# Chess.com Player Scraper (`parseforge/chess-com-player-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes Chess.com player profiles by username and returns rating, title, country, followers, join date, and other public fields as flat rows.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/chess-com-player-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Games, Automation, Other
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $4.52 / 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.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

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

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
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.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — 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

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner.jpg)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### Chess.com Player Scraper

**Scrape Chess.com player profiles by username, up to a million per run.** Each record includes rating, title, country, followers, join date, and more. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Chess.com's official API requires OAuth and rate limits you. This reads the public player profile endpoints directly, by username list, and returns each player in one flat row. No app registration, no token, no per-request throttling.

| Who uses it | What they scrape Chess.com for |
|---|---|
| Chess coaches | Pull a student's rating history and title to plan lessons |
| Tournament organizers | Verify player identities and ratings before seeding brackets |
| Content creators | Gather stats on top players for videos and articles |
| Data analysts | Build datasets of player demographics and rating distributions |

### What it does

This Actor collects Chess.com player profiles by username and returns each one as a flat row with rating, title, country, followers, join date, and other public fields.

- 👥 **Bulk username input:** paste a list of usernames, one per line, and fetch them all in one run.
- 📊 **Flat row output:** every player becomes a single record with consistent fields, ready for spreadsheets.
- ⚡ **Fast public API:** reads Chess.com's public endpoints directly, no authentication or rate-limit headaches.
- 🔢 **Scalable collection:** free users get up to 10 records, paid users up to 1,000,000.

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

### What you can do with Chess.com data

**📈 Track rating changes over time.**

A chess coach runs the Actor weekly on their students' usernames to monitor rating progress and adjust training plans.

**🔍 Verify player identities for tournaments.**

A tournament organizer checks each entrant's username against Chess.com to confirm title, country, and rating before seeding.

**📊 Build a demographic dataset.**

A data analyst collects profiles of top 1000 players to study the distribution of countries, titles, and follower counts.

**🎥 Gather stats for content.**

A YouTuber pulls the latest ratings and titles of featured players to include accurate overlays in videos.

### Why choose this scraper

| | What you get |
|---|---|
| **No API key** | Uses Chess.com's public endpoints, so you skip OAuth and app registration. |
| **Bulk lookups** | Fetch hundreds or thousands of usernames in a single run. |
| **Consistent schema** | Every player returns the same fields, making analysis and export easy. |
| **Flexible export** | Download as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML from the Apify dataset. |

### How it compares

This Actor focuses on bulk Chess.com profile lookups by username, while the competitors below either aggregate ratings across multiple sites or analyze game history.

| Feature | ParseForge | Chess Ratings Aggregator | Chess Opponent Analyzer | Chess.com Player Scraper - Public Profile Data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulk username input | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| Chess.com profile fields (rating, title, country, followers) | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| Aggregates ratings from multiple sites (FIDE, Lichess, etc.) | No | Yes | Not listed | Not listed |
| Game history and opening analysis | No | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |
| Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, XML | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor with a list of Chess.com usernames, and set a maximum number of player records to collect. The Actor fetches each profile and returns it as a flat row. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
 "usernames": [
 "hikaru"
 ],
 "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
 "usernames": [
 "hikaru"
 ],
 "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.005 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $0.50 |
| 1,000 results | $5.00 |
| 10,000 results | $50.00 |

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](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [Chess.com Player Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/chess-com-player-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
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](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to Chess.com through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=parseforge/chess-com-player-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 the usernames are spelled correctly and are public. Some players may have private profiles that block access.

**Why did the run stop after 10 records?**

Free Apify users are limited to 10 player records per run. Upgrade to a paid plan to collect more.

**Why is a field missing for some players?**

Not all players have every field populated. For example, a player may not have a title or country listed. The Actor returns null for missing fields.

**Why did I get an error about rate limiting?**

Chess.com may temporarily block requests if you send too many too quickly. Reduce the number of usernames or add a delay between runs.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do I need a Chess.com API key? | No. This Actor uses Chess.com's public profile endpoints, which do not require authentication or an API key. |
| How many players can I scrape? | Free Apify users can collect up to 10 player records per run. Paid users can collect up to 1,000,000 records. |
| What data does it return? | Each player record includes username, rating, title, country, followers, join date, and other public profile fields. The exact fields are shown in the sample output. |
| Can I scrape a list of usernames? | Yes. Paste a list of usernames, one per line, into the input field. The Actor will fetch each one and return a row per player. |
| Does it work for titled players? | Yes, it works for any public Chess.com username, including grandmasters and other titled players. |
| What export formats are supported? | You can export the results as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML directly from the Apify dataset. |
| Is this legal? | This Actor only reads publicly available data from Chess.com. You are responsible for complying with Chess.com's terms of service and applicable laws. |
| Can I schedule this Actor to run automatically? | Yes, you can set up a schedule in Apify to run the Actor at regular intervals, such as daily or weekly. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **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 Chess.com, LLC. 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.

# Actor input Schema

## `usernames` (type: `array`):

List of usernames to fetch.

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

Free users are limited to 10 player records (preview). Paid users can collect up to 1,000,000.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "usernames": [
    "hikaru"
  ],
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# 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 = {
    "usernames": [
        "hikaru"
    ],
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/chess-com-player-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 = {
    "usernames": ["hikaru"],
    "maxItems": 10,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/chess-com-player-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 '{
  "usernames": [
    "hikaru"
  ],
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/chess-com-player-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/chess-com-player-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/sFkKN7jVAW4IhK9Zz/builds/sdQeT2QkRkz1KwoGU/openapi.json