# Facebook Search Posts (`scrapeforge/facebook-search-posts`) Actor

Search Facebook posts, pages, groups, people, videos and events by keyword. Returns detailed data including reactions breakdown, media URLs, and engagement metrics.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/scrapeforge/facebook-search-posts.md
- **Developed by:** [ScrapeForge](https://apify.com/scrapeforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Social media, Automation, Videos
- **Stats:** 20,827 total users, 459 monthly users, 99.9% runs succeeded, 22 bookmarks
- **User rating**: 3.63 out of 5 stars

## Pricing

from $2.59 / 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.

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

## Facebook Search Posts

Search Facebook by keyword and extract posts, pages, groups, people, videos, and events. Get structured data with full engagement metrics, author details, and media URLs.

### What does Facebook Search Posts do?

This actor lets you search Facebook just like you would on facebook.com, but returns structured, machine-readable data. Enter a keyword and get back matching posts with all their metadata — perfect for market research, brand monitoring, competitive analysis, and content discovery.

### Features

- **6 search types**: Posts, Pages, Groups, People, Videos, and Events
- **Date filtering**: Narrow results to a specific date range
- **Location filtering**: Scope searches to a geographic area using Facebook location UIDs
- **Automatic deduplication**: No duplicate results in your dataset
- **Automatic pagination**: Fetches as many results as you need (up to 1,000)
- **Engagement metrics**: Reactions breakdown (like, love, haha, wow, sad, angry, care), comments count, and shares count
- **Rich media**: Image URLs with dimensions, video files (SD/HD), video thumbnails
- **Author info**: Name, profile URL, and profile picture for each post author

### Input parameters

| Parameter | Type | Description |
|-----------|------|-------------|
| `query` | String | **Required.** The keyword or phrase to search for |
| `search_type` | Enum | Type of content: `posts`, `pages`, `groups`, `people`, `videos`, `events`. Default: `posts` |
| `max_results` | Integer | Maximum unique results to return (1–1,000). Default: `5` — a quick sample; use 50–200 for real analysis |
| `start_date` | Date | Filter results from this date (YYYY-MM-DD) |
| `end_date` | Date | Filter results until this date (YYYY-MM-DD) |
| `recent_posts` | Boolean | Sort by most recent instead of relevance. Default: `false` |
| `location_uid` | String | Optional. Facebook location UID to filter by geographic area — see [Using the search filters](#using-the-search-filters) |

### Using the search filters

#### Pick the search type before anything else

`search_type` defaults to `posts`. On `posts`, the actor searches the **text of posts**, so a search for `Maria Gonzalez` returns posts that mention that name — not her profile. To find profiles, pages, groups, videos, or events, switch `search_type` to the matching type first. This is the most common reason a search comes back empty.

#### Put only the search term in `query`

Facebook matches `query` against the content itself, so it does not understand compound queries. Searching `people` for `Maria Gonzalez Santiago` finds nothing, because no profile is named that. Search the name alone and use the filters below to narrow it down.

#### Location UID (advanced, optional)

`location_uid` is optional and most searches don't need it — leave it empty for a global search. When set, it expects **Facebook's internal numeric ID for a place**, not a city or country name. Passing `Santiago` or `Chile` will not work.

To find the UID for a place:

1. Run the equivalent search on `facebook.com` and apply the city filter in the left sidebar.
2. Open any result's profile and go to its **About** tab.
3. Click the city listed there. That opens Facebook's page for that location.
4. The number at the end of that page's URL is the location UID.

Paste that number into `location_uid`.

### Output

Each result in the dataset contains:

```json
{
  "post_id": "pfbid02ABC123",
  "type": "photo",
  "url": "https://www.facebook.com/user/posts/pfbid02ABC123",
  "message": "Check out this amazing product!",
  "timestamp": 1710864000,
  "comments_count": 42,
  "reactions_count": 156,
  "reshare_count": 12,
  "reactions": {
    "like": 100,
    "love": 30,
    "haha": 10,
    "wow": 8,
    "sad": 3,
    "angry": 2,
    "care": 3
  },
  "author": {
    "id": "123456789",
    "name": "John Doe",
    "url": "https://www.facebook.com/johndoe",
    "profile_picture_url": "https://.../"
  },
  "image": {
    "uri": "https://.../",
    "height": 720,
    "width": 1280,
    "id": "img123"
  },
  "video": null,
  "external_url": null
}
```

### Use cases

- **Brand monitoring**: Track mentions of your brand, products, or competitors
- **Market research**: Discover trends and public sentiment around topics
- **Content discovery**: Find popular posts in your niche for inspiration
- **Lead generation**: Identify potential customers discussing relevant topics
- **Event tracking**: Monitor discussions around events, launches, or campaigns
- **Competitive analysis**: Analyze competitor engagement and content strategy

### Pricing

This actor is priced per result. You only pay for the results you get — no hidden fees for failed runs or empty searches.

### Usage limits for free tier users

To keep the service sustainable, accounts on the **Apify Free plan** have the following limits when running this actor:

- **Up to 20 results per run** — any higher value in `max_results` is automatically reduced.
- **1 run per 24 hours** — a second run launched within 24 hours of the previous one finishes immediately with a status message explaining when to retry.

When a limit is reached, the run finishes gracefully (no error) and the status message explains what happened.

**Paid plans** (Starter / Bronze and above) are not subject to these per-actor limits. To remove the restrictions, upgrade your Apify plan at <https://console.apify.com/billing>.

### Limitations

- Results depend on Facebook's public search availability
- Some posts may not be accessible if the author has restricted visibility
- Video file URLs (SD/HD) may expire after some time

### Disclaimer

This is an **unofficial** actor and is **not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Facebook or Meta**. It is developed and maintained independently. Facebook is a trademark of Meta Platforms, Inc.

This actor accesses only publicly available data. Users are responsible for ensuring their use complies with Facebook's Terms of Service and all applicable laws. By using this actor, you agree that you are solely responsible for how you use the extracted data.

# Actor input Schema

## `query` (type: `string`):

The keyword or phrase to search for on Facebook.

## `search_type` (type: `string`):

What type of Facebook content to search for.

## `max_results` (type: `integer`):

Maximum number of unique results to return. The actor automatically deduplicates results. 5 is a quick sample for testing — for real analysis use 50 to 200. Costs $0.0026 per result. Free Apify plans are capped at 20 results.

## `start_date` (type: `string`):

Filter results from this date (format: YYYY-MM-DD). Leave empty for no date filter.

## `end_date` (type: `string`):

Filter results until this date (format: YYYY-MM-DD). Leave empty for no date filter.

## `recent_posts` (type: `boolean`):

Sort results by most recent instead of relevance. May return less relevant results.

## `location_uid` (type: `string`):

Facebook location UID to filter results by geographic area. Leave empty for global search.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "query": "marketing digital",
  "search_type": "posts",
  "max_results": 5,
  "recent_posts": false
}
```

# Actor output Schema

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

Facebook posts with fields: post\_id, type, url, message, timestamp, comments\_count, reactions\_count, reshare\_count, reactions breakdown, author info, image, video, and external URLs.

# 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 = {
    "query": "marketing digital"
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("scrapeforge/facebook-search-posts").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 = { "query": "marketing digital" }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("scrapeforge/facebook-search-posts").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 '{
  "query": "marketing digital"
}' |
apify call scrapeforge/facebook-search-posts --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,scrapeforge/facebook-search-posts"
        }
    }
}

```

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/F60Kx7YJNOmKmqQm3/builds/eQStKc9eI23uQBMEd/openapi.json