LinkedIn Profile Scraper

Extract detailed information from LinkedIn profiles quickly and easily. Get comprehensive data including work experience, education, connections, and more.

Features

• ✅ Scrape multiple LinkedIn profiles at once
• ✅ Extract complete profile information
• ✅ Get work experience and education history
• ✅ Retrieve connection and follower counts
• ✅ Export data in JSON format
• ✅ Fast and reliable processing

How It Works

This actor uses a two-step process:

1. Generate Snapshot ID: Submit LinkedIn profile URLs to start the scraping process
2. Fetch Data: After 30 seconds, retrieve your scraped data using the snapshot ID

Why two steps? This approach ensures reliable data collection and prevents timeouts for large scraping jobs.

Input

Required Fields

• Action (required): Choose between:
  • generate_snap_id - Start a new scraping job
  • fetch_data - Retrieve results from a completed job

For "Generate Snapshot ID" Action

• LinkedIn Profile URLs (required): Enter LinkedIn profile URLs, one per line

For "Fetch Data" Action

• Snapshot ID (required): The ID you received from the generate step

Input Examples

Step 1: Start Scraping

{
  "action": "generate_snap_id",
  "urls": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamhgates/\nhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/satyanadella/\nhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffweiner08/"
}

Result: You'll receive a snapshot ID like linkedIn_profile_s_abc123xyz

Step 2: Get Your Data (Wait 30 seconds first!)

{
  "action": "fetch_data",
  "snap_id": "linkedIn_profile_s_abc123xyz"
}

Output

Data Fields Extracted

• Full Name
• Current Position & Company
• Location (City, Country)
• Professional Summary
• Complete Work Experience
• Education History
• Skills
• Number of Connections
• Number of Followers
• Profile URL
• Profile Picture

Example Output

{
  "name": "Bill Gates",
  "city": "Seattle",
  "country_code": "us",
  "about": "Co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Founder of Breakthrough Energy...",
  "current_company": {
    "name": "Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation",
    "location": "Seattle, WA",
    "link": "https://www.linkedin.com/company/bill-&-melinda-gates-foundation"
  },
  "experience": [
    {
      "title": "Co-chair",
      "company": "Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation",
      "duration": "2000 - Present",
      "location": "Seattle, Washington"
    }
  ],
  "education": [
    {
      "school": "Harvard University",
      "degree": "Attended",
      "field_of_study": "Computer Science",
      "dates": "1973 - 1975"
    }
  ],
  "followers": 35720000,
  "connections": "500+",
  "url": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamhgates/",
  "avatar": "https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/..."
}

Important: Wait Time

⚠️ You must wait at least 30 seconds between steps 1 and 2

The scraping process needs time to gather all the data. If you try to fetch data too soon, you may get an error or incomplete results.

Pro tip: Set a timer for 30 seconds after receiving your snapshot ID!

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Prepare Your URLs

   • Collect the LinkedIn profile URLs you want to scrape
   • Make sure they're complete URLs (starting with https://)

2. Start the Job

   • Set Action to "Generate Snapshot ID"
   • Paste your URLs (one per line)
   • Click Run
   • Copy the snapshot ID from the results

3. Wait

   • Set a timer for 30 seconds
   • Grab a coffee ☕

4. Get Your Data

   • Set Action to "Fetch Data"
   • Paste the snapshot ID you copied
   • Click Run
   • Your data will appear in the dataset!

Tips & Best Practices

URL Format

✅ Correct: https://www.linkedin.com/in/username/ ❌ Incorrect: linkedin.com/in/username (missing https://) ❌ Incorrect: https://www.linkedin.com/in/username/details/experience/ (too specific)

Batch Processing

• You can scrape up to 100 profiles at once
• Each URL should be on a new line
• No commas or separators needed

Error Handling

If data fetching fails:

1. Wait another 30 seconds
2. Try fetching again with the same snapshot ID
3. Check that your snapshot ID is complete and correct

Use Cases

• Recruitment: Research candidates and their backgrounds
• Sales Prospecting: Gather information about potential leads
• Market Research: Analyze professionals in specific industries
• Networking: Research people before connecting
• Competitive Analysis: Study profiles of competitors' employees

Pricing & Limits

• Charged per profile scraped
• No limit on number of profiles per run
• Snapshot IDs are valid for 24 hours
• Data is available in your dataset for 7 days

Common Questions

Q: How long does the snapshot ID remain valid? A: 24 hours. After that, you'll need to generate a new one.

Q: Can I scrape profiles from different countries? A: Yes, any public LinkedIn profile worldwide.

Q: What if a profile is private? A: Only publicly visible information will be extracted. Private profiles may return limited data.

Q: Can I use the same snapshot ID multiple times? A: Yes! You can fetch data multiple times with the same snapshot ID within 24 hours.

Q: What happens if I don't wait 30 seconds? A: You may receive an error or incomplete data. Always wait at least 30 seconds.

Data Format

All data is returned in JSON format and automatically saved to your Apify dataset. You can export it as:

• JSON
• CSV
• Excel
• XML
• RSS

Support

Having issues? Here's how to get help:

1. Check the Logs: The run logs contain detailed error messages
2. Common Issues:
   • "Invalid snapshot ID" → Check you copied the full ID
   • "Data not ready" → Wait longer before fetching
   • "Invalid URL" → Verify your LinkedIn URLs are correct
3. Contact Support: Reach out through Apify support for assistance

Privacy & Legal

• This actor only accesses publicly available information
• Respect LinkedIn's Terms of Service
• Use scraped data responsibly and in compliance with applicable laws
• Do not use for spam or unauthorized purposes

Updates & Changelog

We regularly update this actor to ensure compatibility with LinkedIn's structure. Check back for improvements and new features!

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Happy Scraping! 🚀