Facebook Video Search Scraper

Facebook Video Search Scraper

The Facebook Video Search Scraper is a keyword-driven Facebook video search tool that crawls Facebook Watch search results and extracts structured metadata at scale. It solves the challenge of collecting reliable Facebook video search results by turning your keywords into watch search queries and returning clean JSON records per video. Built for marketers, developers, data analysts, and researchers, this Facebook video scraper functions as a focused Facebook video search results scraper to help you scrape Facebook videos by keyword, analyze trends, and power automated Facebook video search workflows.

What data / output can you get?

This actor saves structured items to the Apify dataset for each video found in Facebook Watch search results. Below are real output fields with examples:

Data type	Description	Example value
title	Video title or caption	"Football dribbling tutorial skills"
videoUrl	Direct link to the video	https://www.facebook.com/reel/3741185169350361/
facebookUrl	Source Facebook Watch search URL	https://www.facebook.com/watch/search?q=football
thumbnail_image.uri	Video thumbnail URL	https://scontent.fepa12-1.fna.fbcdn.net/...jpg
video_duration_text	Duration shown in UI	"0:25"
video.id	Video identifier	"3741185169350361"
video_owner_profile.name	Owner/page/user name	"catarciva"
video_owner_profile.url	Owner profile/page URL	https://www.facebook.com/people/catarciva/61579368448938/
video_owner_profile.is_verified	Verification status (true/false)	false
relative_time_string	Relative publish time and views (when available)	"12 hours ago · 326 views"
save_description	Saved/posted text (when available)	"Recreating viral dribbling skills ⚽🔥 ..."
label	Accessibility label with compact metadata	"Football dribbling tutorial skills\ncatarciva\nVideo length:0minutes; 25seconds\n12 hours ago \n 326 views"
query	Your original search keyword	"football"

Notes:

• Results are stored in the Apify dataset, ready to export as JSON, CSV, or Excel.
• Some fields can be null when not present in the source (e.g., video_broadcast_status, thumbnail_image, save_description, video).

Key features

• 🔍 Keyword-based Facebook Watch video scraping
  Enter keywords (e.g., “football”, “cricket”) and the actor turns them into Facebook Watch search URLs automatically, working as a Facebook video search scraper tool for discovery.

• 📦 Structured metadata extraction
  Acts as a Facebook video metadata extractor, returning clean fields like title, videoUrl, duration, owner profile, and more — ideal for analytics and cataloging.

• 🔁 Robust pagination & batching
  Uses Facebook’s GraphQL with cursors and batch requests (up to 20 per page), operating as a reliable Facebook video crawler for scaled runs.

• 🌐 Smart proxy handling
  Automatically sets up Apify Residential proxies and handles fallback when blocked — essential for consistent automated Facebook video search at scale.

• 💾 Fast dataset saves
  Pushes results in batches to the Apify dataset for efficient storage and downstream integration.

• 🧰 Developer-friendly & API-ready
  Runs on the Apify platform with API access and SDKs, making it easy to integrate into pipelines as a Facebook video API scraper for automation.

• 📤 Flexible exports
  Export your dataset to JSON, CSV, or Excel from Apify. Great for BI dashboards, notebooks, or warehouses.

• 🚫 No login required
  Scrapes publicly available Facebook Watch search result data without authentication.

How to use Facebook Video Search Scraper - step by step

1. Create or log in to your Apify account.
2. Open the “Facebook Video Search Scraper” actor.
3. Enter Search Keywords in “🔍 Search Keywords” (one keyword per line). Example: football, cricket.
4. Set “🎯 Max Videos per Query” to control how many results you want per keyword (1–1000).
5. (Optional) Configure “🌐 Proxy & Privacy” if needed. The actor sets up Apify Residential proxies automatically for reliability.
6. Click Start to run. The actor will query Facebook Watch search, paginate results, and extract structured video data.
7. When finished, open the Dataset tab to preview results and export to JSON, CSV, or Excel.

Pro tip: Use Apify’s API or SDK to trigger runs and fetch datasets programmatically for automated workflows.

Use cases

Use case	Description
Trend analysis for social video	Track topics via an automated Facebook video search and export structured results for dashboards.
Competitive benchmarking	Use this Facebook Watch video scraper to compare engagement patterns across creators and pages.
Content research & planning	Leverage the Facebook video search tool to discover themes, formats, and durations that perform.
Data pipelines & enrichment	Pipe JSON outputs into your stack as a Facebook video API scraper integrated with ETL/ELT jobs.
Cataloging video URLs	Use it as a Facebook video URL extractor to build link catalogs with owner and timing metadata.
Academic & media studies	Collect reproducible datasets for research using a transparent Facebook video search results scraper.

Why choose Facebook Video Search Scraper?

This actor is built for precision, resilience, and automation on the Apify platform.

• ✅ Accurate, structured output aligned to real UI fields
• ⚡ Scales with cursor-based pagination and batched saves
• 🔄 Resilient with retries and residential proxy fallback
• 🧑‍💻 Developer-ready with API access and SDK integrations
• 💾 Easy exports to JSON, CSV, or Excel from the dataset
• 🛡️ Public data only; no login required and no private data access
• 🧱 More reliable than brittle extensions or manual copy-paste approaches

In short, it’s a production-ready Facebook video scraper for teams who need dependable, repeatable results.

Is it legal / ethical to use Facebook Video Search Scraper?

Yes — when used responsibly. This actor targets publicly available Facebook Watch search result data and does not access private or authenticated content.

Guidelines:

• Scrape only public information you’re allowed to process.
• Respect Facebook’s Terms of Service and platform policies.
• Ensure compliance with applicable laws (e.g., GDPR/CCPA) for your use case.
• Do not use scraped data for spam or abusive activities.
• Consult your legal team for edge cases or regulated workflows.

Input parameters & output format

Example input JSON

{
  "startUrls": [
    "football",
    "cricket"
  ],
  "maxVideos": 100,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": false
  }
}

Parameters

• startUrls (array, required)
  Description: One keyword per line. The actor turns them into Facebook search URLs automatically. Examples: cricket, football, basketball, cooking, travel.
  Default: none (prefill: ["football"])

• maxVideos (integer, optional)
  Description: How many videos to scrape per keyword (1–1000). Higher = more results, longer run.
  Default: 20

• proxyConfiguration (object, optional)
  Description: Optional. No proxy by default. If Facebook blocks you, the actor tries datacenter then residential proxies.
  Default: { "useApifyProxy": false }

Example output JSON

[
  {
    "facebookUrl": "https://www.facebook.com/watch/search?q=football",
    "videoUrl": "https://www.facebook.com/reel/3741185169350361/",
    "label": "Football dribbling tutorial skills\ncatarciva\nVideo length:0minutes; 25seconds\n12 hours ago \n 326 views",
    "thumbnail_image": {
      "uri": "https://scontent.fepa12-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t15.5256-10/576954535_1838211696828047_7646208128211985519_n.jpg?stp=c0.83.206.115a_dst-jpg_p206x206_tt6&_nc_cat=101&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=e3495b&_nc_ohc=mV6QtxACSCoQ7kNvwFLsYlb&_nc_oc=Adn8WYKUVl-Ep3lZDZmyb84by2YmJyIsVHj5DrBHpBYPEbvOBbe_4faD7mXDFcC_LkA&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent.fepa12-1.fna&_nc_gid=suKoZL0YId0hW3UWNHfsNg&oh=00_AfiFzbJtC8D_ua-0cH56gefoZSrGUneVWaTi8xF7-1insA&oe=691251C1"
    },
    "video_duration_text": "0:25",
    "video": {
      "id": "3741185169350361"
    },
    "video_owner_profile": {
      "__typename": "User",
      "id": "61579368448938",
      "__isNode": null,
      "__isActor": "User",
      "name": "catarciva",
      "url": "https://www.facebook.com/people/catarciva/61579368448938/",
      "is_verified": false
    },
    "video_broadcast_status": null,
    "save_description": "Recreating viral dribbling skills ⚽🔥\n\n#football #footballskills ...",
    "title": "Football dribbling tutorial skills",
    "relative_time_string": "12 hours ago · 326 views",
    "facebookId": "https://www.facebook.com/watch/search?q=football",
    "inputUrl": "https://www.facebook.com/watch/search?q=football",
    "query": "football"
  }
]

Field notes:

• Nullable fields: video_broadcast_status, thumbnail_image, video, save_description can be null if missing in the source.
• The actor also appends query to each record so you can trace results back to your keyword.

FAQ

Is there a free way to try it?

Yes. You can run this actor on Apify and use platform export features to evaluate results before scaling up.

Do I need to log in to Facebook?

No. The actor works on publicly available Facebook Watch search pages and does not require authentication.

What data does it extract from videos?

It returns structured fields such as title, videoUrl, video_duration_text, thumbnail_image.uri, video.id, owner profile details, relative_time_string, and more, plus your original query for traceability.

How many videos can I scrape per keyword?

You control this with maxVideos (1–1000). The actor paginates through search results and stops when the limit is reached or no more pages are available.

Can I export to CSV or Excel?

Yes. Open the run’s Dataset and export to JSON, CSV, or Excel directly from Apify.

Does it work for Facebook Watch search results specifically?

Yes. It targets Facebook Watch search results generated from your keywords and operates as a dedicated Facebook Watch video scraper.

Can I integrate it into my data pipeline?

Yes. Access the dataset and runs via the Apify API/SDK to build repeatable pipelines with this Facebook video API scraper.

Is this a video downloader?

No. It extracts metadata and links (e.g., videoUrl) from search results but does not download media.

Final thoughts

The Facebook Video Search Scraper is built for fast, reliable extraction of public Facebook Watch search results at scale. It delivers structured video metadata, resilient pagination, and automation-ready outputs for marketers, developers, analysts, and researchers. Use the Apify API/SDK to integrate it into your workflows, export to CSV/JSON/Excel, and start turning Facebook’s video search into actionable data — in minutes.