# Flipp Flyers Scraper — Canadian Grocery & Retail Deals (`ocrad/flipp-flyers-scraper`) Actor

Scrape this week's flyer deals of every Canadian grocer and retailer on Flipp (Maxi, Metro, IGA, Loblaws, Walmart, Costco, Canadian Tire…) by postal code or keyword: item, merchant, price, sale story, validity dates, image. Export JSON/CSV/Excel.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/ocrad/flipp-flyers-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Ocrad](https://apify.com/ocrad) (community)
- **Categories:** E-commerce, Automation, Agents
- **Security:** Limited permissions
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $1.50 / 1,000 records

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/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

### Flipp Flyers Scraper — Canadian Grocery & Retail Deals

***

Scrape **this week's flyer deals of every Canadian grocer and retailer** in one run. Give the Actor a Canadian postal code and it returns the items of all flyers published on Flipp for that region — Maxi, Provigo, Loblaws, No Frills, Real Canadian Superstore, Metro, Super C, Food Basics, IGA, Sobeys, FreshCo, Walmart, Costco, Giant Tiger, Canadian Tire, Shoppers Drug Mart / Pharmaprix, Jean Coutu, Home Depot, RONA, Best Buy and 150+ more banners. Add a keyword (`milk`, `chicken breast`, `laundry detergent`) to search all flyers at once, or a list of merchants to keep only the stores you care about.

Each record carries the item name, merchant, sale price, promotion text, validity dates, flyer name, a cut-out image and a public flipp.com link. English and French (`fr-ca`) catalogues are supported.

**Data source:** the public flyer service behind flipp.com (backflipp.wishabi.com). No login, no cookies, no browser — the Actor is fast and cheap to run.

***

#### **📋 Example Output**

```json
{
  "id": "1048322120",
  "url": "https://flipp.com/en-ca/item/1048322120-farm-boy-farm-boy-organic-milk-or-cream?postal_code=M5V3L9",
  "title": "Farm Boy™ Organic Milk or Cream",
  "merchant": "Farm Boy",
  "brand": null,
  "price": 3.99,
  "priceText": "$3.99 ea",
  "prePriceText": null,
  "postPriceText": "ea",
  "originalPrice": 5.99,
  "saleStory": "Save $1-$2 ea",
  "discount": 33,
  "validFrom": "2026-10-22T04:00:00+00:00",
  "validTo": "2026-10-29T03:59:59+00:00",
  "flyerId": "8191964",
  "flyerTitle": "Weekly",
  "imageUrl": "https://f.wishabi.net/page_items/437585099/1792301779/extra_large.jpg",
  "categories": "Food, Beverages & Tobacco > Beverages",
  "itemType": "flyer",
  "postalCode": "M5V3L9",
  "scrapedAt": "2026-10-28T19:58:18.625Z"
}
```

#### ⚙️ **Configuration**

| Parameter | Type | Default | Description |
|-----------|------|---------|-------------|
| `postalCode` | String | *(required)* | Canadian postal code, e.g. `M5V3L9` (Toronto) or `H2X 1Y6` (Montréal). Flyers differ by region. |
| `query` | String | *(empty)* | Keyword search across all flyers at the postal code (about 90 flyer items plus the merchants' online deals). Leave empty to scrape every item of every flyer. |
| `merchants` | Array | *(all)* | Merchant names to keep, e.g. `["Maxi", "Metro", "IGA"]`. Case- and accent-insensitive; `Familiprix` also matches `Familiprix Extra`. |
| `locale` | String | `en-ca` | `en-ca` or `fr-ca` (French flyer catalogue, e.g. for Québec). |
| `maxItems` | Integer | `0` | Max items to return (0 = all). One supermarket flyer holds 300-600 items; all flyers at one postal code hold tens of thousands. |
| `proxyConfiguration` | Object | Apify Proxy (auto) | Proxy settings. |

##### Example Input

Every deal of the Maxi, IGA and Metro flyers around Montréal, in French:

```json
{
  "postalCode": "H2X 1Y6",
  "locale": "fr-ca",
  "merchants": ["Maxi", "IGA", "Metro"],
  "maxItems": 0
}
```

Every flyer item mentioning milk in downtown Toronto:

```json
{
  "postalCode": "M5V3L9",
  "query": "milk",
  "maxItems": 100
}
```

##### Two modes

1. **Flyer mode** (no `query`): the Actor lists every flyer available at the postal code (optionally filtered by `merchants`), then downloads each flyer's items one by one until `maxItems` is reached. `price`, `discount`, validity dates and `flyerTitle` are filled for nearly every item; `saleStory` / `prePriceText` / `originalPrice` are not published in this feed and stay `null`.
2. **Search mode** (`query` set): a single search call returns the matching flyer items of all merchants with the richer price fields (`prePriceText`, `postPriceText`, `originalPrice`, `saleStory`, derived `discount`), followed by the merchants' online-store deals (`itemType` = `ecom`, no flyer or validity, prefixed `ecom-` ids). Flyer items come first, so a small `maxItems` keeps the printed-flyer deals.

##### Finding merchant names

Run the Actor once without `merchants` and look at the `merchant` column, or check the log line `[flyers] N flyers available`. When a filter matches nothing, the log lists every merchant available at that postal code.

***

#### 💬 **Support and Feedback**

Reach out via Apify support channels or leave feedback on the Actor's page.

#### **Is it legal to scrape Flipp flyer data?**

The Actor reads the same publicly available flyer data that flipp.com shows to any visitor: product names, prices and validity dates published by the retailers themselves. Flyer content belongs to the respective retailers and is distributed through Flipp's public flyer service; use the data for price comparison, research and personal purposes, and consult your legal advisor before any commercial redistribution. No personal data is collected.

# Actor input Schema

## `postalCode` (type: `string`):

Canadian postal code the flyers are looked up for, e.g. M5V3L9 (Toronto) or H2X 1Y6 (Montréal). Flyers differ by region.

## `query` (type: `string`):

Optional keyword, e.g. 'milk' or 'chicken'. When set, the actor searches all flyers at the postal code for matching items (about 90 flyer items plus the merchants' online deals). Leave empty to scrape every item of every flyer instead.

## `merchants` (type: `array`):

Optional list of merchant names to keep, e.g. Maxi, Metro, IGA, Walmart, Costco, Canadian Tire. Case- and accent-insensitive; 'Familiprix' also matches 'Familiprix Extra'. Leave empty for all merchants.

## `locale` (type: `string`):

Language of the flyer catalogue. Use fr-ca for French flyers in Québec.

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

Maximum number of flyer items to return (0 = all). A single supermarket flyer holds about 300-600 items; all flyers at one postal code hold tens of thousands.

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

Proxy settings. Defaults to Apify Proxy (auto). Switch to RESIDENTIAL only if results are empty.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "postalCode": "M5V3L9",
  "query": "milk",
  "locale": "en-ca",
  "maxItems": 100,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": true
  }
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `id` (type: `string`):

Flipp flyer item ID (online-store deals are prefixed 'ecom-')

## `url` (type: `string`):

Public flipp.com page of the item (opens the flyer at the item for the given postal code)

## `title` (type: `string`):

Item name as printed in the flyer

## `merchant` (type: `string`):

Merchant / banner name (Maxi, Metro, IGA, Walmart, Costco…)

## `brand` (type: `string`):

Brand when Flipp provides one (null for most items)

## `price` (type: `string`):

Sale price as a number in CAD (null when the flyer shows no price)

## `priceText` (type: `string`):

Price as displayed, including any prefix/suffix, e.g. '2/ $5.00' or '$5.48 ea'

## `prePriceText` (type: `string`):

Text printed before the price, e.g. '2/' or 'only' (search mode only)

## `postPriceText` (type: `string`):

Text printed after the price, e.g. 'ea', '/lb' (search mode only)

## `originalPrice` (type: `string`):

Regular price before the sale when the flyer states it (search mode only)

## `saleStory` (type: `string`):

Promotion text, e.g. 'Save $2', '34% OFF', 'Chute de prix' (search mode only)

## `discount` (type: `string`):

Percent off when known (given by Flipp for flyer items, derived from original vs sale price in search mode)

## `validFrom` (type: `string`):

Start of the deal validity (ISO 8601 with local offset)

## `validTo` (type: `string`):

End of the deal validity (ISO 8601 with local offset)

## `flyerId` (type: `string`):

Flipp flyer ID the item belongs to

## `flyerTitle` (type: `string`):

Flyer name, e.g. 'Weekly Flyer - Valid Thursday, October 29 - Wednesday, November 04'

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

Cut-out image of the flyer item

## `categories` (type: `string`):

Flipp category path of the item (search mode, e.g. 'Food, Beverages & Tobacco > Beverages') or of the flyer (e.g. 'Groceries')

## `itemType` (type: `string`):

'flyer' for printed-flyer items, 'ecom' for the merchants' online-store deals returned by a keyword search

## `postalCode` (type: `string`):

Postal code the flyer was looked up for

## `scrapedAt` (type: `string`):

ISO 8601 timestamp when the record was scraped

# 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 = {
    "postalCode": "M5V3L9",
    "query": "milk",
    "maxItems": 100,
    "proxyConfiguration": {
        "useApifyProxy": true
    }
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("ocrad/flipp-flyers-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 '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "postalCode": "M5V3L9",
    "query": "milk",
    "maxItems": 100,
    "proxyConfiguration": { "useApifyProxy": True },
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("ocrad/flipp-flyers-scraper").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 '{
  "postalCode": "M5V3L9",
  "query": "milk",
  "maxItems": 100,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": true
  }
}' |
apify call ocrad/flipp-flyers-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,ocrad/flipp-flyers-scraper"
        }
    }
}
```

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/hKughM0vFdTHApPma/builds/CsE2peRgaOhJbI4xE/openapi.json