# GitHub Trending — CSV Stars, Topics by Period, No Token (`knotless_cadence/github-trending-scraper`) Actor 20 runs. GitHub Trending repos in CSV/JSON — owner, name, url, language, stars, topics. Daily/weekly/monthly + lang filter, no token. Backed by 951-run Trustpilot flagship + 31-actor portfolio. For OSS scouting + VC dealflow. spinov001@gmail.com · blog.spinov.online · t.me/scraping_ai - **URL**: https://apify.com/knotless_cadence/github-trending-scraper.md - **Developed by:** [Alex](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence) (community) - **Categories:** Developer tools, Automation - **Features:** Limited permissions - **Stats:** 5 total users, 0 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## 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 ## GitHub Trending Scraper — Daily / Weekly / Monthly Trending Repos, Any Language **Get what's trending on GitHub — repositories sliced by language and time window — plus optional keyword-search results.** Scrapes the public `github.com/trending` page (which has no official REST API) and returns clean structured data for trend tracking, signal detection, and competitive intelligence. Run daily to build a longitudinal dataset of what's gaining traction. Combine repo-level `periodStars` with longer-term `stars` to identify genuinely breakout projects vs. short-burst hype. *** ### What you actually get (verified against `src/main.js`) The actor runs **two extraction modes** depending on input — TRENDING (the trending page) and SEARCH (the search results page). Each pushes one record per repo with slightly different fields. #### TRENDING records (12 fields per repo) ```json { "owner": "vercel", "name": "ai", "fullName": "vercel/ai", "url": "https://github.com/vercel/ai", "description": "The AI Toolkit for TypeScript", "language": "TypeScript", "stars": 18400, "forks": 2370, "periodStars": 1840, "trendingPeriod": "daily", "contributors": ["jaredpalmer", "shuding", "leerob"], "scrapedAt": "2026-04-29T12:00:00.000Z" } ``` `periodStars` = stars gained inside the trending window (daily / weekly / monthly), parsed from the float-right counter on the trending page. `contributors` is the up-to-5 visible avatars on the row (the "Built by" cluster). #### SEARCH records (10 fields per repo) ```json { "owner": "openai", "name": "openai-cookbook", "fullName": "openai/openai-cookbook", "url": "https://github.com/openai/openai-cookbook", "description": "Examples and guides for using the OpenAI API", "language": "Jupyter Notebook", "stars": 64200, "topics": ["openai", "gpt-4", "examples"], "updatedAt": "2026-04-28T09:11:00Z", "scrapedAt": "2026-04-29T12:00:00.000Z" } ``` SEARCH records include `topics[]` (parsed from `.topic-tag`) and `updatedAt` (from the `` element), and walk the `?p=2,3,...` pagination chain via the `rel="next"` link. **Honest disclosure on what's NOT extracted:** there is no developers-tab scrape, no trending-rank field, no language-color, no license, no sponsorship flag, and no separate `popular_repo` for trending developers. Earlier README versions claimed those — they don't exist in the code. *** ### Input | Parameter | Type | Default | Description | |-----------|------|---------|-------------| | `scrapeTrending` | boolean | `true` | If true, fetch the trending page(s). | | `trendingPeriod` | string | `"daily"` | One of `daily`, `weekly`, `monthly`. Single window per run. | | `languages` | array | `[]` | Language slugs (`python`, `typescript`, `rust`, `c++`, `jupyter-notebook`...). Empty array = all-languages trending page. | | `searchQueries` | array | `[]` | Keywords searched against `github.com/search?type=repositories&sort=stars`. SEARCH-mode pagination follows. | | `maxReposPerSource` | number | `50` | **DEAD PARAMETER** — destructured in main.js but never read. The `.each()` row iterators have no cap. Only effective limit is the crawler-level `maxRequestsPerCrawl: 200` (HTTP requests, not repos). To enforce a real per-source cap, request a custom build. | *** ### How it works - TRENDING URLs: `https://github.com/trending/{language}?since={trendingPeriod}` (or `https://github.com/trending?since={trendingPeriod}` for all-languages). - SEARCH URLs: `https://github.com/search?q={query}&type=repositories&sort=stars`. - CheerioCrawler with `maxConcurrency=5`, `maxRequestsPerCrawl=200`, `requestHandlerTimeoutSecs=30`. - Default fallback: if `scrapeTrending=false` AND `searchQueries=[]`, the actor pulls daily-all-languages trending so a no-input run still produces data. *** ### Honest limitations (read before bulk runs) - **`maxReposPerSource` is a DEAD PARAMETER** — destructured at the top of `main.js` but never referenced again. Row iterators (`$('article.Box-row, .Box-row').each(...)` and the SEARCH equivalent) emit ALL parsed rows regardless of this setting. The actual ceiling is `maxRequestsPerCrawl: 200` HTTP requests on the crawler config — NOT a repo count. For a real per-source cap, request a custom build. - **Search pagination is unbounded** (subject only to the crawler's 200-request ceiling). A broad query can chase rel="next" links into hundreds of pages until the crawler limit kicks in. **Workaround:** use specific queries; if you need explicit per-query caps, request a custom build. - **TRENDING ≈ 25 rows per page; SEARCH ≈ 10–25 per page.** With 5 languages × ~25 rows = ~125 TRENDING records. Add searches and the global 200-request ceiling caps total HTTP fetches. - **GitHub HTML changes** — the trending page is stable; SEARCH selectors change more often when GitHub re-skins. The actor uses redundant selectors for both modes; a true rename means a same-week patch. - **No proxy.** Direct CheerioCrawler fetches from Apify worker IP. GitHub does rate-limit unauthenticated scrapers; with `maxConcurrency=5` against trending pages this is rarely a problem, but high-volume search runs can hit 429. Crawlee's default retry handles transient errors (3 attempts). - **No GitHub authentication.** This actor scrapes public HTML, NOT the REST/GraphQL API. Auth would require a different code path entirely (custom build). - **`description` may be empty** for repos without a description set on GitHub. - **`updatedAt` (SEARCH only) may be `null`** if the `` element isn't surfaced in the row. - **`periodStars` only on TRENDING records.** SEARCH records do NOT include `periodStars`, `forks`, or `contributors`. Don't write code that assumes both modes share a schema. - **`contributors` is up to 5 visible avatars** from the "Built by" cluster on the trending row — alt-text only (handles, not commit counts). - **GitHub Enterprise is not supported** — no `/trending` page. *** ### Python integration ```python from apify_client import ApifyClient from collections import defaultdict client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN") run = client.actor("knotless_cadence/github-trending-scraper").call( run_input={ "scrapeTrending": True, "trendingPeriod": "weekly", "languages": ["python", "typescript", "rust"], "maxReposPerSource": 25, } ) repos = list(client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items()) by_lang = defaultdict(list) for r in repos: by_lang[r.get("language") or "(unknown)"].append(r) for lang, rs in by_lang.items(): rs.sort(key=lambda r: r.get("periodStars", 0), reverse=True) print(f"\n=== {lang} — top this week ===") for r in rs[:5]: print(f" +{r.get('periodStars', 0):>5} stars {r['fullName']:40s} {r.get('description','')[:70]}") ``` *** ### Trend-tracking pattern (daily cron → S3) Append daily snapshots; compute breakout-velocity client-side (today's `periodStars` ÷ trailing 7-day median): ```bash curl -s -X POST \ "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/knotless_cadence~github-trending-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"scrapeTrending":true,"trendingPeriod":"daily","maxReposPerSource":25}' \ > "daily_$(date +%Y-%m-%d).json" ``` A repo whose `periodStars` is >2× its 7-day median is a useful breakout signal. Combine with `forks/stars` ratio to filter out star-spam. *** ### Common questions **Q: Why not use the GitHub REST API directly?** A: GitHub has no `/trending` API endpoint — the trending page is frontend-only. This actor scrapes it. For other repo data (stars, forks, contributors over time), use the GitHub REST/GraphQL API directly or pair with [GitHub Profile Scraper](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence/github-profile-scraper). **Q: Can I get stars-over-time for a specific repo?** A: Not from this actor. Combine with `star-history.com` for historical counts, or build a custom snapshot pipeline (see Custom scraping below). **Q: How reliable is the scrape?** A: The trending page HTML has been stable for years. The actor uses redundant selectors (`article.Box-row`, `.Box-row`) and falls back to alternate stars / language extractors. SEARCH selectors are more fragile because GitHub re-skins search more often — when a selector breaks, expect a same-week patch. **Q: Does this work for GitHub Enterprise?** A: No — GitHub Enterprise has no public trending page. Actor works against `github.com` only. **Q: Frequency recommendation?** A: Daily is the sweet spot — the trending window refreshes every 24h. Running hourly won't give you more signal, only more compute cost. **Q: Cost per run?** A: Apify compute-unit pricing. A daily sweep across 5 languages with `maxReposPerSource=25` is typically a few cents. *** ### Export integrations - CSV / JSON / Excel / HTML (native Apify dataset download) - Google Sheets (via Apify integration) - Webhooks on each run - S3 / GCS direct sync - Zapier / Make.com / n8n *** ### Related scrapers | Source | Actor | Data | |--------|-------|------| | GitHub Trending (this) | Trending repos | Open-source signal | | [GitHub Profile Scraper](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence/github-profile-scraper) | Developer profiles + repos | Recruiting / OSS-strategy | | [GitHub Issues Scraper](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence/github-issues-scraper) | Issues / PRs | Project-health diagnostics | | [NPM Package Scraper](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence/npm-package-scraper) | Package metadata | JS ecosystem | | [Hacker News Scraper](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence/hacker-news-scraper) | Tech discussion | Tech discourse | | [Public APIs Directory](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence/public-apis-directory) | Free API catalog | API discovery | | [arXiv Paper Scraper](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence/arxiv-paper-scraper) | Research papers | Academic | All 31 published actors free to inspect on [Apify Store](https://apify.com/store?search=knotless_cadence). *** ### Custom scraping — pilot tiers Need a developers-tab scrape, breakout-repo alert pipeline, multi-window aggregator, or competitor-OSS dashboard? Three tiers: - **Pilot — $97** · 1 actor, basic config, 7-day support. Good entry point — useful for a one-off "top trending in $LANGUAGE this month" report. - **Standard — $297** · custom actor + Slack/email alerts on results, 30-day support. Most DevRel and competitor-OSS projects fit here. - **Premium — $797** · custom actor + dashboard + 90-day support + 1 modification round. For ongoing pipelines (daily breakout-detection rollup, language-cohort competitor tracking, multi-source enrichment with Profile + Issues + NPM). **Email:** — drop the language list and the schema you need; quote within 48h. **Proof of work:** [31 published Apify scrapers](https://apify.com/knotless_cadence) (78 total in portfolio) — Trustpilot 949 runs, Reddit 80+, Google News 43, Glassdoor 37, Email Extractor 36+. Recently delivered a paid 3-article series for a client in the proxy industry ($150). **More tips:** [t.me/scraping_ai](https://t.me/scraping_ai) · [blog.spinov.online](https://blog.spinov.online) *** ### Disclaimer Scrapes the publicly accessible `github.com/trending` and `github.com/search` pages. `maxConcurrency=5` keeps the request rate polite. Not affiliated with GitHub, Inc. or Microsoft Corporation. *Honest disclosure: TRENDING records have 12 fields, SEARCH records have 10 fields (`periodStars`/`forks`/`contributors` are TRENDING-only; `topics`/`updatedAt` are SEARCH-only). No developers-tab scrape, no `trending_rank`, no `license`, no `primary_color`, no `has_sponsorship`. **`maxReposPerSource` is currently a DEAD PARAMETER** — destructured but never used; only `maxRequestsPerCrawl: 200` HTTP-request ceiling enforces. Search-query pagination is unbounded subject to that ceiling. No proxy, no GitHub auth, scrapes public HTML only.* # Actor input Schema ## `scrapeTrending` (type: `boolean`): Whether to scrape repositories from GitHub's trending page ## `trendingPeriod` (type: `string`): Time period for the trending repositories filter ## `languages` (type: `array`): Filter trending by language slug (e.g., 'python', 'javascript', 'rust', 'jupyter-notebook'). Empty = all-languages page. Each language = one HTTP request. ## `searchQueries` (type: `array`): Search GitHub for repositories. Each query follows rel='next' pagination chain (subject only to the global 200-request crawler ceiling). ## `maxReposPerSource` (type: `integer`): DEAD PARAMETER — destructured in main.js but never read. The .each() row iterators have no cap. The only effective limit is maxRequestsPerCrawl=200 (HTTP requests, not repos). To enforce a per-source repo cap, request a custom build. ## Actor input object example ```json { "scrapeTrending": true, "trendingPeriod": "daily", "languages": [], "searchQueries": [], "maxReposPerSource": 50 } ``` # 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 '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = {}; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("knotless_cadence/github-trending-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 '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = {} # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("knotless_cadence/github-trending-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 knotless_cadence/github-trending-scraper --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "type": "http", "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,knotless_cadence/github-trending-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 ` 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/x63b8cXQgMJQqPAL8/builds/wBnqDhF78wN8lqDAP/openapi.json