BLS CPI Data Scraper

BLS CPI Data Scraper

Scrape official US Consumer Price Index data from the BLS public API, up to a million data points per run. Every row returns the series ID, year, period, value, and footnotes. No API key required. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes the Consumer Price Index, the primary measure of US inflation, but its web tools are built for single queries and manual downloads. This Actor reads the BLS public API directly, letting you pull decades of CPI data for any series ID in one automated run. You get a clean, flat dataset ready for analysis, forecasting, or visualization.

Who uses it	What they scrape Bureau of Labor Statistics for
Economists	Pull multi-decade CPI series to model inflation trends and test economic theories.
Financial analysts	Feed the latest monthly CPI figures into dashboards and investment reports.
Data journalists	Gather official inflation data to support stories on cost of living and purchasing power.
Academic researchers	Collect consistent CPI datasets for peer-reviewed papers on monetary policy.

What it does

This Actor collects Consumer Price Index data points from the BLS API by series ID and returns each observation as a flat row with the series identifier, year, period, value, and footnotes.

• 📈 Multiple series at once: provide a list of BLS series IDs and get all their data in a single run.
• 📅 Date range control: set a start year and end year to limit the data to a specific historical window.
• 🔢 Volume control: cap the total number of data points collected, from a single observation up to one million.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

What you can do with Bureau of Labor Statistics data

📊 Build an inflation dashboard.

A financial analyst runs the Actor monthly for the CUUR0000SA0 series to update a CPI tracker in Google Sheets or Tableau.

📉 Backtest economic models.

An economist pulls 50 years of CPI-U and CPI-W data to test how inflation responds to interest rate changes.

📰 Fact-check a cost-of-living story.

A data journalist collects the latest CPI for food and energy series to verify price change claims before publication.

🎓 Gather data for a thesis.

A graduate student scrapes regional CPI series for the Midwest to analyze urban versus rural inflation divergence.

Why choose this scraper

	What you get
Official source	Data comes directly from the BLS public API, the same source the federal government uses.
No API key	The BLS API v2 does not require registration, so you can start scraping immediately.
Flat output	Every observation is a single row with the series ID, year, period, value, and footnotes.
Bulk collection	Request up to a million data points per run, covering multiple series and decades of history.

How it compares

No other Store actor targets Bureau of Labor Statistics the same way, so the honest comparison is with the alternatives teams actually weigh.

	BLS CPI Data Scraper	Build it in-house	By hand
Setup	Run it now, zero config	Days of engineering	None, but hours per pull
When Bureau of Labor Statistics changes	Maintained for you	You fix it	You re-learn the page
Proxies, retries, anti-bot	Built in	Your problem	Browser only
Output	Fixed JSON schema, CSV/Excel export	Whatever you build	Copy-paste
Cost	Pay per result	Engineering time	Analyst hours

Configure the run

Drive the Actor with one or more BLS series IDs, and optionally narrow the results by start year and end year. Filters apply as the API is called so only matching observations reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

{
  "seriesIds": [
    "CUUR0000SA0"
  ],
  "maxItems": 10
}

A larger pull:

{
  "seriesIds": [
    "CUUR0000SA0"
  ],
  "maxItems": 200
}

Pricing

Pay-per-result: $0.021 per result collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

Results collected	Approximate cost
100 results	$2.10
1,000 results	$21.00
10,000 results	$210.00

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. Upgrade your Apify plan to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

Run it

1. Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit.
2. Open the BLS CPI Data Scraper.
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click Start.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the Dataset tab.

Run it programmatically through the Apify API (run-sync-get-dataset-items) or the ApifyClient for JavaScript and Python.

Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to Bureau of Labor Statistics through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

$claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=parseforge/bls-cpi-data-scraper"

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

Troubleshooting

Why am I getting no results?

Check that your series IDs are valid BLS CPI identifiers. You can verify them on the BLS data finder website. Also ensure your start year is not after your end year.

Why is my run returning fewer data points than expected?

The BLS API may not have data for every month in your requested range, or you may have hit the maxItems limit. Try increasing the maximum data points or widening your date range.

I got an error about an invalid series ID.

Series IDs are case-sensitive and must match exactly. Common CPI-U series start with 'CUUR' or 'CUSR'. Double-check the ID on the BLS website.

The run timed out.

Requesting many series with long date ranges can take time. Try reducing the number of series IDs or narrowing the date range. The BLS API has rate limits that may slow large requests.

Why are some months missing from my dataset?

The BLS does not publish CPI data for every month historically. Some series may have gaps, especially for regional or item-specific indices. This is expected behavior from the source.

FAQ

Question	Answer
Do I need a BLS API key?	No. The BLS public API version 2 does not require registration or an API key. You can start scraping immediately.
Where do I find BLS series IDs?	You can search for series IDs on the BLS website using their data finder tool. Common CPI series like CUUR0000SA0 for All Urban Consumers are pre-filled in the Actor input.
How far back does the CPI data go?	The BLS CPI data goes back to 1913. You can set the start year as early as 1913 in the Actor input to collect the full history.
Can I scrape multiple CPI series in one run?	Yes. Add multiple series IDs to the Series IDs input field and the Actor will collect data for all of them in a single run.
What is the maximum number of data points I can collect?	You can set the maximum data points up to one million per run. The Actor will stop once it reaches that limit.
What output formats are supported?	You can export your dataset to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML directly from the Apify platform.
Does this Actor include seasonal adjustment data?	The data returned depends on the series ID you request. The BLS offers both seasonally adjusted and unadjusted series. Use the appropriate series ID for your needs.
How often is the CPI data updated?	The BLS releases new CPI data monthly, typically around the middle of the month. You can schedule this Actor to run automatically after each release.
Can I get regional CPI data?	Yes. The BLS publishes CPI data for various regions and cities. Find the specific series ID for the region you need and add it to the input.
What is the difference between CPI-U and CPI-W?	CPI-U covers All Urban Consumers and represents about 93 percent of the population. CPI-W covers Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. Use the series ID that matches your analysis.

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🆘 Need help? Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ Disclaimer. This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.