# Goodreads Book Details Scraper (`parseforge/goodreads-book-details-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes Goodreads book details from lists, shelves, or search queries. Returns one flat row per book with title, author, rating, page count, genres, and more.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/goodreads-book-details-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Education
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $3.62 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

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

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner.jpg)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### Goodreads Book Details Scraper

**Scrape Goodreads book details from any list, shelf, or search query.** Get title, author, rating, page count, genres, and more in one flat row per book. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Goodreads has no official public API for book data, and the unofficial endpoints are rate-limited and unstable. This Actor reads the public book pages directly, so you can pull structured details from any list, shelf, or search result without writing a single line of code. Each book comes back as one clean row, ready for analysis or your own database.

| Who uses it | What they scrape Goodreads for |
|---|---|
| Market researchers | Which books are trending in a genre this quarter |
| Book recommendation developers | Build a dataset of titles and ratings to power a recommendation engine |
| Librarians and booksellers | Enrich their catalog with Goodreads ratings and genre tags |
| Data journalists | Analyze reading trends across lists like Best Books Ever |
| Authors and publishers | Track how their own titles perform on public shelves |

### What it does

This Actor collects book details from Goodreads lists, shelves, or search results and returns each book as a flat row with its title, author, rating, page count, genres, and other metadata.

- 📚 **List and shelf scraping:** paste any Goodreads list or shelf URL and get every book on it.
- 🔍 **Search query mode:** type a title, author, or keyword and the Actor finds matching books.
- 📊 **Flat row output:** each book is one record with title, author, rating, page count, genres, and more.
- ⚡ **Fast and scalable:** run up to a million books per run with a paid plan.
- 🧹 **Clean data:** no HTML, no duplicates, structured fields ready for CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

### What you can do with Goodreads data

**📈 Track genre trends.**

A market researcher scrapes the Best Books Ever list and filters by genre to see which categories are gaining ratings this year.

**🤖 Build a recommendation engine.**

A developer scrapes thousands of books from popular shelves and uses the ratings and genres to train a book recommender.

**📚 Enrich a library catalog.**

A librarian scrapes Goodreads lists for award winners and adds the ratings and page counts to their local catalog.

**📰 Analyze reading trends.**

A data journalist scrapes multiple year-end lists and compares average ratings to find the most polarizing books.

**✍️ Monitor your own titles.**

An author scrapes shelves where their book appears to see how many readers have added it and what rating it has.

### Why choose this scraper

| | What you get |
|---|---|
| **No API key** | Goodreads does not offer a public API, so this Actor reads the pages directly. |
| **One row per book** | Every book is returned as a flat record with consistent fields. |
| **Flexible input** | Use a list URL, shelf URL, or search term to define what to scrape. |
| **Export anywhere** | Download as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or push to your own system. |

### How it compares

This Actor focuses on book details from lists, shelves, and search, while the competitors below also include reviews or ISBN lookups.

| Feature | ParseForge | Goodreads Review Scraper 📚 | Goodreads Books, ISBN & Reviews Scraper API | 📚 Goodreads Book Scraper |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scrape book details from lists | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Yes |
| Scrape book details from shelves | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| Search query input | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Yes |
| Full review text | Not listed | Yes | Yes | Not listed |
| ISBN lookup | Not listed | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |
| Flat row output | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor from Goodreads list URLs, shelf URLs, or a search query. Set a maximum number of books to scrape, and the Actor stops when it reaches that limit. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
 "startUrls": [
 {
 "url": "https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1.Best_Books_Ever"
 }
 ],
 "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
 "startUrls": [
 {
 "url": "https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1.Best_Books_Ever"
 }
 ],
 "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.004 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $0.40 |
| 1,000 results | $4.00 |
| 10,000 results | $40.00 |

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

### Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. [Upgrade your Apify plan](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [Goodreads Book Details Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/goodreads-book-details-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click **Start**.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the **Dataset** tab.

Run it programmatically through the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to Goodreads through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=parseforge/goodreads-book-details-scraper"
```

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting no results?**

Check that your start URLs are valid public Goodreads list or shelf pages. If you provided a search query, make sure it is not too specific. Also verify that your max items is set above 0.

**Why did the run stop after 10 books?**

Free users are limited to 10 items as a preview. Upgrade to a paid plan to scrape more.

**Some books are missing fields like page count or genres.**

Goodreads pages sometimes omit certain details. The Actor returns whatever is publicly available, so missing fields will be empty.

**The run is slow or times out.**

Reduce the max items or split your list into smaller runs. Goodreads may rate-limit aggressive scraping, so consider adding a delay between requests if you have that option.

**I get an error about invalid URL.**

Make sure the URL starts with https://www.goodreads.com/ and points to a list or shelf page, not a book page.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do I need a Goodreads account or API key? | No. The Actor reads public Goodreads pages directly, so no login or API key is required. |
| What input can I provide? | You can provide one or more Goodreads list or shelf URLs, or a search query. If you provide a search query, it overrides the start URLs. |
| How many books can I scrape? | Free users are limited to 10 books as a preview. Paid users can scrape up to 1,000,000 books per run. |
| What data does each book row contain? | Each row includes the book title, author, average rating, number of ratings, page count, genres, and other details available on the public page. |
| Can I scrape a specific shelf like 'to-read'? | Yes, any public shelf URL works. Paste the shelf URL into the start URLs field. |
| Does it handle pagination? | Yes, the Actor automatically follows pagination on lists and shelves until it reaches your max items limit. |
| What formats can I export to? | You can export the results as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML. |
| Is the data live? | Yes, the Actor scrapes the current public pages at the time of the run, so ratings and other details are up to date. |
| Can I schedule recurring runs? | Yes, you can schedule the Actor to run daily, weekly, or at any interval to keep your dataset fresh. |
| Does it scrape reviews as well? | No, this Actor focuses on book details. For reviews, use the Goodreads Review Scraper. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **Need help?** Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ **Disclaimer.** This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Goodreads, Inc. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.

# Actor input Schema

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

List of Goodreads list or shelf URLs to scrape books from.

## `searchQuery` (type: `string`):

Optional search term to find books on Goodreads. If provided, overrides start URLs.

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

Free users: Limited to 10 items (preview). Paid users: Optional, max 1,000,000

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "startUrls": [
    {
      "url": "https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1.Best_Books_Ever"
    }
  ],
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

Complete dataset of all scraped records.

# 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": [
        {
            "url": "https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1.Best_Books_Ever"
        }
    ],
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/goodreads-book-details-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": [{ "url": "https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1.Best_Books_Ever" }],
    "maxItems": 10,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/goodreads-book-details-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": [
    {
      "url": "https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1.Best_Books_Ever"
    }
  ],
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/goodreads-book-details-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/goodreads-book-details-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/V6XyTjOFKvaZeFRUj/builds/bzdnLdIaLsaKyu7Wo/openapi.json