npm Package Release Monitor

npm package version monitor. Re-check npm packages you already depend on for a new latest version. Official registry. No tarball download.

This Actor is a scheduled watchlist, not a one-shot dump. You bring identifiers you already have. It returns structured current fields, a change type against your previous snapshot, and a NEXT_SNAPSHOT you own.

Why pay

Official npm registry (/{name}/latest) is free. The paid job is bounded, scheduled, charge-after-success monitoring with isolated snapshots, honest nulls, and no fee for failed lookups or suppressed unchanged rows.

• charges per successful watchlist item, with no Actor-start fee
• does not bill source errors or onlyChanges unchanged rows
• does not invent scores, contacts, or matches beyond what the source returned

Not an npm search. No tarball download. Scoped names (@scope/name) are supported.

What you get

{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "id": "lodash",
  "status": "ok",
  "packageName": "lodash",
  "version": "4.17.21",
  "license": "MIT",
  "changeType": "INITIAL",
  "error": null
}

Public example identifiers, not a customer or endorsement. Missing source strings are null — never "N/A".

Quick start

{
  "packages": [
    "lodash"
  ],
  "maxItems": 1
}

Run it, open the dataset, and save NEXT_SNAPSHOT from the default key-value store.

Repeat workflow

1. Keep one watchlist per customer or project.
2. Start a bounded run. Schedule it yourself if you need a cadence.
3. Save the returned NEXT_SNAPSHOT JSON in your private state.
4. On the next run pass it as previousSnapshot and set onlyChanges: true.
5. Route changeType: CHANGED rows for review.

No schedules are enabled by default. Snapshots use the run's default storage, never a shared named store.

Input

Field	Type	Default	What it does
packages	array	—	1–50 npm names, including @scope/name.
maxItems	integer	50	Must cover all unique items; a smaller value is rejected rather than silently dropping IDs.
onlyChanges	boolean	false	Suppress unchanged successful records without charging them. The first observation is still emitted.
previousSnapshot	object	—	Prior NEXT_SNAPSHOT with schemaVersion: 1, kind: "npm-package", and a records map.

Pricing

Event	Price	When it happens
Successful watchlist result	$0.0025 ($2.5 / 1,000)	One successful watchlist item written to the dataset
Actor start	none	No custom start fee

You are not charged for: failed requests, parse failures, invalid input, or unchanged records suppressed by onlyChanges. With onlyChanges: false, an unchanged successful refresh is delivered work and is charged. The run stops when eventChargeLimitReached is true.

Worked example. 50 packages daily, onlyChanges: true, 3 latest bumps/week → about 12 × $0.0025 = $0.03/month.

Set maxTotalChargeUsd on the run. The Actor launches with a $1.00 minimum max-cost-per-run so a high-volume schedule cannot cap itself at the Console $0.05 default.

Using the API

Keep APIFY_TOKEN on a protected backend.

curl --fail -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/technicaldost~npm-package-release-monitor/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"packages":["lodash"],"maxItems":1}'

JavaScript

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: process.env.APIFY_TOKEN });
const run = await client.actor('technicaldost/npm-package-release-monitor').call({
        "packages": [
            "lodash"
        ],
        "maxItems": 1
    });
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();

n8n. HTTP Request → POST https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/technicaldost~npm-package-release-monitor/runs with header Authorization: Bearer {{$credentials.apifyToken}}. Poll the run, then read the default dataset and NEXT_SNAPSHOT.

Limitations

• Public metadata only. No authentication bypass and no non-public personal data.
• Output is only as current as the official source. Lag and outages are reported as errors, not invented rows.
• One request at a time (except shared catalog fetches), 20 seconds per request.
• At most 1,000 snapshot records are retained; SUMMARY.snapshotPruned reports eviction.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by npm, Inc.

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md. Release 1.0.0 (2026-09-13): caller-owned watchlists, isolated snapshots, $0.0025 per successful result, no start fee.

Output example

Each result is one dataset item. A real item from a test run (long fields shortened):

{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "id": "lodash",
  "status": "ok",
  "packageName": "lodash",
  "version": "4.18.1",
  "license": "MIT",
  "description": "Lodash modular utilities.",
  "modifiedAt": null,
  "changeType": "INITIAL",
  "changedFields": [],
  "checkedAt": "2026-10-21T10:02:52.570Z",
  "sourceUrl": "https://registry.npmjs.org/lodash/latest"
}

Use npm Package Release Monitor with AI agents (MCP)

Give Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, VS Code or any MCP client this Actor as a tool through the hosted Apify MCP server. The agent sees the input fields with descriptions and example values, runs the Actor, and reads the results.

MCP server URL (this Actor only):

https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=technicaldost/npm-package-release-monitor

Claude Code:

$claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=technicaldost/npm-package-release-monitor" --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"

Cursor, VS Code, Claude Desktop and other clients (mcp.json or the client's MCP settings):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "apify": {
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=technicaldost/npm-package-release-monitor",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN" }
    }
  }
}

Clients that support sign-in (such as Claude.ai connectors) can use the URL without a token and log in to Apify instead. Get your token in Apify Console → Settings → API & Integrations, or generate a ready config for your client at mcp.apify.com. In the agent the tool is named technicaldost--npm-package-release-monitor; ask it, for example, to "run npm Package Release Monitor with {"packages": ["lodash"]}".

AI agents without an Apify account can also run and pay for this Actor per request with x402 agentic payments.

Run npm Package Release Monitor via API

Run the Actor and get its results in one call (replace YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN):

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/technicaldost~npm-package-release-monitor/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"packages": ["lodash"]}'

Python (pip install apify-client):

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN")
run = client.actor("technicaldost/npm-package-release-monitor").call(run_input={"packages": ["lodash"]})
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(item)

JavaScript / TypeScript (npm install apify-client):

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN' });
const run = await client.actor('technicaldost/npm-package-release-monitor').call({"packages": ["lodash"]});
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items);

Long runs: start them with POST /v2/acts/technicaldost~npm-package-release-monitor/runs and fetch the dataset when the run finishes, or receive a webhook.

Related Actors

• PyPI Package Release Monitor — Re-check PyPI packages you already depend on for a new version. Official JSON API. No download of wheels
• GitHub Latest Release Watchlist Monitor — Re-check public GitHub repositories you already watch for a new latest release tag. Official GitHub API. No pr
• OSV Package Vulnerability Scanner — Find vulnerabilities for npm, PyPI, Maven, Go, NuGet, RubyGems, and crates.io packages

FAQ

Can I use npm Package Release Monitor with AI agents like Claude or ChatGPT?

Yes. Connect the Apify MCP server with ?tools=technicaldost/npm-package-release-monitor (see above) and the agent can run the Actor and read its results on its own.

Can I call npm Package Release Monitor from my own code?

Yes. Use the REST API, or the official Python and JavaScript clients shown above. Results are available as JSON, CSV, Excel, XML or HTML.

How do I run it on a schedule?

Save your input as a task in Apify Console and add a schedule (for example, daily). Use webhooks or integrations to send each run's results onward.

Is it legal to use this Actor?

It works with publicly available data. Make sure your use complies with the source website's terms and with data protection laws such as GDPR, especially for personal data.

Something doesn't work or I need a feature. What should I do?

Open an issue in the Issues tab on this Actor's page with an example input, and we'll look into it.