apify-linkedin-posts-scraper

Files (3)

• SKILL.md
• actor-index.md · references/
• gotchas.md · references/

SKILL.md (first lines)

# LinkedIn Posts Scraper: Posts to Structured JSON

Scrape public LinkedIn posts into clean JSON with the Apify LinkedIn Posts API. Point it at a profile to pull that person's recent posts, or pass specific post URLs to fetch them directly. You get one flat row per post: text, hashtags, media, author, and engagement counts.

## When to use this skill

- The user wants to scrape or export LinkedIn posts (to JSON, CSV, a sheet, or a database).
- They want a creator's, brand's, or competitor's recent posts.
- They want to build a dataset of posts for research, monitoring, or content ideas.
- They ask for a "LinkedIn posts scraper" or "LinkedIn posts API".

Not for: private or connection-only content, profile bio data (use the LinkedIn Profile API), or company pages (use the LinkedIn Company API).

## What you get (one row per post)

`postUrl`, `postId`, `postType`, `datePosted`, `title`, `text`, `hashtags`, `authorName`, `authorHeadline`, `authorUrl`, `authorFollowers`, `authorType`, `numLikes`, `numComments`, `numShares`, `images`, `videos`, `embeddedLinks`, `taggedCompanies`, `taggedPeople`, `topComments`, `summary`. A post that cannot be collected comes back as an error row (`result_type` = "error") instead of failing the run.

## Prerequisites

- Apify account (sign up at https://apify.com?fpr=9n7kx3&fp_sid=skillrepo).
- Authentication via `apify login`, or an `APIFY_TOKEN` environment variable (Apify Console, Settings, Integrations).

## The Actor

- Store page: https://apify.com/johnvc/linkedin-posts-api?fpr=9n7kx3&fp_sid=skillrepo
- Actor ID: `johnvc/linkedin-posts-api`
- Pricing: pay per post returned (see `references/gotchas.md`).

## Run it with the Apify CLI

Discover a profile's recent posts:

```bash
apify actors call "johnvc/linkedin-posts-api" -i '{"profileUrls":["https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamhgates"],"maxPostsPerProfile":20}' \
  --json \
  --user-agent apify-awesome-skills/apify-linkedin-posts-scraper \
  2>/dev/null
```

Fetch specific posts by URL:

```bash
apify actors call "johnvc/linkedin-posts-api" -i '{"postUrls":["https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7446904645010210816"]}' \
  --json \
  --user-agent apify-awesome-skills/apify-linkedin-posts-scraper \
  2>/dev/null
```

Every call carries the three flags this repo expects: `--json`, `--user-agent apify-awesome-skills/apify-linkedin-posts-scraper`, and `2>/dev/null`.

## Run it from Claude or another AI agent (MCP)

The Actor is MCP-ready. Add the hosted server URL:

`https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=actors,docs,johnvc/linkedin-posts-api`

Then ask, for example: "Use the LinkedIn Posts API to pull Bill Gates's last 20 posts and export them as JSON." MCP setup docs: https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp

## Workflow

1. Pick the mode. Profile URLs for discovery (up to 25 per run), or post URLs for exact fetches (up to 1000 per run). You can pass both; supply at least one.
2. Bound the volume. Set `maxPostsPerProfile` (default 20, max 200), and, for a window, `startDate` and `endDate` (YYYY-MM-DD, discovery only).
3. Estimate cost, then confirm with the user if the run is large. See `references/gotchas.md`.
4. Run the Actor and read the dataset. Deliver the rows as JSON or CSV, or hand back the dataset link.

## Inputs

- `profileUrls` (array of `/in/` profile URLs, up to 25, discovery mode)
- `postUrls` (array of post URLs, up to 1000, exact fetch)
- `maxPostsPerProfile` (integer, default 20, max 200)
- `startDate` / `endDate` (YYYY-MM-DD, discovery only)

Non-`/in/` profile URLs (company or school pages) are skipped.

## Cost

Billing is per post returned, so a discovery run costs roughly the number of profiles times `maxPostsPerProfile`. Estimate first and confirm large runs. Thresholds are in `references/gotchas.md`.

## Troubleshooting

- Empty profile: you get an error row (`result_type` "error", `error_type` "CollectionError"), not a failed run. Skip it; the rest of the batch still returns.
- Wrong URL type: only `/in/` profile URLs discover posts; company or school URLs are skipped.
- Over a limit: keep profiles at 25 or fewer and post URLs at 1000 or fewer per run; split larger jobs into batches.

See `references/gotchas.md` for cost guardrails and error recovery, and `references/actor-index.md` for the Actor routing table.

## Related LinkedIn Actors

- LinkedIn Profile API: https://apify.com/johnvc/linkedin-profile-api?fpr=9n7kx3&fp_sid=skillrepo
- LinkedIn Company API: https://apify.com/johnvc/linkedin-company-api?fpr=9n7kx3&fp_sid=skillrepo
- LinkedIn Jobs API: https://apify.com/johnvc/linkedin-jobs-api?fpr=9n7kx3&fp_sid=skillrepo

From johnisanerd/claude-skill-linkedin-posts-scraper, MIT.