# Craigslist Listings Scraper (`straightforward_hydra/craigslist-listings-scraper`) Actor

Scrape Craigslist postings from any city and category: title, price, location, coordinates, images, posting date and URL. Optional detail pages add the full description and labelled attributes. No API key.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/straightforward\_hydra/craigslist-listings-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Dev D](https://apify.com/straightforward_hydra) (community)
- **Categories:** E-commerce, Automation, Other
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $2.00 / 1,000 listings

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#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

## Craigslist Listings Scraper

Scrape Craigslist postings from any city and any category — cars, apartments,
furniture, electronics, jobs, gigs, services — with price, location,
coordinates, images and posting date.

Paste the URL from your address bar. No API key, no login.

### Input

| Field | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| `startUrls` | Craigslist search or category URLs, e.g. `https://newyork.craigslist.org/search/cta` |
| `maxListingsPerUrl` | Postings per search (default 200) |
| `deepPaging` | Split large searches into price ranges to get past Craigslist's 360 limit (default on) |
| `scrapeDetails` | Also open each posting for description and attributes (default off) |
| `countryCode` | Region code for formatting, default `US` |
| `proxyConfiguration` | Optional |

Any filter already in the URL keeps working — `query=`, `min_price=`,
`max_price=`, `condition=`, `auto_make_model=`, `postal=` + `search_distance=`,
`hasPic=` and the rest are passed straight through.

### Output

One row per posting:

```json
{
  "posting_id": 7954550645,
  "title": "1973 Saab Sonett III Very Original Nice Driver",
  "price": 9950,
  "price_display": "$9,950",
  "currency": "USD",
  "posted_at": "2026-08-19T16:30:16+00:00",
  "area": "newyork",
  "sub_area": "que",
  "locality": "College Point",
  "neighborhood": null,
  "latitude": 40.7855,
  "longitude": -73.845,
  "numeric_attribute": 92352,
  "category": "cta",
  "image_count": 23,
  "images": ["https://images.craigslist.org/00J0J_kTZZwGZxE6G_0CI0pO_600x450.jpg"],
  "url": "https://www.craigslist.org/view/d/college-point-1973-saab-sonett-iii-very/7otq7YwAezoB18qskyJUX1"
}
```

With `scrapeDetails` on, each row also gets `description`, `attributes`
(a labelled map: condition, VIN, odometer, fuel, bedrooms, ...), `map_address`,
`location_accuracy` and `updated_at_local`.

`numeric_attribute` is a number Craigslist ships **without a label** — the
odometer reading on vehicles, a size or count elsewhere. It is deliberately not
renamed to something it might not be; turn on `scrapeDetails` for the properly
labelled attributes.

### The 360-result limit — please read

**Craigslist returns at most 360 postings for any one search.** That is the
site's own limit, not this Actor's, and there is no page or offset parameter
that gets past it.

With `deepPaging` on, a large search is split into price ranges and each range
is fetched separately, which is how a run reaches several thousand postings.
Measured on New York cars: **4,095 unique postings of the 4,208 that exist
(97%), in 47 seconds and 42 requests**, against 360 without it.

Two things follow from this:

- **Categories with no prices — jobs, gigs, community — are capped at 360.**
  There is nothing to slice on. The run logs this rather than looping.
- **Very large single-price groups stay capped.** If thousands of postings are
  all priced $0, that range cannot be split any further.

The reliable way to cover a big market is several narrower searches: by
sub-area, by keyword, or by explicit price band.

### Charging

Pay per event.

- `listing` — one posting from search results.
- `listing-details` — one posting whose own page was also fetched
  (`scrapeDetails` on). Charged instead of `listing`, never on top of it.

Postings already returned by an earlier URL in the same run are skipped and not
charged twice.

# Actor input Schema

## `startUrls` (type: `array`):

Any Craigslist search or category URL. Search on craigslist.org and copy the address, e.g. https://newyork.craigslist.org/search/cta. Filters in the URL (query, price, condition, make, postal code, distance) are all applied.

## `maxListingsPerUrl` (type: `integer`):

How many postings to collect per search URL. Craigslist returns 360 per request; more than that is gathered by splitting the search into price ranges.

## `deepPaging` (type: `boolean`):

Craigslist caps every single search at 360 results. With this on, larger searches are split into price ranges to reach several thousand postings. Turn it off for the fastest possible run. Has no effect on categories without prices, such as jobs.

## `scrapeDetails` (type: `boolean`):

Fetch every posting's own page to add the full description, labelled attributes (condition, VIN, odometer, bedrooms, ...), map address and update time. One extra request per posting, so runs take noticeably longer and are charged as listing-details.

## `countryCode` (type: `string`):

Craigslist region code used for formatting. Leave as US unless you are scraping a non-US site.

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

Optional. Craigslist is readable without a proxy, but a proxy helps on long runs or from busy networks.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "startUrls": [
    "https://newyork.craigslist.org/search/cta",
    "https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/apa"
  ],
  "maxListingsPerUrl": 200,
  "deepPaging": true,
  "scrapeDetails": false,
  "countryCode": "US",
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": false
  }
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `listings` (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 = {
    "startUrls": [
        "https://newyork.craigslist.org/search/cta",
        "https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/apa"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("straightforward_hydra/craigslist-listings-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 = { "startUrls": [
        "https://newyork.craigslist.org/search/cta",
        "https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/apa",
    ] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("straightforward_hydra/craigslist-listings-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 '{
  "startUrls": [
    "https://newyork.craigslist.org/search/cta",
    "https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/apa"
  ]
}' |
apify call straightforward_hydra/craigslist-listings-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,straightforward_hydra/craigslist-listings-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/9FcYDsTcw6u9pl0uK/builds/NiZVhxEbdMaoBmUQT/openapi.json