# CFPB Consumer Complaints Scraper (`parselab/cfpb-consumer-complaints-scraper`) Actor

Search millions of CFPB consumer financial complaints by company, product, issue, state, date or keyword. Get the company response, timely flag and relief outcome per complaint, or a company profile with response rates, top issues, top states and monthly trend. Export to CSV or Excel.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parselab/cfpb-consumer-complaints-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseLab](https://apify.com/parselab) (community)
- **Categories:** Business, Other
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $12.75 / 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/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

## CFPB Consumer Complaints Scraper

This CFPB scraper searches the Consumer Complaint Database, which holds more than 17 million complaints about banks, lenders, credit bureaus, debt collectors and other financial companies. Search by company, product, issue, state, date or keyword and get one row per complaint, or ask for a company profile and get one summary row that shows how a company handles complaints.

Complaint rows include the company response, whether the response was on time, whether the consumer got monetary or other relief, how many days it took to reach the company, the product and issue, the state and the link to the official complaint page. Company profile rows add totals, response rates, top products, top issues, top states, the channel mix and a monthly trend.

Compliance teams, journalists, lawyers, fintech analysts, investors and consumer advocates use it to compare companies and spot problems early.

### What can you do with this CFPB complaints scraper?

- Get all complaints about one company in a date range
- Compare banks by timely response rate and relief rate
- Find the most common complaint issues for a lender
- See which states file the most complaints about a company
- Track monthly complaint volume to spot spikes
- Search complaints by keyword, for example overdraft or identity theft
- Filter by product, such as mortgage, credit card or student loan
- Find complaints where the company gave monetary relief
- Build a watchlist of companies and refresh it every week
- Export CFPB complaint data to CSV or Excel

### What data can you extract from the CFPB?

| Mode | One row is | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| Individual complaints | One complaint | Complaint ID, dates, company, product, sub-product, issue, sub-issue, state, ZIP prefix, channel, company response, public response, timely flag, relief flags, days to company, tags, official link |
| Company profiles | One company over a date range | Total complaints, share of all complaints, timely response rate, monetary relief rate, non-monetary relief rate, response breakdown, top products, top issues, top states, channels, monthly trend |

You do not need the exact legal name of a company. Type `Wells Fargo` or `Experian` and the Actor finds the matching companies in the database.

### How to scrape CFPB complaints

1. Choose **Individual complaints** or **Company profiles**.
2. Enter one or more company names, or use keywords and filters for products, issues and states.
3. Set the received date range.
4. Set **Max Items** and click **Start**.
5. Export the dataset as CSV, Excel or from the Apify console.

### Input example

```json
{
  "mode": "complaints",
  "companies": ["Wells Fargo"],
  "products": ["Mortgage"],
  "dateFrom": "2025-01-01",
  "dateTo": "2025-06-30",
  "maxItems": 500
}
```

### Complaint output example

```json
{
  "complaintId": "11869580",
  "dateReceived": "2025-01-31",
  "dateSentToCompany": "2025-03-06",
  "daysToCompany": 34,
  "company": "WELLS FARGO & COMPANY",
  "product": "Debt collection",
  "issue": "Attempts to collect debt not owed",
  "subIssue": "Debt was result of identity theft",
  "state": "PA",
  "submittedVia": "Web",
  "companyResponse": "Closed with explanation",
  "timelyResponse": true,
  "gotMonetaryRelief": false,
  "complaintUrl": "https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-research/consumer-complaints/search/detail/11869580"
}
```

### Company profile output example

```json
{
  "company": "BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION",
  "dateFrom": "2025-01-01",
  "dateTo": "2025-03-31",
  "totalComplaints": 4579,
  "timelyResponsePct": 99.69,
  "monetaryReliefPct": 23.13,
  "nonMonetaryReliefPct": 6.27,
  "closedWithExplanationPct": 70.6,
  "topProducts": [
    { "name": "Checking or savings account", "count": 1489, "sharePct": 32.52 }
  ],
  "topStates": [
    { "name": "CA", "count": 889, "sharePct": 19.41 }
  ],
  "monthlyComplaints": [
    { "month": "2025-01", "complaints": 1880 },
    { "month": "2025-02", "complaints": 1295 },
    { "month": "2025-03", "complaints": 1404 }
  ]
}
```

### How much does it cost to scrape CFPB complaints?

You pay per result: $17 per 1,000 rows plus a tiny start fee. The free plan returns up to 10 rows per run. A company profile is one row, so profiling 50 companies costs a few cents.

### Tips for better results

- Start with a company profile to see which products and issues matter, then run complaints mode with those filters.
- Product, issue and response filters need the exact names used by the CFPB. Run a small search first and copy the names from the results.
- Complaints are returned newest first, so a small **Max Items** gives you the latest ones.
- The CFPB search feed does not include the free text narratives that consumers can publish, so this Actor does not return them.
- Company profiles cover one year by default. Change the dates to compare periods.

### Who uses consumer complaint data?

- **Compliance and risk teams** monitor complaint trends for their own company and for vendors.
- **Journalists and researchers** find patterns across lenders and states.
- **Lawyers** look for issues repeated across many consumers.
- **Analysts and investors** compare how companies resolve complaints.

### Automate and connect

Schedule the Actor weekly with the same company list to watch complaint volume and response rates over time. Send finished datasets to Google Sheets, Zapier, Make or n8n, or trigger a webhook when a run ends.

### FAQ

**Do I need a CFPB account?**
No. The Actor works without any login.

**How often is the database updated?**
The CFPB adds complaints every day, so recent complaints usually appear within a few days of receipt.

**Why is a company missing?**
Only companies that received complaints through the CFPB are listed. Try a shorter version of the name.

**Does it include the complaint text?**
No. The narrative is not part of the CFPB search feed used by this Actor.

**Can I see how many complaints a company got each month?**
Yes. Turn on the monthly trend in company profile mode.

### Legal note

This Actor collects information that is publicly visible on the website. Check the source site's terms and your local rules before using the data. It is not affiliated with the CFPB.

### Support

Missing a field or found a bug? Open an issue from the Actor page.

# Actor input Schema

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

Free users: Limited to 10 items (preview). Paid users: Optional, max 1,000,000.

## `mode` (type: `string`):

Complaints returns one row per complaint, newest first. Company profile returns one summary row per company with totals, response rates, top products, issues and states, and a monthly trend.

## `companies` (type: `array`):

Company names to search, for example Wells Fargo or Experian. You do not need the exact legal name, the Actor finds the matching companies. Required for company profile mode.

## `maxCompaniesPerName` (type: `integer`):

How many matching legal entities to include for each name you enter.

## `searchTerm` (type: `string`):

Keyword to search across the complaint fields, for example overdraft or identity theft.

## `products` (type: `array`):

Exact product names such as Mortgage, Credit card, Debt collection, Checking or savings account or Student loan.

## `issues` (type: `array`):

Exact issue names such as Managing an account or Fraud or scam.

## `states` (type: `array`):

Two letter US state codes such as CA, TX, NY.

## `companyResponses` (type: `array`):

Exact response types such as Closed with explanation, Closed with monetary relief or Closed with non-monetary relief.

## `timely` (type: `string`):

Keep only complaints where the company did or did not respond on time.

## `submittedVia` (type: `array`):

How the complaint was sent, for example Web, Phone, Referral, Postal mail, Email or Fax.

## `dateFrom` (type: `string`):

First complaint received date, YYYY-MM-DD. For company profiles the default is one year before the end date.

## `dateTo` (type: `string`):

Last complaint received date, YYYY-MM-DD.

## `includeMonthlyTrend` (type: `boolean`):

In company profile mode, add the number of complaints per month for up to 36 months. This makes the run a little slower.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10,
  "mode": "complaints",
  "companies": [
    "Wells Fargo"
  ],
  "maxCompaniesPerName": 3,
  "timely": "any",
  "includeMonthlyTrend": true
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `overview` (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 = {
    "maxItems": 10,
    "companies": [
        "Wells Fargo"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parselab/cfpb-consumer-complaints-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 = {
    "maxItems": 10,
    "companies": ["Wells Fargo"],
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parselab/cfpb-consumer-complaints-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 '{
  "maxItems": 10,
  "companies": [
    "Wells Fargo"
  ]
}' |
apify call parselab/cfpb-consumer-complaints-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parselab/cfpb-consumer-complaints-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/iMLL04K26rbhM2xH3/builds/ktXSP0dEO6hYJNLJg/openapi.json