# Hugging Face Collections Scraper (`parseforge/huggingface-collections-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes Hugging Face Collections by search term, owner, or sort order. Returns each collection as a flat row with title, description, upvotes, and model references.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/huggingface-collections-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** AI, Developer tools, Automation
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 89.7% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $7.50 / 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)

### Hugging Face Collections Scraper

**Scrape Hugging Face Collections by search term, owner, or sort order, up to a million per run.** Each collection comes with its title, description, upvotes, and model references. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Hugging Face's official API needs a token for many endpoints and rate-limits you. This reads the public Collections feed directly, filtered by owner, search term, and sort order, and returns each match in one fixed schema.

| Who uses it | What they scrape Hugging Face for |
|---|---|
| ML researchers | Which model collections a lab or organization curates |
| Developer advocates | What collections are trending in a niche right now |
| Data analysts | How collections grow and change over time |
| Product managers | Which collections competitors publish and update |

### What it does

This Actor collects Hugging Face Collections by search term, owner, or sort order, and returns each one as a flat row.

- 🔍 **Search term:** free-text search across collection titles, trimmed before it is sent to the API.
- 👤 **Owner filter:** restrict results to one Hugging Face user or organization, like huggingface or meta-llama.
- 📈 **Sort order:** upvotes, trending, or last modified, so you get the most relevant collections first.
- 📦 **Bulk export:** up to 1,000,000 collections per run, saved as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

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

### What you can do with Hugging Face data

**📊 Track trending collections.**

A market researcher runs the Actor daily with sort=trending to see which model collections gain traction this week.

**🔎 Audit an organization's public work.**

A developer advocate filters by owner=meta-llama to list every collection that lab publishes, for a newsletter.

**🧪 Find niche model sets.**

An ML engineer searches for 'small language models' to discover curated collections they would otherwise miss.

**📈 Monitor collection growth.**

A data analyst scrapes the same owner weekly and compares upvote counts to measure community interest.

### Why choose this scraper

|  | What you get |
|---|---|
| **No API key** | The public Collections feed needs no token, so you can start scraping in minutes. |
| **Flat rows** | Every collection is returned as one flat record, ready for spreadsheets or a database. |
| **Flexible input** | Search by title, filter by owner, and sort by upvotes, trending, or last modified. |
| **Large scale** | Collect up to a million collections per run, with automatic pagination. |

### How it compares

This Actor focuses on Collections only, while the Hugging Face Hub API actor covers models, datasets, and spaces but not collections.

| Feature | ParseForge | Hugging Face Hub API |
|---|---|---|
| Scrapes Collections | Yes | Not listed |
| Search by collection title | Yes | Not listed |
| Filter by owner | Yes | Not listed |
| Sort by upvotes, trending, or last modified | Yes | Not listed |
| Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, XML | Yes | Not listed |
| No API key required | Yes | Not listed |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor from a search term, an owner, and a sort order, alone or together, and filters run as each collection is read so only matches reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
  "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.0085 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $0.85 |
| 1,000 results | $8.50 |
| 10,000 results | $85.00 |

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 [Hugging Face Collections Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/huggingface-collections-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 Hugging Face 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/huggingface-collections-scraper"
```

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

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting no results?**

Check your search term and owner filter. The search is exact on titles, so try a shorter term. Also confirm the owner slug is correct.

**Why did the run stop before maxItems?**

The feed may have fewer collections than maxItems, or the API returned an error. Check the run log for details.

**Why are some collections missing fields?**

Hugging Face sometimes omits optional fields like description. The Actor returns what the API provides.

**Can I get more than 1,000,000 collections?**

The hard limit is 1,000,000 per run. Split your query by owner or search term and run multiple times.

**Why is the sort order not what I expected?**

The API may interpret sort differently. Try another sort value and compare the results.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do I need a Hugging Face API token? | No. This Actor reads the public Collections feed, which does not require authentication. |
| Can I scrape collections from a specific user or organization? | Yes. Set the owner input to the Hugging Face username or organization slug, such as huggingface or meta-llama. |
| What does each collection row include? | Each row includes the collection title, description, upvotes, last modified date, and the models it references, in a flat schema. |
| How many collections can I get in one run? | Up to 1,000,000. The Actor paginates automatically until it reaches maxItems or the feed ends. |
| Can I search by keyword? | Yes. The search input does a free-text search across collection titles. |
| What sort orders are supported? | Upvotes, trending, and last modified. Choose one in the sort input. |
| What formats can I export to? | CSV, JSON, Excel, and XML, all available from the Apify dataset tab. |
| Does this scrape models or datasets too? | No, this Actor is for Collections only. For models, datasets, and spaces, use a Hugging Face Hub API actor. |
| Is this legal? | You should only scrape public data in accordance with Hugging Face's terms of service and applicable laws. |
| Can I schedule this to run automatically? | Yes. Use Apify schedules to run it hourly, daily, or weekly, and get notified when new collections appear. |

### 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 Hugging Face, 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

## `search` (type: `string`):

Free-text search across Collections titles. Trimmed before being sent to the API.

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

How many collections to collect per run.

## `owner` (type: `string`):

Filter by Hugging Face owner or organization (e.g. huggingface, meta-llama).

## `sort` (type: `string`):

Sort order for the API.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10,
  "sort": "upvotes"
}
```

# Actor output Schema

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

No description

# 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 = {
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/huggingface-collections-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 = { "maxItems": 10 }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/huggingface-collections-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 '{
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/huggingface-collections-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/huggingface-collections-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/GTordJ9iLw1vOjdFJ/builds/CtsH7WlmCyotxZhKM/openapi.json