# Reddit User Scraper (`backhoe/reddit-user-scraper`) Actor

Collect public Reddit user profiles including karma, registration date, and activity history (posts and comments). Track user engagement across multiple subreddits with context preservation.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/backhoe/reddit-user-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [D](https://apify.com/backhoe) (community)
- **Categories:** Social media
- **Features:** Full permissions
- **Stats:** 52 total users, 2 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 3 bookmarks
- **User rating**: 5.00 out of 5 stars

## Pricing

Pay per usage

This Actor is paid per platform usage. The Actor is free to use, and you only pay for the Apify platform usage, which gets cheaper the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-usage

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
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.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## 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.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## 👤 Reddit User Scraper

> **🆓 100% FREE** | **📜 Full Activity History** | **🔒 No API Key Required**

A detailed scraper for collecting public information about Reddit users and their activity history (posts and comments).

***

### ✨ Why Choose This Scraper?

- ✅ **Completely Free** - No hidden costs or subscriptions
- ✅ **No Reddit API Key Needed** - Works out of the box
- ✅ **Complete User Profiles** - Karma, history, and more
- ✅ **Residential Proxies Included** - Avoid rate limits
- ✅ **Context Preservation** - Links to original threads

***

### 🚀 Key Features

- **User Profile**: Karma, registration date, avatar
- **Activity History**: User's posts and comments
- **Comment Context**: Links to original threads
- **Pagination**: Automatic handling of large history
- **Metadata**: Timestamps, subreddits, upvotes

### 📋 Input Parameters

```json
{
  "startUrls": ["https://www.reddit.com/user/spez"],
  "maxItems": 50,
  "skipUserPosts": false,
  "debugMode": false
}
```

#### Parameters:

- **startUrls** (array, required): List of user profile URLs
- **maxItems** (integer): Maximum number of activity items
- **skipUserPosts** (boolean): Skip activity history collection
- **debugMode** (boolean): Detailed logging

### 📤 Output Data

#### User Profile:

```json
{
  "dataType": "user_profile",
  "url": "https://old.reddit.com/user/spez",
  "username": "spez",
  "karma": {
    "total": 123456
  },
  "created_at": "2005-06-06T00:00:00.000Z",
  "scrapedAt": "2025-01-20T10:30:00.000Z",
  "recent_activity": [...]
}
```

#### Activity (Post):

```json
{
  "type": "post",
  "id": "t3_abc123",
  "subreddit": "announcements",
  "title": "Post title",
  "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/announcements/comments/...",
  "created_utc": "1234567890",
  "scrapedAt": "2025-01-20T10:30:00.000Z"
}
```

#### Activity (Comment):

```json
{
  "type": "comment",
  "id": "t1_xyz789",
  "subreddit": "Python",
  "body": "Comment text",
  "context_title": "Original post title",
  "context_url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/Python/comments/...",
  "created_utc": "1234567890",
  "scrapedAt": "2025-01-20T10:30:00.000Z"
}
```

### 💡 Usage Examples

#### Full profile with history

```json
{
  "startUrls": ["https://www.reddit.com/user/spez"],
  "maxItems": 100
}
```

#### Profile information only (no activity)

```json
{
  "startUrls": ["https://www.reddit.com/user/username"],
  "skipUserPosts": true
}
```

#### Recent user activity

```json
{
  "startUrls": ["https://www.reddit.com/user/username"],
  "maxItems": 25
}
```

#### Monitor multiple users

```json
{
  "startUrls": [
    "https://www.reddit.com/user/user1",
    "https://www.reddit.com/user/user2",
    "https://www.reddit.com/user/user3"
  ],
  "maxItems": 50
}
```

### ⚙️ Technical Details

- **Memory**: 256 MB (optimized for efficiency)
- **Proxy**: Residential (automatic, included free)
- **Timeout**: 3600 seconds
- **Source**: old.reddit.com
- **Limitations**: Public profiles only

### 📝 Notes

- Support for various URL formats (u/username, /user/username/, full URL)
- Automatic pagination for large history
- Distinguishes between posts and comments in activity
- Context is preserved for comments (original post)
- Handles shadowbanned and deleted accounts
- All timestamps in UTC format
- Karma can be split into post/comment (if available)

### 🔒 Limitations

- Public data only
- Does not work with private profiles
- Limited history (Reddit doesn't show full history)
- Shadowbanned users return an error

***

### 🎯 Perfect For

- 👥 User behavior analysis
- 🔍 Influencer research
- 📊 Engagement tracking
- 🤖 Bot detection
- 📈 Community management

***

**💬 Questions or Issues?** Feel free to reach out or check the documentation!

## Actor input object example

```json
{}
```

# 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 = {};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("backhoe/reddit-user-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 = {}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("backhoe/reddit-user-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 '{}' |
apify call backhoe/reddit-user-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,backhoe/reddit-user-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/ILMCNaVwoOZyWEsrk/builds/vkCe1tCQ3yKJbHcyz/openapi.json