread.parentNoteId	string or null	Public ID of the direct parent Note, when available.
thread.parentUrl	string or null	Public URL of the direct parent Note, when available.
thread.rootNoteId	string or null	Public ID of the root Note, when available.
thread.rootUrl	string or null	Public URL of the root Note, when available.

Example row

This is a genuine, unshortened row from a successful current-beta profile run:

{
  "noteId": "321255318",
  "text": "Also as we are going to kickstart our new training series - AI Avatar Training and Social Media Domination.\n\nWe are doing a limited time 50% off on our Substack plan.\n\nAnd you will be having full zoom access and replay and all our previous ai courses.\n\nDetails here:\n\nhttps://sifuyik.substack.com/p/24-hours-only-100-hours-of-ai-training",
  "noteUrl": "https://substack.com/@sifuyik/note/c-321255318",
  "sourceType": "profile",
  "discoveredFrom": {
    "type": "sourceUrl",
    "value": "https://substack.com/@sifuyik"
  },
  "publishedAt": "2026-08-24T01:32:51.983Z",
  "editedAt": null,
  "collectedAt": "2026-08-25T16:34:50.254Z",
  "author": {
    "id": "73134922",
    "name": "Sifu Yik Chan",
    "handle": "sifuyik",
    "profileUrl": "https://substack.com/@sifuyik",
    "photoUrl": "https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/658267de-b7ce-4827-a4a4-bf4aec4d9ddc_866x866.jpeg",
    "bio": "AI Tips and News"
  },
  "publication": {
    "id": "7223942",
    "name": "Sifu Yik's Substack",
    "url": "https://sifuyik"
  },
  "engagement": {
    "likes": 2,
    "restacks": 0,
    "replies": 0,
    "total": 2,
    "reactions": [
      {
        "emoji": "❤",
        "count": 2
      }
    ]
  },
  "media": [
    {
      "url": "https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/831fada1-9358-40eb-9a73-f000a1804f6e_2560x3200.png",
      "type": "image",
      "width": 2560,
      "height": 3200
    }
  ],
  "outboundLinks": [
    "https://sifuyik.substack.com/p/24-hours-only-100-hours-of-ai-training"
  ],
  "thread": {
    "isReply": false,
    "parentNoteId": null,
    "parentUrl": null,
    "rootNoteId": null,
    "rootUrl": null
  }
}

💳 Pricing

Pay per event. The primary event is Note at $0.00001 for each public Note saved to your dataset. The total follows the number of Notes saved.

🔌 Integrations

Start the Actor in Apify Console or through the standard Actor API. Read the dataset through its API link or export it after the run.

❓ FAQ

What does this Actor collect?

It collects public Substack Notes from topic searches and public profile, feed, or Note sources. It does not collect newsletter posts, full article bodies, or private and subscriber-only content.

Can I use more than one topic phrase?

Yes. Add several topic phrases to one Topic search run. They use the same search order, date filters, exclusions, and note limit.

Can I use a public profile, feed, or Note URL?

Yes. Choose Public source URLs and add one or more public Substack URLs. The URL can point to a profile, feed, or Note page.

What happens when the same Note matches twice?

The first eligible match is saved. Later matches from another phrase or submitted URL are ignored, and discoveredFrom keeps the first matching value.

Can I filter Notes by a date range?

Yes. Choose publication time or change time, then add an inclusive UTC start date, end date, or both.

Does this return every available Note?

No result set can promise full coverage. Public availability, search ranking, rate limits, and source changes can affect which Notes are returned.

What happens when a public field is missing?

The Actor keeps the missing value as null when the schema allows it. It does not invent a name, count, URL, or time.

Do I need a Substack account or API key?

No. The Actor reads anonymous public Substack surfaces and does not require authenticated access.

📝 Changelog

0.0: Initial release

🆘 Support

For issues, questions, or feature requests, file a ticket and I'll fix or implement it in less than 24h 🫡

🔗 Related Actors

• Substack Recommendations - Map public newsletter recommendation links from known publication pages.
• Twitter (X) Scraper - Collect public X posts for social listening alongside Substack Notes.
• Reddit Comments Search Scraper - Search public Reddit comments to compare discussion around the same topic.
• Substack Notes Search and Author Monitor - Search public Substack Notes and track author activity with stable IDs and engagement.
• Substack Notes Scraper - Extract Substack search results with author details, images, and engagement metrics.

Made with ❤️ by Maxime Dupré