# TikTok User Search Scraper (`toolzerhub/tiktok-user-search-scraper`) Actor

Search TikTok user accounts by keyword. Get IDs, nicknames, bios, avatars, verification, privacy, region, and account statistics for every result, with optional full-profile detail. Export the data, run it via API, or schedule and monitor creator research.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/toolzerhub/tiktok-user-search-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ToolzerHub](https://apify.com/toolzerhub) (community)
- **Categories:** Social media, Lead generation, Automation
- **Stats:** 3 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $2.00 / 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

## TikTok User Search Scraper

Search TikTok for accounts by keyword. One row per creator, with identity fields, region, verification and counts. Pagination is automatic.

Use it when you need handles you do not have yet -- a niche, a brand name, a topic.

### Input

| Field | Use it for |
|---|---|
| **`keyword`** | What to search for. Required. |
| **`maxItems`** | Caps the run. Default `100`. Set `0` for no limit. |
| **`addonProfile`** | Fetches each account's full public profile and merges it into the row. One extra request **per result**. |

```json
{
  "keyword": "sourdough baker",
  "maxItems": 250
}
```

### Output

| Field | Contents |
|---|---|
| **`username`**, **`user_id`**, **`sec_user_id`** | Identifiers |
| **`nickname`** | Display name |
| **`description`** | Bio |
| **`avatar_url`** | Profile picture |
| **`is_verified`**, **`is_private`** | Account flags |
| **`region`** | Account region, when reported |
| **`stats`** | Follower, following, video and like counts |

```json
{
  "username": "thesourdoughjournal",
  "user_id": "6841239857123049474",
  "sec_user_id": "MS4wLjABAAAA...",
  "nickname": "The Sourdough Journal",
  "description": "open crumb or nothing",
  "is_verified": false,
  "is_private": false,
  "region": "US",
  "stats": { "follower_count": 412000, "aweme_count": 863 }
}
```

### When to turn on `addonProfile`

Search results are already fairly complete -- handle, IDs, nickname, bio, avatar, flags, region and stats all arrive in the base row.

What the add-on buys you is the full public web profile, fetched fresh per account. It costs one extra request per result, so 250 results is 250 extra requests. Worth it when search rows come back with gaps you need filled; wasteful when you were going to use `username` and `follower_count` and nothing else.

### Questions

**Why did I get fewer accounts than `maxItems`?**
TikTok's user search paginates with a cursor and stops issuing new ones well before a keyword is exhausted. The run ends when TikTok reports no more pages, returns an empty page, or repeats a cursor.

**Can I filter by follower count or region?**
Not as an input. Search returns TikTok's own ranking. Filter on `stats.follower_count` or `region` after the run.

**Does this find accounts by their display name or their handle?**
Both -- it is the app's own account search, which matches on handle, nickname and bio text. That is also why results can look loose: an account with your keyword in its bio ranks alongside one with it in its handle.

**Some rows have no `region`. Is that a bug?**
No. TikTok does not report a region for every account, and the field is left absent rather than filled with a guess.

### Related Actors

| Actor | Purpose |
|---|---|
| [Bulk TikTok Profile Scraper](https://apify.com/toolzerhub/tiktok-profile-scraper) | Full detail on handles you already have, without the per-result add-on cost |
| [TikTok Profile Videos Scraper](https://apify.com/toolzerhub/tiktok-profile-videos-scraper) | What the accounts you found actually post |
| [TikTok Video Search Scraper](https://apify.com/toolzerhub/tiktok-video-search-scraper) | Same search, returning videos instead of accounts |

### Support

Questions, bugs, or feature requests: **contact@toolzerhub.com**

Browse the rest: [apify.com/toolzerhub](https://apify.com/toolzerhub)

# Actor input Schema

## `keyword` (type: `string`):

Keyword or phrase to search TikTok for.

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

Maximum number of items to save. Set 0 for no limit.

## `addonProfile` (type: `boolean`):

Fetch the full public web profile for every result and merge it into the base row. One extra request per result.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "keyword": "cats",
  "maxItems": 20,
  "addonProfile": false
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `dataset` (type: `string`):

Every record collected during this run

# 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 = {
    "keyword": "cats",
    "maxItems": 20
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("toolzerhub/tiktok-user-search-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 = {
    "keyword": "cats",
    "maxItems": 20,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("toolzerhub/tiktok-user-search-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 '{
  "keyword": "cats",
  "maxItems": 20
}' |
apify call toolzerhub/tiktok-user-search-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,toolzerhub/tiktok-user-search-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/pxlpTVXiKKXAGJzgg/builds/yo0zHATCz0FQCrZRY/openapi.json