France Data.gouv.fr Scraper

France Data.gouv.fr Scraper

Scrape French public datasets from data.gouv.fr by keyword, organization, or tag, up to a million per run. Each dataset comes with its title, description, publisher, update date, and resource links. No API key required. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Finding open data on data.gouv.fr means browsing pages of results or learning the API. This Actor searches the public catalog directly, filters by organization, tag, or full-text query, and returns each matching dataset in one flat row. It is the fastest way to build a list of French public datasets for research, monitoring, or integration.

Who uses it	What they scrape data.gouv.fr for
Data journalists	Monitor newly published datasets on a specific topic like energy or health.
Open data advocates	Audit which public organizations are releasing data and how often.
Researchers	Build a corpus of French public datasets for a literature review or meta-analysis.
Developers	Feed a data catalog or dashboard with up-to-date metadata from the French open data portal.

What it does

This Actor collects dataset metadata from data.gouv.fr by search term, organization, or tag, and returns each one as a flat row.

• 🔍 Full-text search: Find datasets by any keyword, such as 'transport', 'santé', or 'covid-19'.
• 🏢 Organization filter: Limit results to a single publisher using its ID or slug, like 'ministere-de-l-interieur'.
• 🏷️ Tag filter: Narrow results to a specific tag, such as 'energie', 'environnement', or 'démographie'.
• 📊 Flexible sorting: Order results by creation date, last modification, number of followers, or view count.

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

What you can do with data.gouv.fr data

📈 Monitor new open data releases.

A data journalist runs the Actor weekly with a keyword like 'santé' and the 'Newest first' sort to spot new health datasets as soon as they appear.

🏛️ Audit organizational transparency.

An open data advocate filters by a ministry's organization ID to list all datasets it has published and check their update frequency.

🔬 Gather research corpora.

A researcher searches for 'climat' and filters by the tag 'environnement' to compile a list of climate-related datasets for a meta-analysis.

🔄 Feed a data portal or app.

A developer schedules the Actor to collect the most followed datasets daily and pushes the metadata into a community data catalog.

Why choose this scraper

	What you get
No API key	Reads the public catalog without registration or authentication.
Fixed schema	Every dataset returns the same fields: title, description, organization, license, and more.
Large scale	Collect up to 1,000,000 datasets in a single run.
Multiple exports	Download results as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

How it compares

This Actor focuses on scraping dataset metadata from data.gouv.fr, while the competitors below target different French data sources.

Feature	ParseForge	DVF France - Transactions Immobilières API	France Companies (SIRENE) Scraper
Scrapes data.gouv.fr dataset catalog	Yes	Not listed	Not listed
Full-text keyword search	Yes	Not listed	Not listed
Filter by organization	Yes	Not listed	Not listed
Filter by tag	Yes	Not listed	Not listed
Sort by followers or views	Yes	Not listed	Not listed

Configure the run

Drive the Actor with a search term, organization ID, and tag, alone or together, and filters run as each dataset is read so only matches reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

{
 "maxItems": 10,
 "query": "transport"
}

A larger pull:

{
 "maxItems": 200,
 "query": "transport"
}

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 France Data.gouv.fr 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 data.gouv.fr 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/france-data-gouv-scraper"

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

Troubleshooting

Why am I getting no results?

Check your search term, organization ID, or tag for typos. Try a broader keyword or remove one filter to see if results appear. The catalog may also have no datasets matching your exact combination.

The Actor returns fewer datasets than I expected.

The maximum items setting limits the output. Increase it if you need more. Also, your filters may be too restrictive; try relaxing them.

Some datasets have missing descriptions or tags.

This is normal. Not all publishers fill in every metadata field. The Actor returns whatever is publicly available on the catalog.

I get an error about the organization filter.

Make sure you are using the organization ID or slug exactly as it appears in the data.gouv.fr URL, for example 'ministere-de-l-interieur' not 'Ministère de l'Intérieur'.

FAQ

Question	Answer
Do I need an API key to use this Actor?	No. It reads the public data.gouv.fr catalog directly, so no registration or API key is required.
What data does this Actor return?	It returns metadata for each dataset: title, description, organization, license, creation and update dates, tags, and links to the actual data resources.
Can I filter by a specific ministry or city?	Yes. Use the organization filter with the publisher's ID or slug, such as 'ministere-de-l-interieur' or 'ville-de-paris'.
How many datasets can I collect in one run?	You can set the maximum up to 1,000,000 datasets. The Actor stops when it reaches that number or when there are no more matches.
Does it download the actual data files?	No. This Actor collects the dataset descriptions and links to the resources. You can use another Actor or tool to download the files from those links.
Can I search in French?	Yes. The search term accepts French keywords like 'transports', 'logement', or 'élections'.
What is the difference between sorting by followers and views?	Followers are users who subscribed to a dataset for updates. Views count how often the dataset page was visited. Both indicate popularity.
Can I combine filters?	Yes. You can set a search term, an organization, and a tag all at once to narrow results to exactly what you need.
What formats can I export the results to?	You can export your dataset to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML from the Apify platform.
Is this Actor affiliated with the French government?	No. This is an independent tool that reads the public catalog of data.gouv.fr, which is operated by DINUM.

Related actors

Browse the full ParseForge collection 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 DINUM (Direction Interministérielle du Numérique). 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.