Wikimedia Commons Recent Files Scraper

Wikimedia Commons Recent Files Scraper

Scrape recent file uploads from Wikimedia Commons by search term, up to a million per run. Each file comes with its title, uploader, timestamp, and SHA-1 hash. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Wikimedia Commons holds millions of freely licensed media files, but tracking the latest uploads manually is slow. This Actor reads the public upload log directly, filters by file title, and returns each match in one fixed schema.

Who uses it	What they scrape Wikimedia Commons for
Digital archivists	Monitor new freely licensed media added to the Commons for curation.
Content creators	Find the latest free-to-use images and videos for projects.
Researchers	Track upload patterns and contributor activity on Wikimedia Commons.
Media monitoring services	Feed a pipeline of new Commons files into a searchable database.

What it does

This Actor collects recent file uploads from Wikimedia Commons by optional search term and returns each one as a flat row.

• 🔍 Search filter: Narrow results to file titles containing your keyword.
• ⚙️ Max items control: Set a hard limit from 1 to 1,000,000 files per run.
• 📦 Structured output: Every row includes the log ID, file title, uploader, timestamp, and SHA-1 hash.

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

What you can do with Wikimedia Commons data

📸 Build a free media feed.

A content curator runs the Actor daily with no search term to collect every new upload and surface fresh images for a newsletter.

🔎 Find specific recent uploads.

A researcher enters a species name as the search term to pull only the latest wildlife photos uploaded to the Commons.

📊 Analyze upload trends.

A data analyst scrapes all recent files for a week and groups them by uploader to see who the most active contributors are.

Why choose this scraper

	What you get
No API key required	Reads the public upload log with zero authentication.
Fixed flat schema	Every file returns the same fields for easy analysis.
Search by title	Filter recent uploads to only files matching your term.
Scalable volume	Retrieve up to a million recent files in a single run.

What a Wikimedia Commons record looks like

Every record returns as one flat JSON row. Here is a real one from a run:

{
 "imageUrl": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5y/5y34s37iwf7v4vaozdovfnz40h02ayk",
 "title": "File:Archives du cabinet des médailles, série chronologique. Archives du cabinet des médailles (1885-1892). Correspondance 1890 - btv1b108478067 (278 of 290).jpg",
 "url": "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AArchives%20du%20cabinet%20des%20m%C3%A9dailles%2C%20s%C3%A9rie%20chronologique.%20Archives%20du%20cabinet%20des%20m%C3%A9dailles%20(1885-1892).%20Correspondance%201890%20-%20btv1b108478067%20(278%20of%20290).jpg",
 "logid": 408100238,
 "pageid": 200137514,
 "logpage": 200137514,
 "revid": 1280029449,
 "imgSha1": "5y34s37iwf7v4vaozdovfnz40h02ayk",
 "imgTimestamp": "2026-09-24T12:14:14Z",
 "type": "upload",
 "action": "upload",
 "user": "Gzen92Bot",
 "timestamp": "2026-09-24T12:14:14Z",
 "comment": "bibliothèque nationale de France btv1b108478067",
 "scrapedAt": "2026-09-24T12:14:18.122Z"
}

Every value above comes from a real run. A field a record does not have comes back as null.

Configure the run

Drive the Actor with an optional search term and a maximum item count, and the filter runs as each upload is read so only matches reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

{
 "maxItems": 10
}

A larger pull:

{
 "maxItems": 200
}

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. Set your inputs and any filters, then click Start.
3. 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 Wikimedia Commons through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

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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. It filters against the file title. Try removing the term to see all recent uploads, then refine.

The run stopped before reaching my max items.

The upload log has a finite number of recent entries. If the log is exhausted, the Actor finishes early.

I see a 10-item limit even though I set a higher max.

Free Apify accounts are capped at a 10-item preview. Upgrade to a paid plan to scrape more files.

The SHA-1 hash looks different from what I expected.

Wikimedia returns the hash in base-16 format. It matches the file content and can be used to verify integrity.

FAQ

Question	Answer
Do I need a Wikimedia account or API key?	No. This Actor reads the public upload log endpoint, which requires no authentication.
How many files can I scrape in one run?	Free users are limited to a 10-item preview. Paid users can set a maximum up to 1,000,000 files.
Can I filter by file type like PNG or SVG?	The search term filters against the file title. You can include a file extension like.png in your term to narrow results.
What data fields does the Actor return?	Each row includes the log ID, namespace, title, page ID, revision ID, SHA-1 hash, image timestamp, uploader, and comment.
Does this scrape the full file or the metadata?	It returns the metadata for each recent upload. The actual file binary is not downloaded.
How recent are the files?	The Actor reads the upload log in reverse chronological order, starting with the most recent uploads.
Can I get the file URL or dimensions?	The Actor returns the file title and page ID. You can construct the Commons file URL from the title.
Is there a rate limit?	The Actor respects Wikimedia's public API guidelines. It makes sequential requests with standard delays.

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 Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 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.