VS Code Marketplace Extensions & Publishers Scraper

Here is one real result, with every field the actor returns (source-truncated description kept exactly as returned):

{
  "extensionId": "a6a0c5b2-d078-4bf5-a9ee-4e37054414b3",
  "extensionName": "code-runner",
  "displayName": "Code Runner",
  "publisherName": "formulahendry",
  "publisherDisplayName": "Jun Han",
  "publisherDomain": null,
  "publisherVerified": true,
  "description": "Run C, C++, Java, JS, PHP, Python, Perl, Ruby, Go, Lua, Groovy, PowerShell, CMD, BASH, F#, C#, VBScript, TypeScript, CoffeeScript, Scala, Swift, Julia, Crystal, OCaml, R, AppleScript, Elixir, VB.NET, Clojure, Haxe, Obj-C, Rust, Racket, Scheme, AutoHotkey, AutoIt, Kotlin, Dart, Pascal, Haskell, Nim, ",
  "version": "0.12.2",
  "installs": 41310173,
  "downloads": 186706,
  "averageRating": 4.410526275634766,
  "weightedRating": 4.411910988185038,
  "ratingCount": 285,
  "trendingWeekly": 0.22131247780562074,
  "trendingMonthly": 1.0245001050779272,
  "categories": ["Programming Languages"],
  "tags": ["c#", "c++", "code-runner-output", "erlang", "haskell", "java", "javascript", "keybindings", "multi-root ready", "perl", "php", "powershell", "python", "ruby", "rust"],
  "lastUpdated": "2024-04-05T09:29:47.393+00:00",
  "publishedDate": "2016-07-14T16:13:04.213+00:00",
  "releaseDate": "2016-07-14T16:13:04.213+00:00",
  "pricing": "Free",
  "preRelease": null,
  "repoUrl": "https://github.com/formulahendry/vscode-code-runner",
  "marketplaceUrl": "https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=formulahendry.code-runner",
  "source": "VS Code Marketplace",
  "observedAt": "2026-08-10T14:31:21.689Z"
}

The most complete VS Code Marketplace extensions scraper available. It returns every field the Marketplace search results expose per extension, including installs, downloads, the rating breakdown, publisher, version, categories, tags, and repository link, and gives you four inputs (keyword, category, sort order, and a result cap) to target exactly the extensions you need.

📥 Input · 📤 Output · 💰 Pricing · ▶️ Examples

Table of contents

• What it does
• Quickstart
• Input reference
• Output reference
• Example output record
• Run via API and CLI
• Fetch results
• Billing and limits
• FAQ and troubleshooting

What it does

The actor searches the Visual Studio Code Marketplace by keyword and optional category, orders the results by the sort you choose, and writes one record per extension to the run's dataset. Each record carries the fields shown on the Marketplace search results: install and download counts, the rating breakdown, publisher (with verification flag), version, publication and update dates, categories, tags, pricing, and the repository and Marketplace URLs.

Data covers the public VS Code Marketplace only. For the full version history, dependencies, extension pack, and download URLs of each extension, use the VS Code Extensions Scraper. To enumerate one publisher's whole catalog, use the VS Code Publishers Scraper.

Quickstart

Open the actor, paste this into the input, and press Run. It returns the 10 most-installed Python-related extensions.

{
  "searchQuery": "python",
  "sortBy": "installs",
  "maxExtensions": 10
}

Every field is optional. Leave searchQuery empty to browse the whole marketplace, add a category to narrow the results, or change sortBy to rating, updated, or trending.

Input reference

Field	Type	Required	Default	Description
searchQuery	string	no	python	Keyword matched against extension name, description, or tag, for example python, docker, ai, linter. Leave empty to browse the whole marketplace.
category	string	no	(any)	Restrict to one marketplace category, for example Programming Languages, Linters, Machine Learning, Snippets, Themes, Debuggers.
sortBy	enum	no	installs	Order the results: installs, rating, updated, trending, or relevance.
maxExtensions	integer	no	10	Maximum number of extensions to collect.

Output reference

One dataset item per extension. Types: string, number, boolean, string[], or null when the source value is absent.

Field	Type	Description
extensionId	string	Marketplace GUID for the extension.
extensionName	string	Short extension name.
displayName	string	Human-readable extension name.
publisherName	string	Publisher slug.
publisherDisplayName	string	Publisher display name.
publisherDomain	string	Publisher domain, or null.
publisherVerified	boolean	Whether the publisher is verified.
description	string	Extension description (may be truncated by the source).
version	string	Latest published version.
installs	number	Total install count.
downloads	number	Download count.
averageRating	number	Average star rating.
weightedRating	number	Marketplace weighted rating.
ratingCount	number	Number of ratings.
trendingWeekly	number	Weekly trending score.
trendingMonthly	number	Monthly trending score.
categories	string[]	Marketplace categories.
tags	string[]	Extension tags.
lastUpdated	string	Timestamp of the latest update.
publishedDate	string	First publication timestamp.
releaseDate	string	Original release timestamp.
pricing	string	Pricing (Free or Trial).
preRelease	boolean	Whether the latest version is a pre-release, or null.
repoUrl	string	Source repository URL.
marketplaceUrl	string	Public Marketplace page URL.
source	string	Data source tag (VS Code Marketplace).
observedAt	string	ISO 8601 timestamp of when the record was collected.

Example output record

Real record from a live run (input {"searchQuery":"python","sortBy":"installs","maxExtensions":10}), compact view:

{
  "extensionName": "code-runner",
  "displayName": "Code Runner",
  "publisherDisplayName": "Jun Han",
  "publisherVerified": true,
  "version": "0.12.2",
  "installs": 41310173,
  "averageRating": 4.410526275634766,
  "ratingCount": 285,
  "categories": ["Programming Languages"],
  "pricing": "Free",
  "repoUrl": "https://github.com/formulahendry/vscode-code-runner",
  "marketplaceUrl": "https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=formulahendry.code-runner",
  "observedAt": "2026-08-10T14:31:21.689Z"
}

Run via API and CLI

Start a run and wait for it to finish, then read the dataset. Replace <TOKEN> with your Apify API token.

Run synchronously and get dataset items in one call:

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/scrapers_lat~vscode-marketplace-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=<TOKEN>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"searchQuery":"python","sortBy":"installs","maxExtensions":25}'

Start a run asynchronously:

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/scrapers_lat~vscode-marketplace-scraper/runs?token=<TOKEN>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"category":"Themes","sortBy":"rating","maxExtensions":100}'

Apify CLI:

apify call scrapers_lat/vscode-marketplace-scraper \
  --input '{"searchQuery":"docker","sortBy":"trending"}'

Fetch results

Every run writes to a dataset. Fetch items as JSON, CSV, or Excel by changing format:

# JSON
curl "https://api.apify.com/v2/datasets/<DATASET_ID>/items?token=<TOKEN>&clean=true&format=json"

# CSV
curl "https://api.apify.com/v2/datasets/<DATASET_ID>/items?token=<TOKEN>&clean=true&format=csv"

# Paginate large datasets
curl "https://api.apify.com/v2/datasets/<DATASET_ID>/items?token=<TOKEN>&offset=1000&limit=1000"

<DATASET_ID> is returned as defaultDatasetId in the run object. Use offset and limit to page through large result sets. clean=true drops empty and internal fields.

Billing and limits

• Pay per result. You are charged per extension returned (result event). See the pricing tab for the current per-result price.
• No charge on failure. If a run errors, the actor writes a single item with a populated error field and does not charge for it. Empty runs cost nothing.
• Spend cap respected. Set maxTotalChargeUsd on the run; once reached, the actor stops emitting and charging further billable results.
• Free Apify plans are capped at 10 records per run. Upgrade for higher maxExtensions.

FAQ and troubleshooting

A run returned 0 records. Why? The keyword plus category combination matched nothing. Loosen the category, broaden the searchQuery, or leave searchQuery empty to browse the whole marketplace. Zero-result runs are not charged.

Why is description cut off? The Marketplace search results return a truncated description for some extensions. The value is kept exactly as the source returns it, never edited. For the full details, open the marketplaceUrl.

Why is publisherDomain or preRelease null? The publisher set no verified domain, or the source did not flag a pre-release for that extension. Missing values are returned as null, never invented.

How do I get full version history and download links? Use the VS Code Extensions Scraper, which adds version history, dependencies, extension pack, and VSIX download URLs.

Is this an official Microsoft tool? No. This actor is independent and has no affiliation with Microsoft or the Visual Studio Code Marketplace. It reads only data that is publicly available on the Marketplace.

Related scrapers

• VS Code Extensions Scraper: Deep per-extension data with version history, dependencies, and download URLs.
• VS Code Publishers Scraper: Enumerate a publisher's full extension catalog.
• Chrome Web Store Scraper: Chrome extension listings and metadata.
• GitHub Repositories Scraper: Repository metadata and stats.
• crates.io Scraper: Rust package registry metadata.

More scrapers at scrapers.lat

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Independent tool, not affiliated with Microsoft or the Visual Studio Code Marketplace. Accesses only publicly available Marketplace data.