# Product Search by Image (1688/Alibaba/AliExpress) (`neuro-scraper/product-search-by-image`) Actor

Product Search by Image (1688/Alibaba/AliExpress) SD - Product Search by Image (1688/Alibaba/AliExpress) is a reverse image search tool that extracts matching AliExpress and Alibaba.com products for any photo: price, MOQ, rating, sold count, supplier and rank.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/neuro-scraper/product-search-by-image.md
- **Developed by:** [Neuro Scraper](https://apify.com/neuro-scraper) (community)
- **Categories:** E-commerce, Automation, AI
- **Stats:** 3 total users, 2 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $2.49 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event and usage. You are charged both the fixed price for specific events and for Apify platform usage.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
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.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## 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.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

./README.md

# Actor input Schema

## `imageUrls` (type: `array`):

Product photos to search with, one per line: a direct image link (JPG, PNG, WEBP or BMP) or a data:image/...;base64 URL. Each photo is uploaded to the marketplaces' own 'search by image' and gets its own list of matches. Example: https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1542291026-7eec264c27ff?w=400

## `imageUrl` (type: `string`):

One photo URL, for callers that send a single image (same as one line of Image URLs). Example: https://cbu01.alicdn.com/img/ibank/15418323391_1847764777.jpg

## `imagesBase64` (type: `array`):

Photos you have as files: a list of base64 strings, data: URLs or {"base64": "..."} objects. Example: \["/9j/4AAQSkZJRg..."]

## `marketplaces` (type: `array`):

Where to search. AliExpress (retail, one item) and Alibaba.com (wholesale suppliers, MOQ). 1688.com is not offered: its image search needs a login or a slider check for visitors who are not logged in (measured 2026-10-09).

## `maxResultsPerImage` (type: `integer`):

How many matching products to return for each photo on each marketplace. The Actor follows the marketplace's result pages (AliExpress 60 per page, usually 100-150 matches in all; Alibaba 48 per page, several hundred). Example: 60

## `maxImages` (type: `integer`):

Only the first N photos of the input are searched. Example: 10

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

Maximum number of match rows for the whole run (all photos and marketplaces). Example: 500

## `sort` (type: `string`):

Order of AliExpress matches, applied by AliExpress itself. Sorted lists hold the 60 best matches re-ordered (measured). Alibaba always returns its matches by similarity.

## `currency` (type: `string`):

Currency of AliExpress prices, set through AliExpress's own currency switcher. AUTO = the proxy country's currency. Alibaba.com shows prices in the proxy country's currency (USD with the default US proxy); the currency field says which.

## `shipTo` (type: `string`):

Two-letter country code AliExpress prices and availability are shown for. Example: US

## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`):

Residential proxy in the United States is the default (measured working for both marketplaces). A slider page is never answered - the Actor switches to a new IP instead.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "imageUrls": [
    "https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1542291026-7eec264c27ff?w=400"
  ],
  "marketplaces": [
    "aliexpress",
    "alibaba"
  ],
  "maxResultsPerImage": 60,
  "maxImages": 10,
  "maxItems": 500,
  "sort": "best_match",
  "currency": "USD",
  "shipTo": "US",
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": true,
    "apifyProxyGroups": [
      "RESIDENTIAL"
    ],
    "apifyProxyCountry": "US"
  }
}
```

# 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 '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "imageUrls": [
        "https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1542291026-7eec264c27ff?w=400"
    ],
    "marketplaces": [
        "aliexpress",
        "alibaba"
    ],
    "proxyConfiguration": {
        "useApifyProxy": true,
        "apifyProxyGroups": [
            "RESIDENTIAL"
        ],
        "apifyProxyCountry": "US"
    }
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("neuro-scraper/product-search-by-image").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 '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "imageUrls": ["https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1542291026-7eec264c27ff?w=400"],
    "marketplaces": [
        "aliexpress",
        "alibaba",
    ],
    "proxyConfiguration": {
        "useApifyProxy": True,
        "apifyProxyGroups": ["RESIDENTIAL"],
        "apifyProxyCountry": "US",
    },
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("neuro-scraper/product-search-by-image").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "imageUrls": [
    "https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1542291026-7eec264c27ff?w=400"
  ],
  "marketplaces": [
    "aliexpress",
    "alibaba"
  ],
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": true,
    "apifyProxyGroups": [
      "RESIDENTIAL"
    ],
    "apifyProxyCountry": "US"
  }
}' |
apify call neuro-scraper/product-search-by-image --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,neuro-scraper/product-search-by-image"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/aWfTDk5fb1dhULOCH/builds/OMkQBut00bugB0Eqi/openapi.json