# Open Library Scraper - Books, Authors & Editions (`scrapesage/openlibrary-scraper`) Actor

Search Open Library (openlibrary.org) for books: title, authors, first publish year, edition count, ISBN, publisher, subjects, ratings, page count, cover image and read/borrow access. Search by keyword. No API key, runs through Apify Proxy.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/scrapesage/openlibrary-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Scrape Sage](https://apify.com/scrapesage) (community)
- **Categories:** Other, Integrations, Agents
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $0.55 / 1,000 book scrapeds

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?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
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.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## 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.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## Open Library Scraper - Books, Authors & Editions

Search **Open Library** (openlibrary.org, from the Internet Archive) for books. Search by title, author, subject
or keyword and get clean rows with **authors**, **first publish year**, **edition count**, **ISBN**, **publisher**,
**subjects**, **ratings**, **page count**, **cover image** and **read/borrow access**. No API key.

### What you get per book

| Field | Meaning |
|---|---|
| `title` / `url` / `id` | Title, Open Library work URL, and work id |
| `authors` / `firstPublishYear` / `editionCount` | Authors, first publication year, number of editions |
| `isbn` / `publisher` / `languages` | An ISBN, publisher and languages |
| `subjects` | Up to 10 subject tags |
| `ratingsAverage` / `ratingsCount` / `pagesMedian` | Community rating, rating count and median page count |
| `ebookAccess` / `hasFullText` / `coverImage` / `iaId` | Ebook availability, cover image and Internet Archive id |
| `firstSentence` | Opening sentence (when recorded) |

### Input

```json
{ "searchQueries": ["tolkien", "python programming"], "maxItemsPerQuery": 100 }
```

- **Search terms** - title, author, subject or keyword, one per line.
- **Import from a file** - paste a list, or link a public `.txt`/`.csv`, a Google Sheet/Drive link, or an Apify key-value-store record.
- **Output fields** - trim every record to exactly the columns you need.

Leave everything empty and the run returns a small free sample so you can see the shape first.

### Reliability

Reads the official Open Library search API directly. Open Library is a community service with variable response
times, so the actor uses a generous timeout and retries; a search that genuinely returns nothing, or an import
that cannot be read, bills **$0** and says why. Long runs stop cleanly before the timeout.

### Honest limits

- **`firstSentence` and `hasFullText` are populated only where Open Library has the data** - many titles have no
  recorded first sentence, and print-only books have no ebook copy.
- Open Library's endpoint can be slow under load; the actor retries, but very large runs take proportionally longer.

### Pricing

**$0.001 per book** on the FREE tier (tiered pricing lowers it with volume). Only books actually saved are
billed; empty searches and unreadable imports cost nothing.

### Output views

- **Books** - title, authors, year, edition count, rating and the Open Library URL.

### Use with AI assistants (MCP)

Available through the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp) - an agent can look up
a book's editions and ISBNs, enrich a reading list, or pull a subject's catalog in one call.

# Actor input Schema

## `searchQueries` (type: `array`):

Book search terms, one per line (title, author, subject or keyword). <b>Leave empty and the run returns a small free sample.</b>

## `searchQueriesFromFile` (type: `string`):

Bulk-load search terms. Either <b>paste the whole list</b> (one per line), or give <b>a single link</b> to a public <code>.txt</code>/<code>.csv</code>, a Google Sheet/Drive link, or an Apify key-value-store record. A file that cannot be read says so and charges nothing.

## `maxItemsPerQuery` (type: `integer`):

How many books to collect for each search term (about 100 per result page).

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

Overall cap across all search terms. You are only charged for books actually saved.

## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`):

Optional. Open Library is a public API; a direct connection is used by default (most reliable). Enable RESIDENTIAL proxy only if you run very high volume.

## `outputFields` (type: `array`):

Pick the fields you want and every record is trimmed to exactly those - handy for lean CSV/Sheets exports.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "searchQueries": [
    "tolkien"
  ],
  "maxItemsPerQuery": 100,
  "maxItems": 1000,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": false
  }
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

Each book - title, authors, year, ISBN, subjects, ratings - as a JSON item in the default dataset.

# 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 = {
    "searchQueries": [
        "tolkien"
    ],
    "searchQueriesFromFile": ""
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("scrapesage/openlibrary-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 = {
    "searchQueries": ["tolkien"],
    "searchQueriesFromFile": "",
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("scrapesage/openlibrary-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 '{
  "searchQueries": [
    "tolkien"
  ],
  "searchQueriesFromFile": ""
}' |
apify call scrapesage/openlibrary-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,scrapesage/openlibrary-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/f61yRlbKLzHxYDG9o/builds/yLkKK6HNGjmswwL6l/openapi.json